The long-awaited treason case against opposition leader and Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (CHADEMA) Chairperson, Tundu Lissu, is scheduled to begin today, September 8, at the High Court of Tanzania, Dar es Salaam sub-registry.
The preliminary hearing will take place before Justice Dunstan Ndunguru, with the prosecution expected to call 30 witnesses and table 16 exhibits to support its case against the veteran opposition figure.
The case, which has attracted national and international attention, was initially filed at the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court but later transferred to the High Court once investigations were concluded.
According to the charge sheet, Lissu is accused of committing treason on April 3, 2025, in Dar es Salaam. He is alleged to have made statements intended to incite the public to block the conduct of the general election scheduled for October this year.
Lissu has long been a polarising figure in Tanzania’s political landscape. In 2017, he survived an assassination attempt in Dodoma and spent several years abroad receiving treatment before returning to active politics. He later vied for the presidency under CHADEMA in the 2020 General Election, where he challenged the late President John Magufuli in a hotly contested poll that opposition parties claimed was riddled with irregularities.
The treason trial is expected to be closely monitored both locally and internationally, with observers viewing it as a critical test for Tanzania’s democratic space and the treatment of opposition leaders ahead of the next election cycle.
