Dar es Salaam – The highly anticipated treason trial of CHADEMA national chairperson Tundu Lissu resumed on Monday in a storm of procedural objections, accusations of police overreach, and a dramatic physical altercation between a state attorney and a defence supporter.
The session, which marked the beginning of the substantive hearing, was dominated by Mr Lissu challenging the court’s management of the case and the conduct of police outside the courtroom, before the prosecution called its first witness—a senior police officer whose testimony was immediately contested as irrelevant.
Before testimony could begin, Mr Lissu, who is representing himself, raised three key issues, setting a confrontational tone for the day.
Firstly, he protested that police had barred his named supporters from entering the courtroom, including his brother, Dr Stephen Linco, who had travelled from Germany. He demanded to know who was in charge of the proceedings.
“I want to know, is this a police court or a court of the United Republic of Tanzania?” Lissu asked the bench. “Who decides who enters, the police or the court? This is not a court-martial. The judges are superior.”
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Secondly, he questioned the legality of a “pre-session meeting” he was summoned to at short notice while in detention, arguing it was not a proper legal procedure.
His third and most significant objection was to a court-issued schedule that set a date for the judgment— November 12, 2025—before a single witness had been heard. He demanded to know on whose authority the judgment date was pre-determined, stating, “This is not a Kangaroo Court. Matters must follow procedure.”
In response, the three-judge panel, led by Judge Ndunguru, explained that the 30-day criminal session timeline and the cause list indicating a judgement date were administrative measures directed by the Chief Justice under the Criminal Procedure Act, and did not imply a pre-written verdict. They also clarified that a pre-trial meeting was standard practice to ensure the trial proceeds smoothly.
Following a 30-minute recess to consider these matters, the proceedings were disrupted when State Attorney Thawabu Issa allegedly threw a punch at a Lissu supporter, Advocate Ikoti, within the courtroom precincts. The incident caused an uproar among CHADEMA members present.
Amid the tension, the prosecution called its first witness, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) George Wilbard Bagyemu, the Deputy Zone Criminal Officer for Dar es Salaam.
ASP Bagyemu’s lengthy testimony focused on his qualifications and his role in initiating the investigation. He stated that on May 4, 2025, a subordinate alerted him to a video on Jambo TV’s YouTube channel featuring Lissu, with a title he believed contained criminal content.
The officer detailed the steps taken to verify the video’s authenticity and to obtain the original recording from Jambo TV staff in Dodoma. He stated that after reviewing the three-hour video, he concluded that Lissu’s statements constituted the crime of treason.
ASP Bagyemu then began quoting statements he attributed to Mr Lissu from the video, including claims that the politician said he would “incite rebellion,” “kinukisha sana sana” (literal translation mean to make it smell, figuratively could mean-to stir things up), and that police “carry sacks of fake ballots on their backs to polling stations.”
At this point, Mr Lissu repeatedly objected, arguing that these statements were irrelevant to the treason charge and were “baseless” and “a fishing expedition.” He accused the prosecution of trying to sneak in allegations from a separate case before the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court regarding publishing false information.
The judges partially upheld his objection, directing the witness to stick to matters relevant to the treason charge and to avoid issues pertaining to the Kisutu case.
After ASP Bagyemu testified about Lissu’s arrest in Mbinga and the recording of a statement in which the accused chose to remain silent, the prosecution requested an adjournment.
READ MORE: Tanzanian Court to Rule on Jurisdiction in Tundu Lissu Treason Trial on Sept. 15
In a final dramatic moment, an apparently exasperated Mr Lissu, noting the late hour, insisted he be given at least an hour to begin his cross-examination. “Even if we are late, don’t let him leave just like that. Give me one hour to deal with him,” he pleaded.
The court, however, opted to adjourn, scheduling the cross-examination of ASP Bagyemu for Tuesday, October 7, 2025, at 9:00 AM.
