Africa-Press – Tanzania. THE High Court, Dar es Salaam District Registry, Friday discharged the National Chairman Freeman Mbowe and seven other senior officials of the party from criminal liabilities on sedition, rioting and unlawful assembly charges they were convicted of.
Judge Ilvin Mgeta quashed the conviction of the offences and set aside the sentences imposed on them by the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court in Dar es Salaam, which had directed them to either pay a fine totaling 350m/- or go to jail for 60 months cumulatively.
The judge reached into such a decision after allowing the appeal under which the senior officials of the opposition party had lodged to oppose the findings by the city based resident magistrate’s court.
In his judgment, Judge Mgeta found after analyzing the evidence tendered during the trial that the charges against the appellants were not proved by the prosecution beyond reasonable doubt as required in the criminal cases.
Apart from Mbowe, other officials are the former party’s Secretary General Vicent Mashinji , who did not appeal against the lower court’s findings, John Mnyika, the newly elected Secretary General and Salum Mwalimu, who is Deputy Secretary General (Zanzibar).
Others are Peter Msigwa, Halima Mdee, John Heche Ester Bulaya and Ester Matiko.
