Implementation of Mama Samia Legal Aid Campaign is expected to kick off on April 20 in the country’s capital, Dodoma, the Minister for Constitution and Legal Affairs, Dr Damas Ndumbaro said here yesterday.
On that day, all stakeholders in the legal sector are expected to convene at the University of Dodoma (UDOM), to officiate the implementation of the campaign, according to the minister.
Dr Ndumbaro said that the event will be conducted at UDOM because it was located in the country’s headquarters and that the largest public university had already made tremendous strides in provision of legal aid services in the country’s capital.
He was speaking when officiating UDOM’s School of Law (SoL) Law Day, which is marked every year at the university’s premises.
UDOM is the only higher learning institution in the country that marks the Law Day in style and this is the second time the University is commemorating this day. Last year, the day was marked in January.
Last month, the Ministry of Constitution and Legal Affairs launched Mama Samia Legal Aid campaign with the aim of providing legal aid to the public throughout the country for three years.
In the campaign, the ministry educates the public on the rights to protect human rights, respect and dignity.
The campaign is also expected to strengthen access to rights of the public and the provision of legal aid in increasing legal understanding and human rights in the community, especially the rights of women and children.
Launching the campaign in Dar es Salaam, Dr Ndumbaro noted that the slogan of the campaign is “Unite with Mama Samia to oppose cruelty, respect the dignity of your fellow, protect your neighbour’s child; Let’s build a country with dignity, honour and peace”.
Dr Ndumbaro said that the campaign will be carried out in Tanzania Mainland and Zanzibar and implemented in three phases for a period of three years till December 2026.
Yesterday, Dr Ndumbaro said the campaign will kick off in Dodoma Region and that later in May it will be rolled out countrywide for three years.
He equally tasked UDOM to dwell into researches that look on justice as well as issuing recommendations on laws that were impeding justice dispensation so that they can be amended.
“Where there is no justice there couldn’t be equality and where there is no equality there is no peace, so we need to have justice in order to bring equality,” he noted.
During the event, the university’s Acting Vice Chancellor, Prof Razaak Lokina said that UDOM had decided to come up with the idea to commemorate the day so as to bring together different legal stakeholders to discuss several legal matters as well as looking at how best they can promote the quality of legal education in the country.
This year’s theme according to him was ‘The role of Legal Aid in Enhancing Community Engagement.’ During the Law Day, panelists, participants and students pursuing different programmes in law had enough time to learn how legal aid could help the community in legal issues, especially massive education and how to help poor persons who could not afford legal costs whenever they get into legal disputes.
So far, according to the University’s Dean of the School of Law (SoL), Dr Ines Kajiru, the university via it’s law clinic had managed to provide legal aid to different persons in the country’s capital.
“Our students have been going to communities to provide education on legal matters and now we are in consultations with the office of the Regional Commissioner so that we can get a special building where we intend to establish a legal aid centre,” noted Dr Kajiru.
