CORPORATE FINANCE
ECONOMIC & PUBLIC POLICY
MEDIA REPORT: NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2009
The last two months of 2009 are here presented as a brief
combined report. In November, it was the unexpected meeting
between President Amani Abeid Karume and CUF Secretary
General Seif Sharif Hamad that captured everyone’s attention.
The two leaders forged a hasty if unexplained friendship which
led to CUF calling for the extension of President Karume’s time in
office. In December, it was President Kikwete’s performance that
Headline News Analysis
In spite of attracting significant attention as sensitive political
developments the main stories in November and December
perfomed similarly: only 7% of the headline share and 14 days in
the news in November, and 7.1% headline share and 15 days in
the news in December. In terms of concentration, in November
the press devoted 68% of its attention on stories that didn’t make
the top ten- a tighter focus than in December when non-top
ten stories made up 75% of the headlines. In terms of length
of reporting, the press had a difficult time sticking with a story
for more than 14 reporting days, although both the November
and December main stories developed over the course of the
month.
Main November: President Karume
Story meets with Seif Sharif Hamad
After years of stalled negotiations, the two longtime rivals in
Zanzibari politics appear to have reconciled their differences for
what they called the ‘stability and future’ of the country, ‘Karume,
Seif hold rare talks’ (The Citizen, 6th November). While the move
drew plaudits, ‘Karume, Hamad ground-breaking talks lauded’
(The Guardian, 7th November), some grew curious about what
was discussed at the meeting, ‘CUF to explain Karume – Hamad
talks’ (The Citizen, 7th November). Others were unhappy- CUF
supporters chanted ‘Hatutaki! Hatutaki!’ [We refuse! We refuse!] at
a rally in Zanzibar during Mr. Hamad’s speech when the CUF
Secretary General announced his party’s decision to recognize Mr.
Karume as the legitimate President of Zanzibar, ‘Karume-Seif
meeting sparks chaos’ (The Citizen, 8th November). Nevertheless,
Mr. Hamad was commended by the political establishment for
his ‘courage’, ‘Viongozi wasifu ukomavu wa Seif ’ [Leaders praise
Seif ’s bravery](Uhuru, 9th November).
In another speech in Pemba, Mr. Hamad said that he had made
what he believed was the best decision for the people of the
Isles, ‘Maalim Seif: Sijutii kumtambua Karume’ [Maalim Seif: I
don’t regret recognizing Karume] (Nipashe, 9th November). In the
absence of details of the meeting between Mr. Hamad and
President Karume, speculation about what they discussed began
to populate the headlines, with some suggesting that the two
men were preparing for a more independent future for the Isles
away from the Mainland, ‘What are Karume and Seif up to in
Zanzibar?’ (The Citizen, 9th November).
MEDIA
DECEMBER 2009
came into discussion when two former ministers from previous
administrations had the temerity to criticise his government. With
the general elections not far off, a number of politicians and
pundits took the opportunity to make their allegiances known.
In Yellow Couch two topics come under scrutiny- the media’s
contribution in the War Against Corruption, and the end-of-year
reporting slump.
Meanwhile, President Karume issued a rallying call to his people
saying that it was time to end all the bickering in the Isles, ‘Karume:
Let’s focus on building our nation’ (The Guardian, 11th November).
A day later President Kikwete joined the congratulatory chorus, ‘JK
hails Karume, Hamad meeting’ (The African, 12th November). As
a token of their new friendship, the CUF leadership accompanied
President Karume to Hubert Kairuki Memorial University where
he was to receive an honorary degree, ‘Karume – CUF détente
taken to higher stage’ (Sunday News, 15th November). Afterwards,
‘Karume call[ed] on CUF to submit names for House’ (The
Guardian, 16th November), seats that had been left vacant since
2005 due to the opposition party’s refusal to recognize him. Then
the Secretary General of the East African Community, Mr. Juma
Mwapachu, entered the debate by advising the two leaders to
form a coalition government, ‘Zanzibar undeni Serikali ya Mseto’
[Zanzibar form a coalition government] (Habari Leo, 18th November).
With everyone in the political sphere scrambling to understand what
was happening in Zanzibar, Rai declared: ‘Siri ya mazungumzo hii
hapa’ [The secret to the talks is here] (Rai, 19th November). According
to Rai, the genesis of the meeting was the funeral of one of
CUF’s founders, Shaaban Mloo. Elsewhere, President Karume
rallied his supporters telling them that the future of the isles was
in their hands, ‘Karume: Waamuzi was serikali ya mseto Zanzibar
ni nyinyi’ [Karume: You will decide on coalition government](Mwananchi,
23rd November). The issue of a coalition government gained
momentum after ‘CUF laud[ed] Karume[‘s] remarks’ (The Citizen,
24th November), though some officials were less enthusiastic
about the idea, ‘Ministers: No room for coalition govt. in Z’bar’
(The Citizen, 25th November).
The comments by the ministers pouring cold water on the idea
of a unity government were interpreted in some quarters as
being anti-peace, ‘Vigogo CUF wamshukia Shamhuna, Seif
Khatib’ [CUF leaders come down hard on Shamhuna, Seif Khatib]
(Majira, 26th November). As November ended Mr. Hamad
sought to allay the fears of those who believe that the recent
meeting between him and President Karume was designed to
divorce the Isles from the Mainland, ‘Seif: No Plot to kill the
Union’ (The Citizen, 30th November).
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November 2009 Top 10 Stories

