Dar es Salaam. Chadema national chairman Tundu Lissu has cleared the first hurdle in his bid to join a civil suit over alleged unequal distribution of party resources between Mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar, after the High Court dismissed a preliminary objection against his application.
Civil Case No. 8323 of 2025 was filed by former Chadema vice chairman (Zanzibar), Mr Said Issa Mohamed, and two members of the party’s Board of Trustees from Zanzibar, Ahmed Rashid Khamis and Maulida Anna Komu.
The defendants are the registered trustees of Chadema and the party’s Secretary General.
Judge Hamidu Mwanga is hearing the matter at the High Court, Dar es Salaam Sub-Registry.
Mr Lissu filed a separate application seeking to be joined as an interested party in the proceedings.
Respondents to that application include the plaintiffs in the main suit and the party’s trustees and Secretary General, who are defendants in the substantive case.
The plaintiffs opposed Mr Lissu’s application, raising a preliminary objection seeking its dismissal without a full hearing.
In a ruling delivered on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, Judge Mwanga dismissed the objection, rejecting the plaintiffs’ arguments and upholding Mr Lissu’s submissions.
The objection, heard on February 17, 2026, was advanced by advocates Shaaban Marijani, Gido Simfukwe, and Alvan Fidelis on behalf of the plaintiffs.
They argued that Mr Lissu had not met the legal threshold to be joined in his personal capacity and that his supporting affidavit was defective because it failed to disclose the source of the information, despite his having been in prison since April.
In response, Mr Lissu submitted that he has a sufficient interest under Order I, Rules 1–10 of the Civil Procedure Code, which allows a person with a direct stake in a matter to be added as a party.
He said he has been a member of Chadema since 2004 and currently serves as the national chairman, so any orders sought in the suit would directly affect him.
On the affidavit, Mr Lissu said the information was based on personal knowledge.
He has followed the case through publicly available material, including the June 10, 2025, order restraining the party from conducting political activities and using its assets pending determination of the main suit.
He added that, if the plaintiffs doubted his knowledge, they could call him for cross-examination.
When asked how the orders would affect him, Mr Lissu reiterated that any restriction on party activities or litigation against the party directly affects him as a member.
The trustees and Secretary General, through lead counsel Rugemeleza Nshala, assisted by Hekima Mwasipu, supported Mr Lissu’s application, asserting that he has a clear and sufficient interest.
In his ruling, Judge Mwanga noted that the grounds raised required evidence and therefore did not qualify as a preliminary objection, which must be based solely on points of law.
“Accordingly, the objection is dismissed,” he said, directing that the matter proceed.
Mr Lissu’s application now moves to a substantive hearing, scheduled for Friday, March 6, 2026, where the court will decide whether he should formally be joined in the suit.
In the main case, the plaintiffs allege unequal distribution of party assets and financial resources between Tanzania Mainland and Zanzibar, contrary to the Political Parties Act and Chadema’s Constitution.
They also claim religious and gender discrimination, and statements said to undermine the Union of the United Republic of Tanzania.
The plaintiffs seek declarations that the defendants have violated Section 6A(1), (2), and (5) of the Political Parties Act, Chapter 258, Revised Edition 2019, and orders compelling compliance.
They further ask the court to declare unlawful and void the distribution of funds, assets, and resources for political and administrative activities between the two parts of the Union.
They also seek an interim order suspending all political activities pending compliance with court directives, a permanent injunction restraining use of party assets until legal requirements are met, and costs of the suit.
