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People fault govt move to buy choppers
2007-05-19 09:18:24
By David Mambo
Most Tanzanians have termed the move to buy two helicopters for flying top government officials with a view to easing traffic jams in Dar es Salaam as misappropriation of funds.
The Guardian managed to talk to a number of people in the city who aired their comments.
A resident of Ilala, Mariam Ally, said the government should not spend such an amount of money just to ease their transport worries.
She said leaders should opt for other means of transport to go to remote areas instead of incurring unnecessary expenses on buying helicopters.
Hassan Mohamed, a resident of Magomeni in the city, explained that the government should improve the infrastructure to ease traffic jams instead of opting for helicopters.
He said the government has been concentrating on its officials regardless of the costs involved, adding that there are many people suffering.
`There is no need to buy helicopters. After all government officials don’t meet all the time,` he insisted.
SUMATRA Public Affairs Officer David Mziray said the choppers would help reduce traffic jams, although he conceded that VIP motorcades aren`t that regular.
Mziray explained that the jams were mostly caused by VIP motorcades, saying the choppers would bring relief to other road users, especially motorists who have to wait for an official motorcade to pass.
Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority Public Relations Officer Abel Ngapemba said the authority was pleased with the big step that the government had taken, pledging his firm’s cooperation when required to help.
`Helicopters will be handy in rescue missions such as floods,` he said.
The Tanzania Government Flight Agency said on Thursday that it would buy two new helicopters in the coming financial year to fly top officials to areas not easily accessible by road.
TGFA Chief Executive Officer John Mkony said in Dar es Salaam that, with the choppers, traffic police would no longer need to clear roads because they would be taking off and landing at State House premises to or from whatever location.
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