Number of Headlines Headlines Share (Percentage) Attention Span

Top Ten Stories Headline Share
Karume/Seif Talks
CCM / UWT Issue
79
68
7.1
6.1
Index
14
12
IPTL / Dowans/ Power Crisis 42 3.8 11
Same Landslide 40 3.6 5
PCCB Probe/Bunge Session 34 3.1 5
Richmond Scam 29 2.6 6
Chadema Issues 21 1.9 5
Teachers Strike Report 19 1.7 Karume/Seif Talks 3
Liyumba Trial 14 1.3 4
EAC Treaty 14 1.3 2
Other Stories 754 67.7 CCM / UWT Issue
TOTAL Stories 1114
IPTL / Dowans/ Power 
Crisis
Same Landslide
Karume/Seif Talks
PCCB Probe/Bunge 
CCM / UWT Issue
IPTL / Dowans / Power Crisis
Session
Same Landslide
Richmond Scam
PCCB Probe / Bunge Session
Richmond Scam
Chadema Issues
Chadema Issues
Attention Span Index Teachers Strike Report
Liyumba Trial
EAC TreatyTeachers Strike Report
Other Stories

Liyumba Trial

Attention Span Index EAC Treaty

Karume/Seif Talks
Karume/Seif Talks
CCM / UWT Issue
CCM / UWT Issue
IPTL/Dowans/Power Crisis…
IPTL / Dowans/ Power 
Same Landslide
Same Landslide
PCCB Probe / Bunge Session…
PCCB Probe/Bunge 
Richmond Scam
Richmond Scam
Chadema Issues
Chadema Issues
Teachers Strike Report
Teachers Strike Report
Liyumba Trial
Liyumba Trial
EAC Treaty
EAC Treaty

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30

Days in the News

Days in the News

Methodology
The top five weekly stories and top ten stories of the month are extracted from a survey of
headlines in 17 newspapers: 5 English dailies, 2 English weeklies (one regional), 7 Kiswahili
dailies, and 3 Kiswahili weeklies. Number of headlines surveyed in November: 1114.

