DAR ES SALAAM: Ponda’s case to be decided on Monday

Written by FAUSTINE KAPAMA

THE outcome of trial of Secretary General of the Council of Islamic Organization, Sheikh Ponda Issa Ponda and 49 other accuses, will be known on Monday when the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court in Dar es Salaam, will deliver its ruling.

Resident Magistrate Victoria Nongwa will give her decision on the case after going through the evidence produced by 17 prosecution witnesses as well as submission presented by the parties before the court yesterday on whether the accused have a case to answer in respect to the charges against them.

In the case, the accused are charged with conspiracy, trespassing and criminal possession of property owned by Agritanza Limited on a plot situated at Markaz, Chang’ombe area, in Temeke district. Other charges, according to the prosecution, include stealing building materials from Agritanza limited including 1,500 bricks and 36 tonnes of aggregate and iron bars, all worth 59.6m/.

The offences are alleged to have been committed on October 12, last year. The prosecution, led by Senior State Attorney Tumaini Kweka, requested the trial magistrate to find the accused responsible of the crimes committed on claims that they have sufficiently established a prima facie case, requiring them to give their defence evidence. However, the defence team comprising of advocates Juma Nassoro and Yahaya Njama asked the court to acquit all the accused for the prosecution’s failure to produce tangible evidence to the court.

They submitted that the evidence neither established which offence the accused had conspired to commit nor for which purpose they trespassed into the plot in dispute. According to the advocates, the police rushed to file the case while it was purely in civil nature and would have advised the alleged owners of the plot to take their grievances to any Land Tribunal for determination and not opening a criminal case.

Source: Daily News (01/03/2013): http://www.dailynews.co.tz/index.php/local-news/15103-ponda-s-case-to-be-decided-on-monday