DAR ES SALAAM, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian President John Magufuli on Monday ordered the east African nation's anti-graft watchdog to investigate grand deals suspected to have made through corruption and fraud.
A statement from the Directorate of Presidential Communications at State House in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam said the president made the order when he made an impromptu visit to the headquarters of the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB).
"PCCB should not hesitate to take relevant measures when it has enough evidence against people with corruption charges," said President Magufuli.
Magufuli made the order hardly a week after he had expressed concerns over the slow pace of investigations and conviction of corruption cases.
On Thursday last week, Magufuli urged the PCCB to make sure that investigations, prosecution and conviction of corruption cases were hastened in order to eliminate this social cancer.
The president expressed his aversion shortly after he had sworn in Brigadier General Julius Mbungo as Deputy Director General of the PCCB.
On Monday, Magufuli said PCCB should focus its investigations on various issues with corruption implications, including the revelation of 19,500 ghost workers, 56,000 phantom families that were getting financial assistance from the Tanzania Social Action Fund (TASAF), 5,850 phantom students who secured education loans and the purchase of 11 locomotive engines without a contract.
"All these were done through corrupt means. We want PCCB to investigate them and prosecute the offenders," said Magufuli.
On Thursday, President Magufuli said:"If we succeed fighting corruption by 80 per cent this country will have made huge progress. And investors are attracted to countries that have managed to control corruption," he said.
He added: "Most of the problems facing Tanzania have been caused by corruption. We have ghost workers. We have drugs. We have bad contracts, and we have fake academic certificates. All these have been caused by corruption."
Magufuili appealed to leaders in the east African nation to unite towards the fight against corruption.
"As your leader, I have decided to fight corruption with full force. I need your full support. All people convicted with corruption should be jailed without mercy," he said.
Last year, Tanzania established a specialized court on economic, corruption and organized crime after President Magufuli has assented into law a Bill approved by Parliament to establish it.
Magufuli had promised to establish the anti-corruption court during presidential campaigns for the October 2015 general election, saying fighting corruption was one of his priorities.
The PCCB Director General, Valentino Mlowola, said the decision by the government to establish the court showed its political will in fighting corruption.
Statistics showed that there were 3,911 cases involving corruption allegations during the 2015/16 year. Investigations on 324 of them had already been completed.