SERENGETI ADVISERS MEDIA NOVEMBER - DECMEBER 2009

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YELLOW COUCH It would appear that one consequence of the media attention on
these matters has been to expose the inability of state authorities
Is the Fourth Estate Helping to win these cases and therefore to assure the public that the
or Hindering the Fight Against judicial system will hold those guilty of corruption to account.
Corruption? The question then becomes: has the media helped anti-corruption
efforts in the country or have their forensic focus hindered the
The last twelve months bore witness to some of the most high process?
profile cases ever to come before Tanzania’s courts. Things began
with the External Payment Arrears (EPA) scandal coming to a
head after the police charged the affluential businessman Mr.
Jeetu Patel, along with his associates, with fraudulently garnering
payments of up to Tshs133bn/ from the Bank of Tanzania (BoT)
in a foreign currency compensation scheme. Then came the
arrest of Mr. Amatus Liyumba and Mr. Dawson Kweka, former
senior BoT officials, who are accused of causing a loss to the
Government of TSh221bn/ by inflating the costs of constructing
the bank’s Twin Towers building at its headquarters in downtown
Dar es Salaam.

It did not stop there. Former Minister of Finance Basil

Mramba and former Minister for Energy and Minerals Daniel
Yona along with former Permanent Secretary for the Ministry
of Finance Gray Mgonja, were taken to court for allegedly
abusing their offices and occasioning loss of money to the
government by according preferential treatment to M/S
Alex Stewart Assayers Government Business Corporation
in procuring gold assaying services. On top of that, they are
also being charged with approving erroneous tax exemptions
and contract extensions to the same company. But the most
closely followed trial of all and certainly the most compelling
was the murder case that involved former Assistant Police
Commissioner Abdallah Zombe and twelve of his subordinate
officers who were tried and later acquitted of robbing and
killing four civilians.

Looking at these trials and the process that defined them, two related
but paradoxical issues emerge. First, it has become increasingly clear
that the media has become an influential mobilizing force against
corruption. Their persistent and relentless coverage of EPA, Alex
Stewart Assayers, BoT Twin Towers et al kept these issues in the
public sphere to the extent that they compelled state authorities to
act. The dogged investigative journalism of Mwananchi provided
fresh evidence in the murder case that led to the arrest of Mr.
Zombe and his associates. This work by the press has forced law
enforcement agencies to move on cases against powerful figures
that in the past were thought to be untouchable.

The message state authorities were able to send through these

actions was that public officials can be held accountable for their
actions. Second, because of the high profile nature of these
cases, enormous pressure was put on prosecutors and other
state agencies to project an image of action. However, when
it came to the actual job of securing convictions against the
suspects, the reality was a lot more complicated: Mr. Liyumba
won his first case only to be re-arrested and re-charged for
similar offenses, Mr. Zombe and his friends were acquitted of
all charges, Mr. Patel’s case is on hold pending a High Court
hearing, Mr. Mramba’s case is ongoing though indications are
that the State lacks convincing evidence against them.

SERENGETI ADVISERS MEDIA NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2009

 4
respected freedom of expression and that unwavering supporters
Main December: President Kikwete’s and unwavering opposers are part and parcel of life as a politician-
Story Leadership Under Scrutiny ‘I am not surprised by criticism, says Kikwete’ (The African, 8th
December), ‘JK awajibu kina Butiku’ [JK responds to Butiku and co.]
(Habari Leo, 8th December).

Matheo Qares, a former Cabinet Minister in the Mkapa

administration and Mussa Nkangaa who served under the
Mwinyi administration, were both critical of President Kikwete’s
performance during a discussion held as part of the Julius Nyerere
Foundation’s commemoration of Mwalimu’s 10th Memorial. Mr.
Nkangaa said that the ruling party has lost touch with its electoral
base of farmers and workers and is now supporting the rich
and big business ‘Waziri wa Mkapa amshukia Kikwete’ [Mkapa’s
Minister criticizes Kikwete] (Mwananchi, 3rd December) while Mr.
Qares went so far as to suggest that President Kikwete should
not stand for re-election in 2010 if he cannot bring himself to
make tough decisions regarding grand corruption. The Executive
Director of the Julius Nyerere Foundation, Joseph Butiku, also
gave his opinion of the dangers that arise when the President mixes
personal friendship with politics: ‘Urais utengwe na urafiki- Butiku’
[Presidency should be separated from personal relationships]
(Majira, 3rd December).

