adminMarvelous Moyo Gwanda Correspondent
A FILABUSI woman will perform 210 hours of community service after she sold dagga, a dangerous drug, to pupils at JZ Moyo High School in West Nicholson.
Silibaziso Sibanda 36, of Thandabantu village under Chief Maduna, told Gwanda magistrate Sheila Nazombe that she resorted to selling mbanje to raise money to meet school expenses for her child.
Although Sibanda admitted to committing the offence, she claimed that she was not aware that her two clients aged 16 and 18 years were schoolchildren.
“Your Worship, when they came to me, they were not in school uniform so I did not know they were schoolchildren. I was trying to raise money for my child’s school fees and I only managed to raise R65 from selling the drug,” she said.
Sibanda, who had been remanded in custody since Thursday last week, was yesterday sentenced to 10 months in prison of which four months were suspended for five years on condition she does not within that period commit a similar offence.
The remaining six months were wholly suspended on condition that she performs 210 hours of community service at Insiza Primary School in Filabusi starting on Monday next week and must be completed within six weeks.
In passing the sentence Nazombe said she had considered that Sibanda was a mature first time offender.
“What makes the offence serious is that you were selling the dagga. It is also aggravatory that you sold it to schoolchildren aged 16 and 18 years. Dagga has serious consequences to those who use it and by selling it to schoolchildren, you were spoiling their future. Stay away from dagga,” she said.
Nazombe said Sibanda as an adult and parent was supposed to provide guidance to the children and not facilitate the commission of the offence.
Prosecutor Sikholiwe Ncube told the court that on February 5 at around 8am at Majoda Farm, Sibanda sold dangerous drugs to scholars at JZ Moyo High School.
The offence was discovered the same day by Sithabile Moyo, a teacher at the same school, when she found the pupils in possession of the drugs.
The matter was reported to the police leading to Sibanda’s arrest and recovery of 4,8 grammes of dagga, the court heard.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter