claud misinzo vs maria kisizi and another 2021 tzhc 2491 31 march 2021

IN THE HIGH COURT OF TANZANIA IN THE DISTRICT REGISTRY ATMWANZA LAND APPEAL NO. 46 OF 2020 (Arising from the decision of the District Land and Housing Tribunal of Mwanza District at Mwanza in Land Case No. 156/2013) CLAUD MISINZO APPELLANT VERSUS MARIA KISIZI & ANOTHER : RESPONDENTS TIGANGA, J. fr When this Appeal was called for hearing, the counsel who was "' representing the appellant, Mr. Muyumbu Advocate, who was so assigned by TLS under legal Aid programme informed the court that, when he was s, perusing the file preparing er himself for hearing, he discovered that, the land " , in dispute was the property of Misinzo Maligo who was the father of the yB 3 current Appellant. His record further reveal that Misinzo Maligo died in 1990, and since his death no one was appointed Administrator of his Estate. 1 Further, that in the year 2013, when the current appellant commenced these proceedings before the District Land and Housing Tribunal, he was not appointed as Administrator of the Estate, he was appointed on 11/06/2020. This means, he commenced these proceedings without locus standi. Mr. Muyumbu asked for the court to invoke its powers and revise the proceedings and judgment and give appropriate orders preferably an order that the matter be tried afresh, before the District Land and Housing Tribunal. These remarks were supported by both respondents as they said that what the advocate has said is a true state of affairs in this case. Now, having been addressed on that issue, I have also passed through the record, I found the submissions by Mr. Muyumbu to be portraying the correct state of affairs. It is true that the property in dispute was of one Misinzo Mlingo, the late father of the appellant who died in 1990. I also found that the appellant was appointed Administrator in 2020 as alleged and proved by the Advocate, this means in 2013, the appellant moved the District Land and Housing Tribunal without authority as he was not an administrator of the Estate of his deceased father. In law locus standi is a jurisdictional issue, it is a rule of equity that a person cannot maintain a suit or action unless he has a interest in the subject matter of it, that is to say unless he stands in a sufficient close relation to it so as to give a right which requires protection or infringement of which he brings the action "see Godbless Lema vs Mussa Hamus Nkanga & 2 others Civil Appeal No. 47/2012 - CAT - Arusha. Therefore a person without locus standi cannot be· allowed to commence the proceedings. In this case the appellant had no locus standi to commence the proceedings without being appointed as :Administrator of the Estate of his deceased father. That being the case, it means, the case filed and the proceedings there at as well as the judgment rooted from the case commenced by the person without locus standi are nothing but a nullity. This means, even this Appeal is a nullity as same is rooted on the nullity proceedings. Having so found, I thus invoke my supervisory powers under section 43 of the Land Disputes Courts Act [Cap 216 RE 2019] and revise the proceedings and there by quashing the proceedings and setting aside all orders made there under, and direct that the matter be commenced afresh 3 by a competent party having obtained the status of Administrator of the estate of the owner of the Land. No order as to costs is made. It is so ordered. DATED at MWANZA, this 31 day of March, 2021 ~ . ..: .. :t:-11 z) JUDGE {s\3#7 1~~ J ,"¥5 \\ , "-!:✓-r,,,,-. , ,..--;,.-,; ~h 31/03/2021 ~-'~~ ~ ~ "waa ® ---..:.:::----~ 4