The periodic celebration of Mwalimu’s life and achievements

in October usually results in the current President being
compared to the Father of the Nation- a figure against whom
it is impossible to perform well. On the eve of next year’s
general elections, it is also an opportune time to start printing
opinions about President Kikwete’s accomplishments or lack
thereof ‘Miaka minne ya Rais Kikwete madarakani’ [Four
years of Kikwete in power] (Majira, 6th December), ‘Mangula
auchambua urais wa Kikwete’ [Mangula analyzes Kikwete’s
Presidency] (Mwananchi, 7th December).

The Deputy Head of CCM’s Department of Propaganda, Tambwe

Hiza, was quick to issue a statement rejecting the statements made
by the former ministers: ‘CCM yawakaanga Nkangaa, Qaresi’
[CCM comes down on Nkangaa, Qaresi] (Mtanzania, 4th December),
‘CCM: Wanaotaka JK atoswe 2010 wehu’ [Those who want JK to stand
down in 2010 are crazy] (Mwananchi, 4th December), ‘Ni Kikwete tu’
[Kikwete only] (Uhuru, 5th December).

The debate is generally split between critics who say that this
administration hasn’t lived up to its campaign promises ‘CUF
wajadili mgombea urais CCM’ [CUF discusses CCM presidential
candidate] (Mwananchi, 11th December), ‘Heri Pinda kuliko
Kikwete’ [We’ll take Pinda over Kikwete any day- TALGWU]
(Majira, 16th December) and defenders who generally try to
distance the President from the discussion of government
performance ‘Makamba ambabua Lipumba’ [Makamba lashes
out at Lipumba] (Mtanzania, 12th December), ‘JK anapotoshwa
na washauri wake’ [JK is being let down by his advisers] (Majira
Jumapili, 27th December).

President Kikwete, who was in the Americas when the story

broke, appeared unfazed. Returning to Tanzania in high spirits he
made a relatively friendly statement, claiming that he has always

SERENGETI ADVISERS MEDIA NOVEMBER - DECMEBER 2009

 5

December 2009 Top 10 Stories

Number of Headlines Headlines Share (Percentage) Attention Span

Index

TRL Strike Top Stories Headline Share

Kikwete Challenges vs Leadership

Daladala Strike vs Majembe Auction

76
33
28
7.0
3.0
2.6
15
7
9
Tanesco / Power Issues 24 2.2 6
Same Bus Accidents 23 2.1 3
PCCB / DPP vs Ufisadi 20 1.8 4
Kilosa Floods Hazard 19 1.7 4
Christmas Wishes 17 1.6 2
Slaa vs CCM Tax Evasion 16 1.5 4
Uhuru Day Celebration 15 1.4 2
Other Stories 816 75.1 Kikwete Challenges vs 
TOTAL Stories 1087 Leadership
TRL Strike

Daladala Strike vs Majembe 
Auct.
Tanesco / Power Issues
Kikwete Challenges vs Leadership
TRL Strike
Daladala Strike vs Majembe Auction
Same Bus Accidents
Tanesco / Power Issues
Same Bus Accidents
PCCB / DPP vs Ufisadi
PCCB / DPP vs Ufisadi
Kilosa Floods Hazard
Christmas Wishes
Kilosa Floods Hazard
Slaa vs CCM Tax Evasion
Attention Span Index Uhuru Day Celebration
Christmas Wishes
Other Stories

