Q&A – 26 August 2019
Legality of consuming cannabis abroad
I know that as a Tanzanian consuming or dealing in cannabis is not allowed and a criminal offence. However, if I travel to a country like the Netherlands where cannabis is legal, and if I consume it there in the Netherlands, am I committing any offence in Tanzania? What if I consume it and fly into Tanzania having consumed it in the Netherlands?
FE, Moshi
Section 18 of the Drug Control and Enforcement Act, 2015 (DCEA) prohibits smoking, inhaling, injecting, sniffing or otherwise using any kind of narcotic drug, cannabis inclusive, unless the offender proves lawful and reasonable excuse. Lawful and reasonable excuse for using narcotic drug may include the consumption of such narcotic drugs on medical ground and not for leisure as seems to be the case for you. Reasonability of the excuse for consumption of narcotic drug will be tested by looking at the quantity of the drug consumed and whether the consumption was authorised by a registered medical doctor.
Section 1(3)(b)(i) of the DCEA as amended by the Drug Control and Enforcement (Amendment) Act, No 15 of 2017 extends the scope of the DCEA to prohibited conducts committed by a citizen of Tanzania outside Tanzania regardless of whether the conduct prohibited in Tanzania is lawful in the foreign country where it is committed.
Since you are citizen of Tanzania and consumption of cannabis is prohibited under the DCEA, if you consume cannabis in the Netherlands, where it is legal, you are actually committing a crime of unlawful consumption of narcotic drug contrary to section 18 of the Drug Control and Enforcement Act. Whether you fly back to Tanzania or not, you have still violated the law of Tanzania. Hence, the moment you land into the soil of Tanzania, you can be charged under section 18 and it will not be a defence that you consumed the cannabis in Netherlands where it is legal before you flew to Tanzania.
If you consume the cannabis and remain in the Netherlands, you will be guilty under section 18 of the DCEA but it will be impossible to charge you while you are there or extradite you to Tanzania because in the Netherlands your conduct is not a crime.
A foreigner who consumes cannabis outside Tanzania cannot be charged under section 18 because section 1(3)(b)(i) of the DCEA extends the scope of the DCEA only to the conduct of citizens of Tanzania committed outside of Tanzania.
In short, the DCEA follows the citizens of Tanzania wherever they go. Therefore Tanzanians should observe both the DCEA and the drug laws of the foreign states they visit or reside. This means that Tanzanian nationals who are overseas are still bound to follow the DCEA notwithstanding that consuming cannabis is legal in the countries they reside in.
Fake email to a girl
I study in a university and have a particular liking for a girl in one of the second-year batches. I have never told her that I like her as I wasn’t sure if she was dating anyone. A few months ago, a friend of mine sent her an email, as if it was from me, proposing to date her. It was a very descriptive email. I had no knowledge of this fake email although it looked it was from my email. Just as I suspected, she reported this to her boyfriend, who is a high ranking official in the political system. I was picked and roughed up. Is sending fake emails not a crime in Tanzania? This has really upset me as I have now lost confidence in approaching any girl.
JF, Mwanza
We are unable to answer on how you can gain back confidence to approach girls. What we can tell you is that it is a criminal offence to send out such fake emails. Section 15 of the Cybercrimes Act 2015 states that (1) a person shall not, by using a computer system impersonate another person. Furthermore subsection (2) states that a person who contravenes subsection (1) commits an offence and is liable on conviction, to a fine of not less than five million shillings or three times the value of undue advantage received by that person, whichever is greater, or to imprisonment for a term of not less than seven years or to both.
We suggest you report this to the police who will take appropriate action.
PCCB order for documents
We are investors in Tanzania and have been asked by the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) to supply them with our contracts entered in Tanzania and also appear in person before them. Is this not the police’s job and is it mandatory for our us to appear. These contracts are confidential and we cannot disclose them. Please guide.
GH, Dar
The PCCB is established under the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Act which is a penal statute that deals inter alia with corruption matters. The PCCB is hence independent from the police and specially empowered to investigate corruption matters.
Section 10 of this act states that (1) An officer of the Bureau investigating an offence under this Act may-(a) order any person to attend before him for the purpose of being interviewed orally or in writing in relation to any matter which may assist investigation of the offence; (b) order any person to produce any book, document or any certified copy thereof, and any article which may assist the investigation of the offence; or (c) by written notice, require any person to furnish a statement on oath or affirmation setting out such information which may be of assistance in the investigation of the offence. (2) Subject to the direction of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Director General may assume prosecution commenced by the police or any other law enforcement agency for an offence involving corruption.
A plain reading of section 10 above clearly allows any officer of the PCCB to demand any document. This act hence overrides any confidentiality clauses in your contracts and you must release these documents to the PCCB. Should you not cooperate or not release the documents, you will be committing an offence and could face imprisonment.