‘Dr’ Mwaka still at large, sets police in ‘hide-and-seek game’

ALVAR MWAKYUSA

Juma Mwaka alias ‘Dr Mwaka’

EMBATTLED herbalist Juma Mwaka alias ‘Dr Mwaka’ still remains elusive more than two days after the government ordered his arrest, engaging the police force in Ilala District in what could be best described as ‘hide-and-seek’ game.

“Police operatives are still tracing him; we will arrest him whether in Dar es Salaam or anywhere in the country. He is aware that we are looking for him and he has been dodging us,” the Ilala Regional Police Commander, Salum Hamdun, told the ‘Daily News’ yesterday.

The RPC would not go much into details of the manhunt, stressing, however, that the police were working around the clock to arrest him.“After Mwaka learned that we were looking for him, he could have presented himself over but since he has chosen to hide, then we will go after him,” the Ilala police boss told this paper in a telephone interview.

The order of arrest for the self-proclaimed doctor was issued last Friday by Deputy Minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children, Dr Khamis Kigwangalla, after an impromptu visit at the herbalist’s clinic located at Ilala in Dar es Salaam.

Among others, Mwaka is accused of providing services to people even after his clinic, Foreplan Clinic, was deregistered on July 11 by the Traditional and Alternative Health Practices Council (TAHPC) for violating regulations and guidelines of the council.

Following the ban on the clinic, Mwaka remained defiant by changing the name of the treatment centre from Foreplan Clinic to Foreplan Tanzania Limited and continued to offer services and promote the same through television and radio programmes.

Over a fortnight ago, the Minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children, Ms Ummy Mwalimu, said the government had informed the police and communications industry regulator to take appropriate actions against ‘Dr Mwaka’ and other herbalists for defying government orders.

“The Traditional and Alternative Medicine Act of 2002 prohibits practitioners in the field to advertise their products and facilities; only adverts approved by the Traditional and Alternative Health Practices Council (TAHPC) are allowed.

“However, some of the herbalists have been presenting to television and radio stations different programmes for broadcasting from those approved by the council,” Ms Mwalimu observed then during an interview with this newspaper. Efforts to get comment from ‘Dr’ Mwaka were not successful yesterday as his known mobile phone was not reachable.

A follow up by the ‘Daily News’ has found out that even the recently deregistered traditional and alternative clinics have continued to air special programmes on television stations, particularly on Channel Ten and Star TV.

Sources privy to ‘Dr’ Mwaka’s business confided to this newspaper that after he had his operating licence as a herbalist revoked, he registered another company known as Foreplan Tanzania Limited, which has taken over from Foreplan Clinics.

“(Dr) Mwaka now describes his new company as one dealing with cosmetics and food nutrients; he is apparently evading the long arm of the law since the new company is not subjected to provisions of the Traditional and Alternative Medicine Act of 2002,” the source stated.

“Dr Mwaka’s clinic is among the three that were deregistered by TAHPC on July 11 while three others were suspended for six months for violating regulations, policy and guidelines set by the council