Beggars are helped to disembark from a lorry at the Sokoine Drive
Resident Magistrate’s Court, where they pleaded guilty to loitering
yesterday. The court ordered that they be sent back to their home
villages.
PHOTO | FIDELIS FELIX
In Summary
According to public prosecutor John Kijumbe,
the beggars wee allegedly found in the city centre streets and open
grounds with the intention of begging for money.
Dar es Salaam. Sokoine Drive Resident
Magistrate’s Court yesterday ordered over 200 beggars, who were
rounded-up on Wednesday night, to be sent back to their home villages.
Giving the order yesterday, Resident Magistrate
William Mutaki said any beggar who will return to the city will be
handed a three-month-jail term.
The decision by the court follows a request by an
officer from the Social Welfare Department, Ms Agnes Mbusa, who asked
for an order of removal of the beggars, most of who were women and
children.
“We are asking for an order to send them back to
their home villages. Most of the beggars use their children to get money
from passers-by, which amounts to denying them their basic rights,
including education,” Ms Mbusa told the court.
The beggars appeared before the court yesterday and charged with loitering, which is contrary to the law.
According to public prosecutor John Kijumbe, the
beggars wee allegedly found in the city centre streets and open grounds
with the intention of begging for money.
The beggars admitted to have committed the
offence, whereas Ms Mbusa asked for an order for their removal from Dar
es Salaam city.
The beggars were arrested on Wednesday in an
operation conducted by the Social Welfare Department in cooperation with
the city auxiliary police.
According to Ms Mbusa, the operation was executed
following an order from the regional commissioner that the beggars
should be arrested taken to court for legal action.
Previous attempts to rid the city of beggars were unsuccessful.
SOURCE: THE CITIZEN
SOURCE: THE CITIZEN
