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Citation
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Judgment date
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| March 2021 |
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Appellate court affirms acquittal: conspiracy and stealing in transit not proved beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law – Conspiracy – ingredients: agreement and unlawful objective; Stealing goods in transit – proof requires recent theft, positive identification, possession or linkage to accused; Appellate review – caution in overturning trial court credibility findings.
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31 March 2021 |
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Failure to read the charge and record the plea after preliminary hearing nullified the trial; conviction and sentence quashed.
Criminal procedure — Failure to read charge and take plea after preliminary hearing — Proceedings rendered nullity; Court records — Adoption of facts not recorded is improper; Retrial — Discretion weighed against ordering retrial where delay and release would prejudice justice.
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31 March 2021 |
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31 March 2021 |
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Late supply of judgment to a prisoner and lack of access to documents can constitute good cause for extension under section 361(2).
Criminal procedure – extension of time – section 361(2) Criminal Procedure Act – discretionary remedy – requirement of sufficient/good cause. Prisoners’ access to court documents – late supply of judgment/records to prison admission office can justify extension where inmate lacks access. Judicial discretion – must be exercised judiciously with regard to particular circumstances of incarcerated applicants.
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29 March 2021 |
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Matrimonial asset division and child custody orders set aside for failing to apply mandatory LMA factors.
Matrimonial law — Division of matrimonial assets — Application of s.114(2) Law of Marriage Act (customs, contributions, debts, children's needs) — Adequate identification of landed property for court orders. Custody of child — Paramount consideration of welfare under s.125 Law of Marriage Act — Rebuttable presumption for children under seven — Need to record and consider relevant factors. Procedural irregularity — Fatal non-compliance warrants setting aside and quashing proceedings.
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25 March 2021 |
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24 March 2021 |
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High Court granted bail under EOCCA, applying sharing principle and imposing deposit, bond, surety and travel restrictions.
Criminal procedure – Bail pending trial – High Court jurisdiction where value of subject matter exceeds Tshs.10,000,000 under EOCCA. Bail as statutory and constitutional right – grant where no reasonable ground to refuse and Republic does not object. Principle of sharing – quantum of bail apportioned among jointly charged accused. Conditions of bail – deposit/cash or property, bonds, sureties, surrender of travel documents, territorial travel restriction, valuation evidence for immovable property.
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24 March 2021 |
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An application for bail pending appeal is moot and should be struck out if the related appeal has already been decided.
Criminal procedure – Bail pending appeal – Application under s.368(1)(a) and (i) – Mootness where underlying appeal has been decided – Application struck out as overtaken by events.
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23 March 2021 |
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Leave to appeal granted where proposed matrimonial appeal raises arguable legal and factual issues about monogamy versus polygamy.
Appellate procedure – leave to appeal – discretion exercised where proposed appeal raises arguable points of law or fact; matrimonial law – whether a later marriage converts a prior monogamous marriage into polygamy; reliefs claimed in matrimonial proceedings.
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23 March 2021 |
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Application for extension of time dismissed for failure to account for the delay and provide satisfactory reasons.
Civil procedure – Extension of time – Applicant must account for each day of delay; Bushiri principle applies. Evidence – Affidavit must contain satisfactory explanation for delay, including defective filings or delay in obtaining records. Appeal procedure – Application for extension filed long after appeal struck out without adequate justification will be dismissed.
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23 March 2021 |
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Application for extension to appeal struck out because the impugned case was withdrawn and produced no conviction to appeal.
Criminal procedure – Extension of time to lodge notice of appeal under section 361(2) CPA – Notice of appeal to be filed within 10 days and does not require copies of judgment – Withdrawal under section 98(a) and discharge produce no conviction or sentence to appeal – Competency of an application to extend time where no appealable decision exists.
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23 March 2021 |
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Extension of time denied for failure to account for delay and for relying on un‑pleaded factual assertions.
Extension of time — requirement to account for each day of delay; inability to rely on un‑pleaded facts in oral submissions; delay in obtaining records not automatically sufficient to justify lengthy delay.
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23 March 2021 |
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Application for leave to appeal was incompetent where statute requires a certificate of point of law.
Criminal procedure – Appeals from primary court – Requirement of certificate of point of law under section 6(7)(b) AJA; Leave to appeal (section 6(1)(b)) not applicable; Procedural irregularity non-curable where statute prescribes mandatory jurisdictional requirement; Overriding objective cannot supply non-existent statutory remedy.
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16 March 2021 |
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An apparent illegality on the record (assessors' non-participation) justified extension of time to file an appeal.
Land law – Extension of time under s.38(1) – sufficient cause required. Civil procedure – Delay – technical delay must be accounted for; unexplained 17-day delay not sufficient. Appeal procedure – Illegality apparent on face of record (assessors' participation) can justify extension of time. Pleading – specificity of alleged illegality; apparent illegality need not require lengthy argument.
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16 March 2021 |
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Bail granted pending trial for bailable economic offences, subject to substantial monetary security, sureties and reporting conditions.
