for 48 hours without due process where he suspected that, such a person was likely to
commit a breach of peace ·or disturb the public tranquillity.
The courts of law and the public vo1ce intervened to condemn violations of the
fundamental rights. In 1996, the Regional _Commissioners' Act of 1962 and the District
Commissioners Act of 1962 were repealed and replaced by the Regional and Area
Commissioners Act , Under the new Act, the Regional and District Commissioner do not
have power to detain.
The President as well under the Preventive Detention Act 1962 had powers to detain.
From 1962 to 1985 any detention order by the President could not be challenged in courts
of law, and this was the existing ouster clause in the Law. In 1985 the Preventive
Detention Act, 1962 was amended by the Preventive Detention (Amendment) Act, 1985.
The amendments left powers of the President to detain an individual but accorded rights
to detainees to challenge the detention in the court of law, right to be given reasons f.or
detention within 15 days after detention, and right ofthe detainee's name to be published
in the official government gazette so that the public have knowledge about the detention.
The amendment extended its application to Zanzibar.
This new position of the Preventive Detention law was put to test in the case of Dadi
Karim Nuru Mohamed Vs Republic (1999) Dar es Salaam Registry (Unreported).
The detainee in this case had been detained prison on the strength of a detention order
signed by the Vice President while exercising powers of the President of the United
Republic of Tanzania who was outside the country. The order was challenged among
other things, for failing to meet the conditions set in the Preventive Detention Act, 1962
as amended by the Preventive Detention (Amendment) Act Cap 361 of the RE of 2002.
The law provides that, the detainee should be given detailed reasons for his or her
detention within 15 days of the order and his name be gazetted in the official government
gazette. In thi s case Lady Justice Kileo indicated that iL was improper fo r the executive
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