Slaa vs CCM Tax Evasion
Attention Span Index
Uhuru Day Celebration
Kikwete Challenges vs Leadership
Kikwete Challenges  vs …
TRL Strike
TRL Strike
Daladala Strike
Daladala  vs Majembe Auction
Strike vs Majembe …
Tanesco
Tanesco /  / Power Issues
Power Issues
Same Bus Accidents
Same Bus Accidents
PCCBDPP vs Ufisadi
PCCB /  / DPP vs Ufisadi
Kilosa Floods Hazard
Kilosa Floods Hazard
Christmas
Christmas  Wishes
Wishes
Slaa vs CCM
Slaa vs CCM  TaxEvasion
Tax  Evasion
Uhuru Day
Uhuru Day  Celebration
Celebration

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30

Days in the News

Days in the News

Methodology
The top five weekly stories and top ten stories of the month are extracted from a survey of
headlines in 17 newspapers: 5 English dailies, 2 English weeklies (one regional), 7 Kiswahili
dailies, and 3 Kiswahili weeklies. Number of headlines surveyed in December: 1087.

SERENGETI ADVISERS MEDIA NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2009

 6
YELLOW COUCH

‘Tis the Season to be merry

Yellow Couch can confirm after years of rigorous empirical study

that December is the most fun, if lethargic, time to enjoy Tanzanian
media. Various factors have been identified that contribute to this
state of affairs, most notably Tanganyika’s Independence Day on
the 9th of December. It is also usually during this last month- the
annual peak of consumerism- that the Government admits it has
not made adequate provisions for the generation of electricity.

This leads to what may be referred to as The December

Rumble, an audio phenomenon created by the sound of
thousands of kerosene-fuelled generators across cities. In
combination with the resultant exhaust fumes and the 30-plus-
degrees temperatures, this sound can produce a benign form
of euphoria in vulnerable people- the old, the young and those
employed in the media.

Add the outpouring of happy nationalism- natural in a country

that is younger than her head of state- and end-of-year reporting
takes a decidedly optimistic turn.

Newspapers seem to suspend their interest in who-said-what-

about-whom reporting as they print fat photo supplements of
the Tanganyika Independence Day celebrations at the National
Stadium. Here is the President riding the convertible Humvee!
Here is the soldier who fainted from heat exhaustion! Here are
the troops marching in formation with bayonets raised! And for
our edification, long sections on the history of Tanzania that read
remarkably like the ones printed last year. Exciting as the televised
broadcast is, it has also shown us that- like a team of soccer players-
not all members of the Cabinet know the words to the national
anthem beyond the chorus.

Another side effect of December Mass Euphoria to watch

out for is the increase in jollity in broadcast media. Otherwise
sober and hard-nosed television reporters can become quite
giddy, especially those who are privileged to handle the live
broadcast of Independence Day from the stadium. There is
the President riding the convertible Humvee! There is the
soldier who fainted from heat exhaustion! There are the troops
marching in formation bayonets in the air! I’m having so much
fun!

To build up the anticipation, the state broadcaster airs the few We would like to acknowledge the kind sponsorship
fragile reels it has of political footage from the sixties so that yet of Minesite Tanzania Limited
another generation can be wowed exactly by the same clips that
their elders have been watching for roughly ten years now.

If the tone of commercial messaging is shrill during the rest of

the year, it surges upwards to the pitch of rapture during this
567 Kibo Road, Mikocheni A
last month. This is suspected to cause state of such excitation in P.O.Box 105620
listeners that whole family groups have been known to promptly Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
go out and buy singing Christmas lights in spite. It is the only
tangible excuse for the continued existence of singing Christmas email: publications@serengetiadvisers.com
lights, and Jim Reeves tapes. Luckily, the post-holiday return to info@serengetiadvisers.com
sanity both in the press and in the general public is as predictable www.serengetiadvisersmedia.blogspot.com
and dependable as the January Overdrawn Bank Account Blues.

SERENGETI ADVISERS MEDIA NOVEMBER - DECMEBER 2009