Criminal procedure – Bail pending trial – entitlement where offence is bailable – discretionary grant of bail with conditions. Economic and organised crime – consideration of section 36(5)(a)-(d) EOCCA when granting bail. Bail conditions – monetary deposit or immovable property, execution of bonds by sureties, surrender of travel documents, reporting and jurisdictional restrictions.
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16 March 2021 |
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The appellant's criminal appeal was struck out for being filed outside the court-ordered time limit.
Criminal appeal — extension of time — compliance with court-ordered time limits — late filing (even by one or two days) renders appeal incompetent — prisoner delay/explanation insufficient without fresh extension application.
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16 March 2021 |
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Extension of time granted where pursuing a prior time-barred appeal (technical delay) and prompt action constituted good cause.
Criminal procedure – extension of time under section 361(2) CPA; discretionary relief requiring good cause; technical delay (pursuit of prior appeal) as good cause; evidentiary expectations for prisoner-applicants; consideration of prompt action and registry confirmation.
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15 March 2021 |
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Identification and improperly recorded cautioned statements rendered the prosecution's case for armed robbery insufficient.
Criminal law – Visual identification – Night-time attack, masked assailants and lack of previous acquaintance rendered identification unreliable. Criminal procedure – Cautioned/extra-judicial statements – Must be properly recorded, voluntary and read over; improperly recorded statements are to be expunged. Evidence – Prosecution must prove offence beyond reasonable doubt; where key identification and contested statements fail, conviction cannot stand.
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15 March 2021 |
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Extension of time refused where applicant failed to account for delay and show sufficient cause despite prior order.
Criminal procedure – extension of time under s.361(2) CPA; requirement to show good cause and account for each day of delay; prisoner’s incarceration not per se sufficient excuse; notice of intention to appeal need not be accompanied by judgment copies.
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15 March 2021 |
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Failure to involve assessors in Tribunal proceedings renders the proceedings and ruling null and triggers rehearing.
Land Disputes Courts Act (Cap 216) – composition of Tribunal – requirement of chairman and not less than two assessors – assessors’ opinions to be considered under section 24. Tribunal procedure – meaning of "decision" (section 2) includes rulings – assessors’ involvement required even for rulings. Extension of time applications – involve factual questions (sufficient reasons for delay) – assessors’ participation mandatory; failure to involve assessors renders proceedings a nullity.
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10 March 2021 |
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Non‑compliance with s.192 CPA preliminary hearing rules is fatal; conviction quashed and retrial ordered.
Criminal procedure – Preliminary hearing under s.192 CPA – memorandum must contain only agreed facts and be read and explained to accused – non‑compliance is fatal; Evidence – tendering and reading of documentary exhibits (PF3/clinical card) – proper admission and reading required; Remedy – nullification of proceedings and retrial before another magistrate where irregularity is incurable but prosecution evidence not wholly discredited.
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9 March 2021 |
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9 March 2021 |
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9 March 2021 |
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8 March 2021 |
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Failure to obtain and record a child witness’s statutory promise to tell the truth vitiates conviction and warrants retrial.
Evidence — Child witness — statutory requirement that a child of tender age must promise to tell the truth (Evidence Act s.127 as amended) — failure to record promise is incurable irregularity; Criminal procedure — retrial ordered; Relevant authorities: Godfrey Wilson (CAT), Fatehali Manji (retrial principles).
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8 March 2021 |
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Second appeal dismissed: evidence of cruelty and valid conciliatory certificate supported divorce for irreparable breakdown.
Matrimonial law – divorce – irreparable breakdown – cruelty (physical/mental) as ground for divorce under s.107 Law of Marriage Act. Conciliation/Reconciliation Board referral and certificate – compliance with Form 3 and s.104. Standard of proof – balance of probabilities in matrimonial causes. Appellate review – limited interference with concurrent findings of fact absent misdirection or miscarriage of justice.
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8 March 2021 |
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Whether the vehicle owner was vicariously liable for the driver’s negligence; appellant failed to prove authorization, appeal dismissed.
Vicarious liability – burden of proof to establish employee was acting in course of employment; corroboration of oral authorisation; failure to call a witness and adverse inference; appellate restriction on new facts/issues not raised at trial; negligence of driver – owner exonerated.
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5 March 2021 |
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An ex parte primary-court revocation must be set aside before appeal; District Court lacked jurisdiction over the unappealed appointment.
Civil Procedure – Appeals from primary courts – ex parte orders – a party aggrieved by an ex parte decision must first apply to the trial court to set it aside before appealing. Appellate jurisdiction – District Court lacked jurisdiction to decide an order that was not appealed to it. Procedural fairness – allowing challenges outside the grounds of appeal can deprive parties of fair hearing and render proceedings a nullity. Nullity – serious and incurable irregularities occasioning injustice warrant quashing of proceedings and setting aside judgment.
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4 March 2021 |
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Visual identification corroborated by confessions and recovered property proved armed robbery beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law – armed robbery; visual identification (Waziri Amani) corroborated by cautioned statements and oral admissions; admissibility of confessions without prior justice of the peace; non-production of weapon not necessarily fatal; sufficiency of seizure and recovery evidence.
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4 March 2021 |