DAR ES SALAAM, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian President John Magufuli said on Friday fighting corruption was an uphill task that called for hard decisions.
Magufuli likened corruption to a social cancer that was very hard to treat.
"Fighting corruption is as hard as treating a chronic disease," Magufuli said in a news conference which was televised live by the national broadcaster Tanzania Broadcasting Corporation.
He said since he came to office in November 2015, one of his priorities was to fight corruption by establishing a special anti-corruption court dealing specifically with people implicated with corruption.
"This special court was created after parliament had approved a bill designed at establishing the court," said the Tanzanian leader.
At the same time, said Magufuli, he made sure that the country's anti-corruption watchdog, the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB), was also reinforced to enable it to deal with the malpractice without fear or favor.
Magufuli mentioned a catalogue of measures that his 5th phase administration has taken in fighting corruption, including the restoration of discipline among public servants that has resulted in increased productivity in service delivery.
He added that his government also uncovered over 20,000 phantom workers and those with fake academic credentials, adding that all these were removed from government payroll.
He said over 190 million U.S. dollars were saved by the government after it had removed the phantom workers and unqualified personnel from the government payroll.
The introduction of cost cutting measures that saw reduced foreign trips for government officials and cutting down the budget for unnecessary meetings was also part of the fight against corruption, said Magufuli.
He said during the UN General Assembly held in New York in September he only dispatched a four-man delegation comprising the Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation and three other officials, saving the taxpayers money.
"We could have spent a colossal amount of money if I went there with my advance party and stayed in a five-star hotel. But I decided not to send the Vice-President with her advance party or the Prime Minister," said Magufuli.
Magufuli said the money saved from these measures was directed to development projects and provision of social services.
For his part, President Museveni saluted President Magufuli for efforts he was undertaking in fighting corruption, saying that he has added a new dimension in the fight.
The Ugandan leader said President Magufuli was succeeding in the war on corruption because he was not entertaining bureaucratic methods in the course of fighting the social cancer.
"I salute President Magufuli because there has been visible impact inside Tanzania," he said.
During his visit to Uganda, President Magufuli and his host laid the second foundation stone for the construction of the 1,445-kilometre East African Crude Oil Pipeline from Hoima in Uganda to Tanga port in Tanzania.
The first foundation stone for the 3.55-billion-dollar project was laid by the two heads of state in Tanga region on Aug. 5 this year.
