AfricaPress-Tanzania: THE Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court in Dar es Salaam has found Kawe Member of Parliament (MP), Halima Mdee with a case to answer on the charge of abusing the President of United Republic of Tanzania, Dr John Magufuli.
Principal Resident Magistrate, Thomas Simba ruled that the prosecution, through the evidence tendered, established a “prima facie” case, requiring the lawmaker under the ticket of Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema) to give her defence against the charge.
Prima facie case is the establishment of a legally required rebuttable presumption.
A prima facie case is a cause of action or defence that is sufficiently established by a party’s evidence to justify a verdict in his or her favour, provided such evidence is not rebutted by the other party.
During the trial, the prosecution led by Senior State Attorney Wankyo Simon called three witnesses in an attempt to support the charge in question.
Following such new development, the magistrate directed Mdee to start giving her defence testimony on June 15, 2020.
On her part, Mdee said she would summon five witnesses to support her defence.
At the close of the prosecution’s case during a criminal trial, the accused may submit to the court that there is no case for him or her to answer.
If the court agrees, then the matter is dismissed and the accused is acquitted without having to present any evidence in his or her defence.
If the court does not accept the submission, the case continues and the defence must present in the case.
In the case, the prosecution charges the MP for speaking words against the Head of State, which were likely to cause breach of peace.
According to the prosecution, the lawmaker is alleged to have said that Dr Magufuli “anaongea hovyo hovyo anatakiwa kufungwa breki,” which literally means, “What he speaks is not right, he should be restricted.”
Facts of the case show that on July 3, 2017, the opposition MP was at Chadema Head Office, along Ufipa Area in Kinondoni District in the city.
While at the said offices, the prosecution alleged, the accused uttered abusive language against the President of the United Republic of Tanzania by saying, “anaongea hovyohovyo anatakiwa kufungwa breki.”
The prosecution told the court that following the utterances of the said words, on July 4, 2017, the accused was arrested at Kibangu area in Kinondoni District and handed over to the Regional Crime Officer (RCO) Office.
Before her arraignment, the opposition lawmaker was locked up following an order given by the then Kinondoni District Commissioner (DC), Mr Ally Hapi, who is currently Iringa Regional Commissioner (RC), for inflammatory statements against President Magufuli.
The ex-DC was quoted as saying that as the Chairman of the Peace and Security Committee in the district, he ordered law enforcement officers to arrest Mdee and hold her for interrogation for not less than 48 hours before further legal measures were taken.
Mr Hapi derived such powers under some provisions in the Regional Administration Act, empowering Regional Commissioners (RCs) and District Commissioners (DCs) to order citizens to be confined for 48 hours.
When ordering the detention of the MP, DC Hapi told a press conference that his district is not a place for politicians to utter inflammatory statements against government leaders and abusing the president.
