UBUNGO Member of Parliament (MP), Saed Kubenea, appeared before the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court in Dar es Salaam yesterday charged with publishing false statements in a tabloid, which is likely to cause fear or disturb public peace.
Before Principal Resident Magistrate
Wilbard Mashauri, the lawmaker with the opposition party, Chama cha
Democrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema), denied the charge. He was granted
bail on condition of signing a bond of 5m/-.
He was also ordered not to leave the
city without securing court permission and that he was to secure two
reliable sureties, who each signed a bond of 5m/- in order to bail out
the youthful legislator.
The case was adjourned to October 31,
for preliminary hearing as investigations into the matter, according to
the prosecution, have been completed. During preliminary hearing, the
prosecution would be required to disclose more particulars showing how
the offence was committed.
State Attorney Derock Makabatunzi, for
the prosecution, told the court that the accused person committed the
offence on July 25, this year at Kabasa Street in Kinondoni
Municipality.
Kubenea is alleged to have circulated
false information in Mwanahalisi newspaper dated July 25-31, 2016.
According to the prosecution, in the newspaper issue number 349 ISSN
1821/5432, the accused persons allegedly published false statements
which were likely to cause fear and alarm to the public or disturb
public peace.
The published statements, the
prosecution further alleged, carried a heading, “Yuko wapi atakayeiokoa
Zanzibar,” literally meaning, “who will rescue Zanzibar.”
In April, this year, the same court gave
Kubenea three months conditional discharge after convicting him of an
offence of abusing the current Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner (RC),
Mr Paul Makonda.
Principal Resident Magistrate Thomas
Simba held that the prosecution sufficiently proved the charge through
its three witnesses beyond reasonable doubt that he committed the
offence.
The magistrate directed the lawmaker to
refrain from committing a similar offence within the period, warning
that if anything goes to the contrary, he would be arrested and given
any other custodial sentence as per the law.
Kubenea (44), who resides at Ubungo
Makuburi, was alleged to have committed the offence on December 14, last
year, at TOOKU Garments Co. Limited factory at Mabibo External within
Kinondoni District, Dar es Salaam.
The court was told that he abused Mr
Makonda, at the time he was District Commissioner (DC) of Kinondoni, by
using abusive language in a manner that was likely to cause a breach of
peace.
According to the prosecution, Kubenea
was quoted as telling the former DC, “Wewe kibaka, mpumbavu, mjinga na
cheo chenyewe cha kupewa tu.”
Kubenea was arrested by the police in
connection with the offence after he had exchanged some sour words with
Mr Makonda at the factory
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