Tanzania President Magufuli sacks Minister and Tax Chief

Tanzanian President John Magufuli on Saturday sacked the Minister for Industry and Trade, Joseph Kakunda, and the Commissioner General of the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA), Charles Kichere.

The sacking of the two senior government officials was announced in a statement by the Directorate of Presidential Communication at State House in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam.

President Magufuli sacked the two officials a day after meeting prominent businessmen from across the country who complained about poor performance of the Ministry of Industry and Trade and TRA.

The statement said Magufuli appointed Innocent Bashungwa new Minister for Industry and Trade, adding that the president also appointed Edwin Mhede new TRA Commissioner General.

The statement said before his new appointment, Bashungwa was Deputy Minister for Agriculture.

The new TRA Commissioner General Mhede was Deputy Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said the statement.

It said Kichere who was TRA Commissioner General has been appointed Njombe Regional Administrative Secretary.

On Friday, Magufuli pointed out a number of challenges that disrupted the business environment in the east African nation and vowed to address them.