Makonda fails to show up in court.

KINONDONI District Commissioner Paul Makonda yesterday failed to show up at the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court in Dar es Salaam to testify in the abusive language’s trial of Ubungo Member of Parliament Saed Kubenea.

The case had been set for commencement of hearing, but the prosecution could not call any witnesses as directed by the court. State Attorney Credo Lugajo, for the prosecution, told the court that he was not in a position to explain what happened because he was not the one supposed to lead the witnesses.

According to the schedule earlier given by Principal Resident Magistrate Thomas Simba for the hearing of the matter, the case was to proceed today, but the magistrate was forced to postpone the session to February 8, because the lawmaker would be attending parliamentary committees in between.

In the case, the 44-year-old MP under Chadema ticket is claimed to have committed the offence on December 14, last year, at TOOKU Garments Co. Ltd factory at Mabibo External within Kinondoni District, in Dar es Salaam. The legislator is alleged to have offended the DC by using abusive language in a manner that was likely to cause a breach of peace.

According to the prosecution, Kubenea is quoted as telling the DC, “Wewe kibaka, mpumbavu, mjinga na cheo chenyewe cha kupewa tu.” Memorandum of facts of the case shows that on the material date, there were reports that over 1,000 workers of the company went into a strike and Kubenea, as their MP was called there to talk to them.

A Few minutes later after the MP’s arrival at the area, DC Makonda also went there and subsequently held talks with the workers over their grievances.

Thereafter, it was said, the DC promised to take the workers’ complaints to the relevant ministry for consideration. After such development, the DC closed the meeting. The MP requested to address his electorate before the closure of the meeting, but the DC told him that there was nothing more to tell the workers. Such position by the DC appeared to have aggrieved the MP, resulting into the commission of the offence.

As a result, the MP was arrested at the scene and taken to Magomeni Police Station for further questioning and later taken to court for arraignment.

In his response to the facts presented by the prosecution, the opposition legislator denies some of them, but admitted to have gone at TOOKU Garments Company premises to talk to the workers and that the DC had arrived there later for similar purposes.