Dar es Salaam: DPP challenges Ponda’s sentence

Written by FAUSTINE KAPAMA.

THE Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) has lodged a Notice of Appeal to challenge the sentence of Sheikh Ponda Issa Ponda and acquittal of his 49 co-accused persons on charges allegedly linked to the invasion of a plot of land at Chang’ombe, Dar es Salaam.

“Yes, we have already lodged our Notice of Appeal,” the DPP, Dr Eliezer Mbuki Fereshi, told the ‘Daily News’ in Dar es Salaam through the phone. He added, “We are actually waiting for the necessary documents including copies of judgment and proceedings so that we prepare the memorandum of appeal before lodging the same to the High Court.”

On May 9, this year, the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court set free Sheikh Ponda, the Secretary of the Council of Islamic Organisation and 49 others on offences they were facing, but convicted the Muslim Sheikh of only one count of forcible entry out of the five against him.

Resident Magistrate Victoria Nongwa gave him a suspended sentence of 12 months. Sheikh Ponda and his co-accused persons were facing counts of conspiracy to commit an offence, forcible entry and detainer, stealing and inciting the commission of offence.

The alleged crimes are related to a plot of land at Chang’ombe Markas in Temeke District for which the accused persons were alleged to have committed between October 12 and 16, last year. In her judgment, the magistrate noted that the plot in question was in dispute.

The court was told that the Muslims Council of Tanzania (Bakwata) exchanged the plot with Agritanza Limited, which had offered a 40 acre plot at Kisarawe for the purpose of constructing a university. But, according to the magistrate, a section of Muslims claims that what was done by Bakwata was wrong.

She, therefore, directed the parties involved to refer the matter to appropriate courts for determination and faulted the procedure adopted by Ponda to reclaim the plot by force.

In respect to other counts, the magistrate expressed her regret for what she described as ‘poor investigations’ conducted by the police in the case and the prosecution failed to prove them beyond reasonable doubts against all the accused persons.

She noted that during the defence hearing, the accused persons unveiled suspicious matters, which suggested that they were in one way or another involved in commission of the offences. Had proper investigations been carried out, she said, all accused persons would have been convicted. During the trial, the prosecution called 16 witnesses, while 53 testified for the defence.

The prosecution had alleged that at an unknown date in the city, all accused persons conspired to commit an offence. On October 12, last year, at Chang’ombe Markas, in a violent manner and without any right, the accused persons entered on a piece of land that belonged to Agritanza Limited in order to take possession of it.

“All accused persons between October 12 and 16, 2012 at Chang’ombe Markas area within Temeke District, without colour of right and in manner likely to cause a breach of peace did hold possession of land lawfully occupied by Agritanza Limited,” the prosecution further alleged.

It is claimed also that within the same period and place, they stole various building materials, including 1,500 bricks, 36 tonnes of gravel, Iron bars, all valued at 59,650,000/-, property of the company.

Sheikh Ponda was charged alongside another accused person Mukadamu Abdallah Swalehe with an additional count of inciting others to commit an offence. The prosecution had told the court that the duo committed the offence between October 12 and 16, last year at the same area.

Source: http://www.dailynews.co.tz/index.php/local-news/18181-dpp-challenges-ponda-s-sentence