Results shared on WhatsApp group

I am in a WhatsApp group for parents at my child’s primary school. During admission, we signed social media forms consenting to the use of social media. However, we were informed that this was intended for special occasions, such as sharing emergency information or photos from school trips. Recently, the head teacher posted the end-of-term results in the parents’ WhatsApp group, which included the full class list, including all pupils’ names, dates of birth, and home addresses. Some parents are worried this could be misused. Is this allowed under the new data protection law?
TN, Dar es Salaam

Under the Personal Data Protection Act, Cap. 44 [R.E 2023] (PDPA), Personal data is defined broadly to include identifiers such as names, birth dates, and home addresses. According to Section 3 of the Act, personal data includes any information that identifies an individual. The section further considers data concerning children as sensitive data. Section 25 of the Act imposes a legal obligation on data controllers (such as schools) to collect and process personal data lawfully, fairly, and in a strictly limited manner for the purpose for which it was originally gathered.

Publishing children’s details in a WhatsApp group without explicit consent from parents is risky and unlawful. The school should have anonymised the information or shared it through secure, consent-based channels. In this case, while parents may have signed social media consent forms during admission, those consents were clearly limited to specific uses such as emergency updates or sharing photos from school trips. The recent decision by the head teacher to publish end-of-term results in a WhatsApp group, including a full class list with sensitive personal details, exceeds the scope of that consent and arguably constitutes a breach of the PDPA.

As stated under section 3 of the PDPA, children’s data is subject to heightened protection under the law, and any processing must be necessary, proportionate, and aligned with the original purpose. Sharing such detailed personal information even within a closed group of parents exposes minors to risks such as identity theft, stalking, and other forms of misuse, and lacks a clear legal basis. Moreover, the failure to anonymise or limit the data shared violates the principles of data minimisation and purpose limitation. It is advisable that Schools and other learning institutions must now treat data privacy as a legal duty, not merely a matter of courtesy.

An amicable resolution with the school management is currently the best option. However, if the school does not cooperate, concerned parents are entitled to lodge a formal complaint with the Personal Data Protection Commission and demand corrective action, including a review of the school’s data handling practices and safeguards. Consult a lawyer for further guidance.

Vendor stalls around stadiums

I usually sell food and drinks outside football stadiums on match days. Recently, city officials instructed us to pack up, stating that we were operating illegally and blocking access. Well, the access point is true because on match day, there are usually a lot of people and vehicles, and movement becomes difficult even for the vendors. But this is how I support my family. Do I have any right to continue selling there?
GB, Arusha

Street vending and hawking are regulated by the Local Government (Urban Authorities) Act, Cap. 288 [R.E. 2023] and specific by-laws of each city or municipality. Most councils require vendors to have a business license and to trade only in designated areas. Selling outside stadiums without authorisation can be treated as a violation of local by-laws, especially where safety and crowd control are at stake.

While city officials have the power to remove you, councils are also obliged to provide designated vending spaces for wamachinga. We are not sure your whether your previous business was licensed. Nonetheless, if you wish to continue trading and support your family, you should apply for a licence or permit through your city authority, which may assign stalls within or near stadium areas, depending on the regulations in place. That way, you operate lawfully and avoid harassment. In short, you have the right to trade but only in compliance with licensing and location rules set by the local government.

Want of prosecution

Two years ago, I filed a land dispute case at the High Court. The case was repeatedly adjourned because the opposing party failed to appear. Recently, I was shocked to hear that my case was dismissed ‘for want of prosecution.’ I was always attending Court, so why was it dismissed, and what can I do now?
HH, Morogoro

‘Want of prosecution’ means a case is dismissed when the party who filed it fails to take the necessary steps to move it forward. Under Order IX Rule 2 of the Civil Procedure Code, Cap. 33 [RE 2023], if the plaintiff (the person who filed the case) does not appear when the case is called, the Court may dismiss it. However, if you were attending

Court and believe the dismissal happened wrongly, you have remedies.

You may file an application for restoration of the case under Order IX Rule 3 by showing ‘sufficient cause’ why the case should not have been dismissed. Always ensure that all steps (such as filing written statements, serving summons, and attending hearings) are documented on the Court records to avoid dismissal for want of prosecution.  We find it odd that your case was dismissed, although you always attended Court. Consult your lawyer to inspect your case file.