Pan African Visions

Mpina vs. Nchemba: Kisesa MP Challenges Tanzania’s Alarming Debt Surge Crisis

June 10, 2025

By Adonis Byemelwa

Critics say the Finance Minister has remained conveniently silent on this ballooning threat to our national economy and security. Photo courtesy

Kisesa MP Luhaga Mpina has once again ignited controversy in the Parliament of Tanzania, emerging as a strong critic of what he calls the government's persistent failure to combat financial mismanagement.

In his latest contribution to the 2025/2026 national budget discussions, Mpina directly targeted Finance Minister Dr. Mwigulu Nchemba, accusing him of intentionally hiding critical fiscal data and fostering systemic economic opacity.

Long known for his relentless scrutiny of government conduct, Mpina has positioned himself as a key voice in the fight against the abuse of public resources. His latest tirade is particularly striking, not only for its detailed substance but also because of the symbolic weight it carries: he criticizes even as he indirectly attributes failure to President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who is both a political ally and a major backer of Nchemba. That contrast emphasizes the gravity of Mpina's concerns.

"The Finance Intelligence Unit (FIU) reported in the 2022/2023 financial year that over 16,000 suspicious transactions totaling TZS 280 trillion were flagged," Mpina told Parliament. "But only 769 were analyzed—a meager 5%. Of those, just 314 were categorized as hidden, accounting for 41% of analyzed cases. Yet the following year's reports failed to mention these figures altogether."

This, according to Mpina, is not merely an omission. It is a calculated act of suppression. "After the 2022/2023 FIU report raised eyebrows in Parliament, the Minister decided to suppress these critical disclosures in subsequent budgets," he asserted.

Adding to the suspicion, Mpina pointed out that the 2025 report from the Budget Committee had observed that suspicious transactions had skyrocketed to 1.3 million, amounting to TZS 463 trillion.

This unprecedented leap, he argued, demanded a corresponding increase in government vigilance and transparency—neither of which materialized. "The Finance Minister has remained conveniently silent on this ballooning threat to our national economy and security," Mpina noted, frustration thick in his voice.

As the 2025/2026 budget discussions concluded and the Finance Minister rose to summarize MPs' contributions, many anticipated a rebuttal or at least an acknowledgment of Mpina's piercing allegations. Instead, Nchemba addressed other matters, omitting Mpina's contribution entirely.

"The Minister chose to dodge the most pressing issues," a visibly dismayed Mpina said afterward. "My detailed written submission was officially sent to his office, but it was cast aside as if it didn’t exist."

Efforts to obtain clarification from the Ministry of Finance have so far hit a wall. Requests for comment on the issues raised by Mpina were met with silence. Still, analysts familiar with Tanzania’s fiscal policy confirm that debt figures presented by the Bank of Tanzania and global financial monitors lend credence to Mpina’s assertions, at least in part.

One of Mpina’s most controversial revelations concerned Tanzania's ongoing classification by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) as a jurisdiction under increased monitoring due to suspected money laundering activities. According to him, this international black mark isn’t just a reputational issue; it affects investment, employment, and economic credibility.

"This government is playing with fire," he said. "We are a country still under financial surveillance by FATF, yet our Minister refuses to even mention that in his address. Are we to pretend these risks don’t exist?"

Beyond the high-level financial monitoring issues, Mpina also honed in on real-life consequences, such as the stalling of development projects under the Force Account mechanism. He cited his own Kisesa constituency, where several government-funded construction projects have ground to a halt due to procedural and resource bottlenecks. "Contractors can’t access materials. Timelines are ignored. Costs are spiraling," he lamented.

In a particularly searing indictment, Mpina criticized the government's continued use of tax exemptions and the failure to collect revenue due from tax appeal rulings. "The Finance Minister has told us about decisions made by the Tax Revenue Appeals Board and Tribunal, and even the Court of Appeal, but not once has he informed Parliament how much money was collected post-judgment," Mpina said.

According to the opposition MP, this omission is not accidental but a symptom of a wider pattern: the government’s apparent willingness to let trillions slip through the cracks. "The Tanzania Revenue Authority fails to collect TZS 10.5 trillion annually due to pending appeals. That’s over 30% of its yearly target. And what do we hear from the Minister? Not a word."

Despite what he describes as a hostile legislative environment, Mpina remains undeterred. His voice is firm, his message unflinching. "For too long, the Minister has breached the Constitution and our financial laws with impunity," he said. "He shields personal interests, disrespects this House, and misleads the public."

His call to action is equally unequivocal. He has formally recommended that Parliament demand the Finance Minister submit comprehensive reports detailing all loans, FIU activity, tax appeal rulings, and tax exemptions. He has also called on oversight bodies like the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) and the Ethics Secretariat to investigate both the Minister's integrity and his unexplained wealth.

Behind Mpina's firebrand tone is a sense of urgency. The Kisesa MP doesn’t just want accountability; he believes the integrity of Tanzania's financial system is at stake. With the nation under increased scrutiny by international watchdogs and the local economy showing signs of fiscal strain, his concerns are not easily dismissed.

To many Tanzanians, his questions echo louder than the Finance Minister’s silence. Why, for example, are such large volumes of suspicious transactions going unanalyzed? Why are hidden transactions—many possibly linked to illicit financial flows, smuggling, or price manipulation—not being flagged more robustly? And perhaps most pressingly: why has the government allowed a culture of financial evasion to take root, even as it touts reform and good governance?

Those are not abstract questions. As Mpina puts it, "This isn't about me. It's about the mother in Mwanza who can’t get medical supplies. It's about the student in Singida whose school construction is frozen. It’s about the worker in Dar es Salaam who’s overtaxed because the big fish are let off the hook."

At a time when Parliament is expected to hold the executive to account, the lack of response from Minister Nchemba has left a noticeable vacuum. Mpina’s relentless pressure, some analysts argue, is beginning to resonate more broadly, not just in opposition circles but even among some ruling party MPs who privately concede the issues he raises are valid.

This is not the first time Mpina has gone toe-to-toe with high-ranking government officials. But this latest clash with the finance minister comes at a crucial time: Tanzania is juggling a swelling national debt, donor fatigue, and growing internal dissatisfaction with the pace of development. The Finance Ministry’s refusal to address pointed questions from one of the most persistent voices in Parliament only fuels further skepticism.

Citing figures from the Controller and Auditor General (CAG), Mpina pointed to a disturbing trend: Tanzania’s public debt has surged from TSh 50 trillion in 2019/2020 to over TSh 71 trillion by April 2024. “We’re not just borrowing—we’re sinking, and no one is explaining why,” he warned in Parliament.

What made his intervention even more striking was the Finance Minister’s response—or lack of it. Despite receiving Mpina’s detailed written concerns, Nchemba sidestepped them entirely in his wrap-up, focusing instead on routine policy lines. The silence, for Mpina and many watching, spoke volumes.

Perhaps the most enduring takeaway from this budget season won’t be the figures themselves, but the moral indictment delivered by a lone MP from Kisesa who dared to say what others only whisper. As the dust settles, one thing is clear: the questions Luhaga Mpina has raised are not going away anytime soon. And the nation is watching.

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