Magufuli reveals DPP, Attorney General fight

Dar es Salaam. President John Magufuli yesterday weighed in on a raging dispute pitting the Attorney General (AG)’s office against the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP), saying the behind-the-scenes tussle, reportedly over control of funds, is slowing down proceedings of criminal cases.

Dr Magufuli revealed the power struggle between the two offices in his speech to mark Law Day, and officially open the 2017 Judicial Year in Dar es Salaam yesterday.

The AG and DPP’s offices are tasked with the coordination of investigations and supervision of prosecution of criminal cases.

President Magufuli said the fighting had been negatively impacting on justice delivery.

He told Constitutional Affairs and Justice minister Harrison Mwakyembe to immediately end the dispute.

Dr Magufuli said the AG and DPP had no reason to neither fight over positions (because he was the appointing authority) nor control of funds (because there were better ways of handling such disputes).

“Strange enough they are from the same region, probably the same district, I don’t see the reason for the dispute,” he said. President Magufuli, who was addressing the Law Day celebrations for the second time since he assumed office after winning the 2015 General Election, challenged the Judiciary to ensure that the country’s justice delivery system was strengthened.

He also expressed concerns over the manner in which the courts handled the case of 28 magistrates accused of various charges, including corruption, last year.

All the 28 magistrates were released after they were found not guilty.

The President said such incidents could paint a negative picture before the public who might be forced to think that somehow proof was tampered with, or that investigations weren’t thorough or falsely presented in court.

He noted that the public might also think that the DPP’s office unfairly treated the magistrates. But he rhetorically asked why that would be the case.

“There are those who may think that State attorneys and the defendants’ lawyers tampered with evidence to free the magistrates. Others may think the magistrates ruled in favour of their colleagues. ”

Dr Magufuli said he was informed that the Judiciary Commission, under the now-retired Chief Justice Mohamed Chande Othman, had brought forward some proposals for consideration, but out of the 28 suspects, the people had expected that at least three would be tried.

In his speech, the President also took a swipe at the “costly delays” in the payment of Sh7.5 trillion by firms that lost their tax cases after appealing at the Tax Revenue Appeals Tribunal since 2005.

He said such delays were contrary to this Judicial Year’s slogan, ‘Justice Delivery that should reflect to country’s economic growth’.

“Maybe the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) didn’t go for the money after the cases were finalised, or they were completely unaware of the rulings. But, the money could build classrooms, buy many beds for hospitals and fund other development projects,” he said.

Turning to judiciary reforms, President Magufuli said there was need to review the system’s manpower structure.

He said currently, the Judiciary had over 6,500 employees, which is far much more than other ministries and departments. The Lands ministry has 1,014 employees, Natural Resources (2,706), Livestock (1,298), State House (471), Works (459), Agriculture (1,886), Education (3,806) and Health (3,646).

The President said reforms should focus on reducing manpower and merging duties and responsibilities.

“For instance, do you still need 1,179 security guards? Can’t the police and private security companies be deployed? These are some of the issues that could form part of your reforms.”

Earlier, the acting Chief Justice, Prof Ibrahim Juma, had appealed for Sh24 billion for development projects during the 2016/17 fiscal year.

“We would also need to recruit 489 employees to replace those who are now out of service. There is also need for 508 new employees, making the total 997,” Prof Juma said.

In response, the President promised to help improve the welfare of employees and ensure the timely disbursement of allocated funds for development projects.

Dr Magufuli also suggested that Judiciary reforms should also allow the immediate prosecution of suspects in cases where there is hard evidence.

He said: “If a suspect is arrested and there is hard evidence, the court is there, the magistrate and judges are there, they should be prosecuted immediately, even on the same day.”

On this, the President particularly expressed displeasure about the handling of and drugs poaching cases.

He said there was no reason to justify delays in taking suspects to the courts because in most cases they were caught with elephant tusks.

But he also blamed the police and the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) for “not properly investigating criminal cases”, and for the distortion of evidence.

Meanwhile, President Magufuli warned members of the Tanzania Law Society (TLS) to stay away from politics. He said those with political affiliations would not be considered for top jobs in the Judiciary.