Dar es Salaam – University of Dodoma assistant lecturer Melkisedeki Kitunzi Kaijage was released after the prosecution said it would not continue the terrorism and economic-sabotage charges against him, while Dr Conrad Agonza Kahyoza was granted bail after denying a charge of assaulting a traffic police officer.
The two proceedings, held in Dodoma and Kinondoni respectively on Thursday, concern separate allegations and do not arise from the same events.
Kaijage’s case had become part of the wider public debate over terrorism prosecutions around the July 7 Saba Saba protest call, while Kahyoza’s charge stems from a September 8 confrontation on Bagamoyo Road in Kinondoni.
At the Dodoma Resident Magistrate’s Court, Senior State Attorney Jonathan Chuwa told Chief Resident Magistrate Denisi Mpelembwa that the Republic did not intend to proceed with the terrorism and economic-sabotage cases against Kaijage, provided he was not wanted for another criminal matter.
Before the court ordered his release, the Dodoma Regional Criminal Investigations Officer submitted an affidavit asking that conditions be imposed on Kaijage’s conduct after he left custody.
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The court directed him to produce two sureties resident in Dodoma, each with an identification letter from a recognised government authority, a valid identity card and a non-cash bond of Sh5 million.
Kaijage must also report to the regional criminal investigations office on the last Friday of every month at 8:30 a.m. for one year. The conditions mean he has left custody, but remains subject to the order requiring sureties and monthly reporting.
The court’s release order is not a finding on the merits of the terrorism or economic-sabotage allegations. It followed the prosecution’s stated decision not to continue the proceedings, rather than a judgment determining whether Kaijage was guilty or innocent.
July crackdown
Kaijage was initially detained on July 8 on an allegation of sedition. After a High Court order secured his release on July 21, he was charged with terrorism the following day, the report said.
The terrorism charge sheet alleged that Kaijage had threatened on July 3, at the University of Dodoma, to burn public buildings and police residences with the intention of seriously intimidating the public.
Kaijage’s colleagues, opposition parties and academic-freedom advocates had raised concerns about the case, while the government rejected claims that the wider wave of terrorism cases targeted any group.
Home Affairs Minister Patrobass Katambi said in July that the authorities were dealing with criminality, not targeting people or institutions.
The government’s position and the responses of opposition figures and academics were made as prosecutions connected to the planned Saba Saba demonstrations spread across several regions.
In Mwanza alone, 23 people were charged on July 23 with participating in what the prosecution described as a terrorism meeting linked to the planned protests.
The Kaijage proceedings drew particular attention because he is an academic and was not reported to be affiliated with a political party.
Kahyoza granted bail
In Kinondoni, Kahyoza, an internal-medicine specialist at Muhimbili National Hospital, Mloganzila, was charged with one count alleging that he assaulted traffic officer F.8886 SGT Andrew Kikos while the officer was on duty on September 8.
He denied the charge before Assistant Resident Magistrate Jackline Lugemalila.
READ MORE: Doctor’s Detention Revives Questions Over Trust and Police Accountability in Tanzania
The magistrate granted him bail on the condition that he obtain one surety who lives in Dar es Salaam, sign a Sh2 million bond and present employment identification. The case was adjourned to September 24, 2026, at 10 a.m.
Kahyoza was arrested after the confrontation on Bagamoyo Road, which the Police Force said began when his vehicle was stopped for allegedly using a service road outside the authorised arrangement.
Police alleged that Kahyoza injured Kikos after the officer questioned him, and said that the doctor was also injured during the encounter and received hospital treatment.
The Medical Association of Tanzania confirmed that Kahyoza was injured, taken to hospital and later held at Oysterbay Police Station, but did not assign responsibility for the confrontation.
