LISTENING to what people in the regions where the presidential legal aid campaign is visiting or touring sounds like a sea change from the routine use of courts and other law enforcement agencies to a revolution.

Hopes are being raised regarding delivering justice in every district, ward, village and street across the country, where the legal aid team seeks to ensure every needy person has access to free legal aid services. On the face of it, an impression is created that appearing before the legal aid team more or less ensures that justice is meted out even perhaps instantly.

Affirmations by the Constitutional and Legal Affairs minister at the launch of the campaign in Kilimanjaro Region at Moshi midweek had all the airs of a revolution in the making. He was largely assured that the campaign would enable community members to resolve most conflicts as it will be conducted in two phases, ”so every Tanzanian who has a conflict will be reached and those who are used to violating people's rights will not be left safe.” There are certain preliminaries to be able to achieve as much, and it is unclear if these parameters are already in place.

For the presidential legal aid campaign to be effective in going through every corner as the team has so far visited 16 regions in the first phase and is gearing up for the second phase it would need powers not just of attorney but of plenipotentiary. This doesn’t so far appear to be the case, as there is plenty of talk in what the team is doing that has to do with educating people on their rights, which isn’t the same as simply enforcing such rights as the public definitely wants. It is unclear if the minister is in a position to obtain the constitutional sanction to raise the team’s profile.

That would by and large require specific legislation, as using powers of plenipotentiary implies that the team represents the president in all a ability, to revoke a decision by any tribunal or court of law as the Head of State is the chief magistrate in the country. The mere fact that the team is presidential implies that it has direct access to the Head of State, and by implication, its being trusted by the president suggests that whatever decision it makes in the spirit directed by the Head of State is a valid act in law. An auxiliary proviso is that it would be subject to cabinet review.

The minister says that the team’s reception everywhere shows that people are thirst for justice, and then promises to meet these expectations in line with the vision and instructions of President Samia Suluhu Hassan who saw the thirst for justice of Tanzanians. The public trusts that the government walks the talk. He went far enough to say that in this campaign, every bush will be cut and burned, intimating that there are people hiding in bushes of cruelty, which is altogether undeniable. But without actual powers of plenipotentiary, can justice really be done?

That looks altogether valid but definitely up to a point, namely that it has to be tied to situations where government is the party about which people are complaining, in other words, the defendant in a case brought before the legal aid team. When it comes to civil claims, the legal aid team needs to adopt an arbitration or third party conciliation posture until it notices the lack of good faith in one of the parties - owing to judicial arrogance that he doesn’t have to compromise. Then it can propose a ruling to be adopted or approved by the High Court so that procedure is reaffirmed. (ends)