By Mwaka Ndawa
A 26-YEAR-OLD man of Kanyelele compound in Siavonga district has been jailed for one year by the Lusaka High Court for causing the death of six congregants of the Seventh Day Adventist Church who drowned in Lake Kariba early this year when they went camping.
Judge Kenneth Mulife has however freed Jonathan Haajaya’s co-accused, Osborne Mambo and Tyson Hachiyako, of manslaughter for the reason that they did not participate in sailing the fishing rig which the youths were using to dive in the water.
He said despite the youths having contributed to their death for being unmanageable, the coxswain is liable for their demise because he was careless when he steered the fishing rig into deep waters.
Haajaya, who is the coxswain of a fishing rig called Sunrise Two, on January 1, 2022 caused the death of Goodson Hamaila, Rodwell Chileshe, Ronald Libuku, Zebron Shikambo of Lusaka’s John Laing area, Niza Muchiliba and Allan Mwaanga of Kanyama area.
During trial, Cornelius Chileshe, 21, a cafe attendant of John Laing compound who survived drowning in Lake Kariba, narrated to court that he and his departed friends dived into the lake due to fear as Haajaya steered the fishing rig which they had boarded without informing them where he was heading to.
In his defence, Haajaya told the court that the six did not tag along when he went to catch fish at Chimtuzi as he left them at the harbour.
“I chased everyone who was on board. When they were playing they were mixed basimbi na basankwa (girls and boys). I chased them, only four people remained; I started the engine twice. I didn’t steer the fishing rig without sounding a warning, neither did anyone dive in the water 15 metres from shore,” said Haajaya.
In his judgment, judge Mulife said Haajaya was the one in charge of sailing the boat and committed manslaughter, therefore the charge cannot be attributed to Mambo and Hachiyako because they did not participate in steering the boat.
He said the coxswain, upon noticing that some people were still on board when he decided to go and catch fish, should not have steered into deep waters, which resulted in the death of the six after they jumped into the water due to mob hysteria.
“He (Haajaya) was negligent and the same is not a defence; rather it’s a mitigating fact and his defence was an aftermath. I have found that much as the deceased misbehaved and contributed to their death, the coxswain should not have sailed further into the water,” judge Mulife said. “In conclusion, I’m not satisfied that the prosecution has proved that Mambo and Hachiyako committed the offence of manslaughter and I accordingly discharge the two of the offences. For Haajaya, I am satisfied that the prosecution proved all the charges against all reasonable doubt and I find the accused guilty and convict him in all the six counts.”
During mitigation, the coxswain begged for the court’s mercy saying he will make better decisions in future if given a second chance.
Haajaya prayed that due to the negligence by the fallen youths and he, the court should consider imposing a fine as compensation for the families of the deceased as it is the duty of the court not only to punish but to also see that the law breakers are reformed; therefore a custodial sentence may not be the best punishment.
In handing down his sentence, judge Mulife said the offence committed by Haajaya was grave as human lives were lost, which would not have been the case had he acted responsibly.
“I need to send a strong message that you have a duty, and besides the circumstances I highlighted in my judgment, the deceased also acted negligently. And for this reason I’m of the view that it’s unfair for me to send you to jail for a long period,” said judge Mulife. “What is fair is to accord you a sentence that will help you to reform. I therefore in view of lives lost feel a custodial sentence is appropriate but I will exercise maximum leniency.
Having heard your mitigation, I sentence you to 12 months improvement with hard labour effective today in each count. But they will run concurrently; meaning you will only serve 12 months for all. Leave to appeal is granted.” This is contained in a report published by The Mast.