Akwilina’s family demands justice at emotional burial

Dar es Salaam. Emotions ran high on Friday in the Marangu-Kitowo village of Rombo District in Kilimanjaro Region as the body of Akwilina Akwilini, 22, was laid to rest.

A first-year procurement and logistics student at the National Institute of Transport (NIT) in Dar es Salaam, the late Akwilina was killed by a stray bullet, which was fired during a confrontation between the police and opposition Chadema supporters in Kinondoni last weekend.

She was shot in the head while in a commuter bus travelling from her college in Mabibo – and was no part of the police/Chadema confrontation.

Speaking at the requiem mass on behalf of the family, the deceased’s brother, Moi Kiyeyeu, asked the government to thoroughly and meticulously investigate the incident that claimed the life of their relative – and have the suspect dealt with in accordance with the law and the norms of justice.

He also said that the family – and Tanzanians at large – would earnestly want the investigation findings to be released for public consumption. “As we have gathered here to pray for our beloved Akwilina, the family strongly condems the incident. We ask the government to investigate and identify those who were involved,” Mr Kiyeyeu stressed.

He further asked the government, working through its security organs, to promote peace and harmony as required by the constitution and laws of the land.

The burial in Rombo on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro was attended by a number of top government officials. These included Education, Science and Technology minister, Prof Joyce Ndalichako, Kilimajaro Regional Commissioner Anna Mghwira, and Kilimanjaro Regional Police Commissioner Hamis Issah.