Maraga meets Lissu in court after former CJ Mutunga was denied entry into Tanzania
Former Chief Justice David Maraga, on the afternoon of Monday, May 19, 2025, arrived in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and appeared in court where he met Tanzanian opposition figure Tundu Lissu, who was being held in a chamber at the front, dressed in a crisp white and blue outfit.
Maraga is among the few Kenyan leaders who have successfully been granted access to the Swahili-speaking nation following the detention and later the deportation of the first delegation, which was led by People’s Liberation Party (PLP) leader Martha Karua on Sunday, May 18, 2025.
The second delegation, which was also led by former CJ Willy Mutunga and which left for Tanzania on the morning of Monday, May 19, 2025, also faced a similar setback, as they were also held for several hours with their passports being withheld.
In a video shared by a local media house on X, Maraga was seen stepping into the courtroom, which was filled to the brim, and being allowed to walk through and take his designated seat amid cheers and shouts following the rising pressure from those present to have the court rule in Lissu’s favour.
Maraga in the video is seen slowly walking through the packed courtroom, greeting a few familiar faces, before eventually settling calmly in the front row to follow the proceedings that have now ignited a full-blown diplomatic standoff with Kenya following the detention of several visiting delegates.
Taking to his X account, Maraga also confirmed that his experience had been smooth and incident-free, unlike that of the other Kenyan delegates, and he even posted a photo taken at the Julius Nyerere International Airport.
He then confirmed that he was on his way to court, where he hoped to make a meaningful contribution to the ongoing case involving the top opposition figure who is being held over several serious allegations.
“Safely arrived in Dar-es-Salaam. Headed to Court for the Tundu Lissu Court Case,” he wrote on X.
All the Kenyan leaders’ goal was to appear in court and add their voice to the unfolding legal showdown as well as witness firsthand the case of the CHADEMA chairman, who is currently battling treason and incitement charges.
Lissu was arrested in April 2025 and charged with treason over a speech in which he called on Tanzanians to rise up and throw a spanner in the works of the country’s presidential and parliamentary elections that are scheduled for October.
CHADEMA, the main opposition party in Tanzania, was also locked out of the elections after it refused to sign an electoral code of conduct.
Lissu faces the potential death penalty if found guilty of treason, even though he has been arrested multiple times over the years.
Karua’s dramatic detention
PLP leader Martha Karua’s deportation was nothing short of dramatic, as it began with airport officers confiscating her passport under the pretext that it was being checked by a senior official.
What followed was several long hours of anxious waiting with zero communication, and throughout the ordeal, she kept updating her supporters on X, lamenting how deeply frustrated and sidelined she felt.
“I arrived at Dar es Salaam Mwalimu Julius Nyerere International Airport at nine in the morning, and immigration referred my passport to the supervisor, who has kept me waiting for an hour as she consults her superiors. I am concerned that as a citizen of @jumuiya, my access within a @jumuiya country appears inexplicably restricted,” Karua stated.
She went on to add that apart from her, lawyer and human rights defender Gloria Kimani and media personality Lynn Ngugi had also been held at the airport.
She added that they were all official guests of the East Africa Law Society (EALS).
“Apart from me, @gloria_kimani and @ngugi_lynn are also detained. The common thread that binds us is that we are all guests of @ealawsociety,” Karua stated.
