Mwanaidi Maajar Tanzania’s Ambassador to the United States, lies, cheats and defames British investors!

MWANAIDI MAAJAR

Tanzania’s Ambassador to the United States

Ms Majaar lied and defamed British investors Sarah Hermitage and Stewart Middleton in the Silverdale Farm case

Ms. Mwanaidi Sinare Maajar describes herself on the Internet, in the following terms (http://rex.irdis.net/index.php/about-us-2/the_partners/h-e-mrs-mwanaidi-sinare-maajar/) :-

‘…….a leading lawyer in Tanzania with exceptional expertise in mining law. Her pioneer work in the field of reviewing regulatory regimes was the review of the Mining Sector Policy and the drafting of the Mining Act, 1998. Another similar assignment was the review of the business licensing regime and the drafting of the now proposed new business licensing law.Ms. Maajar is now serving as the Tanzanian Ambassador to the United States of America after having served for four (4) years as the Tanzanian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 2006. Ms. Maajar still retains her seat as a partner at the Firm and is still involved in the activities and the development of REX. She imprinted on REX her expertise in reviewing regulatory legal frameworks by setting up and leaving behind a powerful and well-manned portfolio in this regard, which is now headed by Dr. Eve Hawa Sinare.’

The pertinent points of the above are that Ms Maajar is a lawyer who holds herself out as adhering to high standard of ethics in terms of regulatory legal frameworks.

In the Silverdale Farm case Ms Maajar has shown herself to be neither honest or truthful. She has lied and defamed British investors  in a manner that is an indictment on her government, her country and the legal profession wherever that may be practiced.

In 2006, Tanzania' Minister of Investment and Empowerment Dr. Juma Mwapachu published the following statement in the Daily News on the British investors in the Silverdale Farm case, Sarah Hermitage and Stewart Middleton;

"....the investors were bona fide and had been registered by the Tanzania Investment Centre. They have the full support of his ministry they (Benjamin Mengi) are using local organs to harass legal investors. This is open corruption, which I strongly condemn. It shames us as a nation, which has set out to attract foreign investors."

For more than two years Ms. Maajar worked closely with the then British High Commissioner to Tanzania Philip Parham committed (only rhetorically now seems) to applying the rule of law to the Silverdale Farm case where the Tanzanian State has brutally facilitated the corruption instigated by Benjamin Mengi in order to deny British investors their rights under the law and the theft of a 45 year commercial lease to Silverdale and Mbono Farms.

As a lawyer of note (as she describes herself) Ms Maajar was fully aware of the legal irregularities that were being referred to her by the British Government vis-a-vis the Silverdale farm case and on several occasions expressed her desire for the British pair to stay in Tanzania and fight the corruption they were facing.

Ms. Maajar, in an interview with British M.P. Roger Gale (Thanet North) stated her desire to see the case resolved in accordance the law and undertook to assist in this resolve.

However, in June 2009 Ms. Maajar had an unexplained U Turn on her position stating in a letter to the M.P. on the 9th June,

“…I am attaching herewith, a document detailing the background of the problems between Stewart Middleton and his partner Sarah Hermitage and Benjamin Mengi as well as the Tanzanian government’s position on the matter. It has become necessary to have this document prepared, to respond, to the numerous enquiries we are receiving from people on behalf of Middleton and his partner.’

In the document presented to Hon Gale and as such the British government Ms Maajar makes the following specific (but not exclusive) and defamatory accusations of the British investors all of which, she has been presented with the evidence to the contrary by the British government:-

• The permission for the assignment of the lease from the co-societies was not obtain by the investors.
• Mr Middleton forged the lease to Silverdale and Mbono Farms
• Unlawfully removed Benjamin Mengi as a director of Silverdale Farm
• Did not pay Benjamin Mengi monies due to him for the assignment of the lease.
• Did not exercise due diligence in the transaction with Benjamin Mengi
• Stated that the Chief justice of Tanzania had agreed to review cases in the courts in Tanzania brought against the investors by Benjamin Mengi and the investors had refused a meeting with the chief justice and fled the country
• The investors fled the country due to a court judgment against them
• The investors were not proper investors in the country of Tanzania.
• Finally, and not having ever met the investors Ms Majaar appeared on BBC television and stated the investors had never been mistreated in Tanzania and left the country for their own reasons despite, a Foreign and Commonwealth office statement put to her that they had ‘credible evidence of abuse and intimidation of the investors’.

The above vicious, cowardly and defamatory attack on the investors says much more about Ms Maajar than this article ever could or indeed about the Tanzanian government.

Ms Maajar has lied, cheated and deliberately misrepresented the facts of the Silverdale Farm case to all those with a genuine interest in investing in Tanzania and continues to do so. Most recently she has led an investment delegation from the United States seeking to secure investment in Tanzania.

Ms Maajar has hidden behind her diplomatic immunity to defame innocent investors and has been instigational in the abuse of law against British subjects which has led to the loss of their entire investment in Tanzania.

Ms Maajar’s conduct as a representative of her government is damming enough but as a lawyer, it is here suggested, is  worthy of being stuck off, the practising register!!!!