AUGUSTINO G

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA (IN THE SUB-REGISTRY OF MWANZA) AT MWANZA MISC. LAND APPLICATION NO. 9395 OF 2024 (Arising from the judgment dated 3CP August 2021 in Land Revision No. 04 of2021 in the High Court of Tanzania, Mwanza Sub-Registry before Rumanyika, J) AUGUSTINE G. MPEMBA (By his constituted attorney BENEDICTO MPEMBA)............................................ 1STAPPLICANT GODLIGHT LATIA KIMARO.................................................... 2nd APPLICANT VERSUS THE REGISTERED TRUSTEES OF TANZANIA FIELD EVANGELISM............................................................................. RESPONDENT RULING 14th August & 14th August, 2024 A. MATUMA, J. The applicants had lodged the notice of appeal to the Court of Appeal against the decision of this Court in Land Case Revision No. 4 of 2021 but did not take essential steps to prosecute their intended appeal. As a result, the Respondent herein applied to the Court of Appeal vide Civil Application No. 634/08 of 2022 to have the notice of appeal by the applicants herein struck out. That application was not contested. The Court of Appeal on 12th February 2024 made an order striking out the notice of appeal by the applicants which resulted into an automatic perish of the letter to the Registrar seeking for certified copies of necessary documents for appeal purposes. i The applicants are now before me seeking an extension of time to file afresh notice of appeal and a letter to the Registrar for the purposes of initiating the process of appeal to go back to the Court of Appeal. At the hearing of this application, the applicants who were not present were dully represented by Mr Joseph Madukwa learned advocate. Mr. Pius Rwegasira (Bishop) and Mr. Nelson Francis (Evangelist) appeared for the Respondent and had the service of Mr. Inhard Mushongi learned advocate. Mr. Joseph Madukwa learned advocate argued that the cause of the delay was technical because at all times the applicants were in Court litigating. He cited the cases of The Registered Trustees of Efatha Ministries versus Nyanza Cooperative Union (1984) Ltd and Another, Misc. Land Application No. 116 of 2021 and Jacob Shija versus M/s Regent Food and Drinks Limited and Another, Civil Application No.440/08 of 2017regarding the effect of a technical delay. Mr. Mushongi on his part had no dispute on the period spent by the applicants prior to the striking out of their notice of appeal. He however argued that the said notice of appeal was struck out on 14/02/2024 but this application was filed on 29/04/2024 which is almost 87 days and that the applicants have not accounted for this period. In that respect, he argued that the applicants did not act promptly after their notice of appeal was struck out by the Court of Appeal. The learned advocate cited the case of Emmanuel Rurihafi and Another versus Janas Mrema, Civil Appeal No. 314 of 2019 (CAT) to the effect that when the notice of appeal is struck out, the affected party should act promptly. Having heard the parties as herein above I am necessitated to agree with advocate Mushongi that the period between when the notice of appeal was struck out to when this instant application was filed has not been accounted for. Such period is not covered by the principle of "Technical delay". Even when I required Mr Joseph Madukwa to account for such a period he ended up stating that he avoids bringing matters out of record which might be considered as an afterthought. In that respect, since it is the legal requirement that for extension of time to be granted, the applicant must account for each day of the delay and since the applicants did not bother to account for the entire period between 12th February 2024 and 29th April 2024, I have no any other justifiable cause to take rather than dismissing this application. I therefore rule out that this application has been brought without any sufficient cause and it is accordingly dismissed. I order no costs to either party. It is so ordered. A Judge 14/08/2024 3