This chamber application by the Applicant against the
Respondent who is an advocate of this Court and which is titled ‘Miscellaneous
Criminal Application No. 11 of 2020’ is brought under section 3(1)(a) of the
High Court Act No. 2 of 1985 as well as rule 9 (2) of the Legal Practitioners
Rules, Cap 28 of the Laws of Zanzibar. The orders being sought by the Applicant
as against the Respondent are in the following form:
1. That, the
honourable Court be pleased to suspend or revoke the Advocate Certificate of
practising or struck off the Roll in Zanzibar Jurisdiction.
2. Any other
order(s) which this honourable Court deems just and reasonable.
The application is supported by an affidavit of the learned
State Attorney in which it is deposed among other things that the Respondent
being an advocate of this Court was engaged by client to represent him in
Criminal Case No. 94 of 2019 before the Regional Court at Mfenesini. Further
that while the case was still pending before the Regional Court the Respondent
on behalf of her client filed an application for bail before this court which
was supported by an affidavit sworn by the Respondent to which she annexed
medical chits purporting to show that her client was seriously sick and that he
needed to undergo immediate operation. It is also deposed in the supporting
affidavit that the Respondent contrary to her professional presented the
medical chits to the court knowing that the same are fake and that she did so
aiming to mislead the court and cause the court make an improper or wrong
order.
In opposing the application, the Respondent filed her
counter affidavit in which she maintained that the medical chits she annexed to
her affidavit in support of the application for bail were genuine. To support
her contention that the chits were genuine and that her client was really sick
she also filed an affidavit sworn by the medical doctor who was attending the
client in prison and who was also the author of the medical chits in question.
Alongside the counter affidavit the Respondent did also file her notice of
preliminary objection questioning the propriety and competence of the application.