Rais wa Tanzania John Magufuli ameghairi mkopo wa China wenye thamani ya dola bilioni 10 akisema kwamba masharti ya makubaliano ya mkopo wa China yanaweza kukubaliwa tu na mtu mlevi.
Mkopo uliotajwa ulikuwa umesainiwa na mtangulizi wake Jakaya Kikwete kujenga bandari kwenye kijito cha Mbegani huko Bagamoyo.
Mtangulizi wake, Jakaya Kikwete alikuwa amesaini mkataba huo na wawekezaji wa China ili kujenga bandari hiyo kwa sababu watapata miaka 30 ya garantii juu ya mkopo huo na miaka 99 ya kukodisha bila kuingiliwa, kulingana na ripoti za vyombo vya habari vya ndani.
Iliyoitwa "mkopo wa kifo wa Wachina", mashirika kadhaa na raia wa Afrika walimtaka Rais wa wakati huo kufuta makubaliano.
Walikuwa wameonya kwamba hatua hiyo itakuwa na athari mbaya lakini wasiwasi wao ulipuuzwa na mpango huo ulisainiwa.
Lakini, baada ya kuingia madarakani, Rais Magufuli alianzisha mchakato wa kupitia upya mkataba na kushinikiza wawekezaji hao watoe kipindi cha kukodisha hadi miaka 33 badala ya miaka 99 iliyosainiwa na serikali iliyopita
Wawekezaji hao walishindwa kutimiza masharti yaliyowekwa mpaka tarehe ya mwisho iliyotolewa na serikali ya Magufuli na kwa sababu makubaliano yalifutwa.
Uchina mara nyingi imekuwa ikishutumiwa kwa kuziwekea nchi maskini za Afrika katika mtego wake wa deni kwa kuwapatia mikopo ya miradi ya miundombinu inayohitajika sana na kisha kuwadhibiti wanaposhindwa kulipa madeni.
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Tanzania President John Magufuli has cancelled a Chinese loan worth $10 billion saying that the terms of the Chinese loan agreement could only be accepted by a drunken man.
The aforesaid loan had been signed by his predecessor Jakaya Kikwete to construct a port at Mbegani creek in Bagamoyo.
His predecessor, Jakaya Kikwete had signed the deal with Chinese investors to build the port on condition that they would get 30 years to guarantee on the loan and 99 years uninterrupted lease, according to local media reports.
Labeled as the “killer Chinese loan”, several organizations and African citizens had demanded the then President to cancel the agreement.
They had warned that the move would have dire consequences but their concerns were overlooked and the deal was signed.
However, after coming to power, President Magufuli initiated the renegotiation process and pressed the investors to bring down the lease period to 33 years instead of 99 years signed by the previous government
The investors didn’t meet the deadline issued by the Magufuli government as a result of which the agreement was canceled.
China has often been accused of luring the poor African countries in its debt-trap by providing them loans for much-needed infrastructure projects and then control them when they fail to pay off their debts.
Source: Khabarhub