Dar es Salaam. Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania on Friday, August 13, 2021.
Mbowe’s case postponed – once again
The case against CHADEMA national chairperson Freeman Mbowe and three other accomplices had to take place virtually yesterday after the Tanzania Prison Service failed to take the defendants to the Kisutu Resident Magistrate Court due to what was said to be a transport challenge.
Mr Mbowe was brought before the Kisutu Resident Magistrate Court for the first time on July 26, 2021, accused of taking part in conspiracies to blow up fueling stations and other public gatherings as well as funding terrorist acts.
He was arrested in Mwanza together with eleven other CHADEMA cadres — who have since been released — ahead of a New Constitution conference that the party’s Youth Wing (BAVICHA) had called and which Mr Mbowe was expected to be the guest of honour. Others in the case are Halfan Hassan, Adam Kasekwa and Mohamed Lingwenya
The court ran two virtual proceedings yesterday, one from Ukonga Maximum Security Prison where Mr Mbowe, Mr Hassan, and Mr Lingwenya are held. The other proceeding was organized from Segerea Prison where Mr Kusekwa is being held.
After listening to the arguments from both the prosecution and defendants’ sides, Judge Thomas Simba postponed the case until August 27, 2021, when it will be brought for hearing.
Sabaya tells court BoT governor, VP knew of his operations
Former Hai district commissioner Lengai ole Sabya told the Arusha Resident Magistrate Court that former president John Magufuli, Bank of Tanzania (BoT) governor Prof Florens Luoga and the current Vice-President Dr Philip Mpango knew about his operations as a DC because he was “implementing orders from my appointing authorities.”
Mr Sabaya and his two other accomplices face three armed robberies charges they allegedly committed on February 9, 2021. The accused started to present their defences yesterday after the court said Thursday that they have a case to answer. This, however, is independent of the economic sabotage case that Mr Sabaya and others face.
In his defence, Mr Sabaya denied charges that he threatened to kill people, calling the case against him a “trumped-up,” Mwananchi newspaper whose reporter was at the court while Mr Sabaya was presenting his defence reported yesterday.
Mr Sabaya informed the court yesterday on February 9, 2021, he received a call from the late Magufuli assigning him a special task to be carried out in Arusha. It was not immediately clear what assignment did Magufuli give Sabaya and why he chose him to run an operation as a DC in an area not under his jurisdiction. Mr Magufuli died on March 17, 2021, of heart-related complications.
“This was not the first assignment [that Magufuli gave Sabaya],” Mr Sabaya said in his defence. One of the previous assignments that Mr Sabaya carried out was a search for machines used in printing fake currency notes in Temeke, Dar es Salaam, where his team reportedly seized the machines and Sh800 million worth of fake currency notes. “BoT governor [Luoga] is aware of this. The then-finance minister and the current VP [Dr Mpango] also know this.”
Primary school teacher arrested over murder of five-year-old child
Police in Singida is holding Manyoni Primary School teacher Mathias Marmo, 30, and his wife Regina Laurent, 28, for allegedly being responsible for the murder of their unnamed five-year-old stepchild, Singida regional police commander Stella Mutahibirwa told journalists yesterday.
She said that police’s investigation into the death of the child whose name was not identified for privacy purposes showed that the child was beaten with heavy stuff in various parts of the child’s body. Mutahibirwa said once the investigation into the alleged crime is completed, the accused would be brought to court to face their charges.
The incident that allegedly involves a schoolteacher in violent acts is the second to take place in Singinda in a week after police there arrested Misuna Primary School teacher Alphonse Festo on August 7, 2021, after he was found to have raped his student.
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