jamal abdallah saidi vs rungungu village 2020 tzhclandd 44 26 february 2020

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA (LAND DIVISION) AT DAR ES SALAAM LAND APPEAL NO. 09 OF 2017 {From the Decision of the District Land and Housing Tribunal o f Mkuranga District at Rufiji in Land Application No. 12 of 2015) JAMALIABDALLAH SAIDI......................................... APPELLANT VERSUS RUNGUNGU VILLAGE...................................... . RESPONDENT JUDGMENT ON APPEAL S.M. MAGHIMBLJ: Jamali Abdallah Said Q'the Appellant") was unsuccessful applicant at the Mkuranga District Land and Housing Tribunal ("The tribunal") in Land Application No. 12 of 2015 ("the Application"). Dissatisfied with the decision of the tribunal, he has lodged this appeal on the following Grounds: 1. That, the proceeding does not reflect what happened in the tribunal led to judgment. 2. That, the district tribunal erred in law and facts in relying on the evidence of persons who are not representative officers of the respondents. 3. That, the district tribunal erred in law and fact in holding that the village government have powers to acquire the clan land for reasons i of absence of the clan members at the time of verification of the land owners. 4. That, the district tribunal erred in law and fact for refusing to visit the land in dispute (locus in quo) 5. That, the district tribunal erred in law and fact for holding that the land in d 6. ispute is a bush land. The background of this matter can be briefly explained that at the tribunal, the appellant sued the respondent over ownership of the suit land located at Mengutwa Hamlet which he claim to have acquired from inheritance. The appellant alleged that sometimes in the year 1997 he was paid compensation by Songas company. Eventually there was an acquisition of the same land by Tanesco and in due course of payment, the respondent were compensated as the owners of the land hence the dispute at hand which emanated from the tribunal which dismissed it for lack of sufficient evidence hence this appeal. The appeal was disposed by way of written submissions and Mr. Edwin Msigwa, learned Counsel represented the appellant and Mr. Nyamhanga learned Solicitor for Kibiti District Council represented the respondent. I have noted that the respondent did not comply with the schedule of submissions as no submissions were filed on her behalf. Consequently this matter proceeds ex parte against the respondent. In his submissions to support the application, Mr. Msigwa combined the 1st and 2nd grounds of appeal. He submitted that the tribunal erred by reaching into decision for respondent since the evidence was weak and not 2 supported by documentary evidence like certificate of the village, Map, land use plan, village properties and its inventories. On the 3rd, 4th and 5th grounds he submitted that the tribunal erred for not visiting locus in quo. He argued that the appellant could not access the land in dispute because TANESCO took possession of it until the case was filed on 2015. He submitted further that the suit land being a bush does not entitle the Village to confiscate his land which he acquired from inheritance in 2011. Having gone through the records of appeal including the grounds of appeal and the submissions of the appellant, the following are my findings. From the evidence on record the appellant's only reliance that he was the owner of the disputed land was his oral testimony and some letters that he attached in his application but were never tendered in court. There was no any documentary evidence to show his ownership let alone the fact that he was an heir to that land. In the absence of the evidence to show his ownership, the land remains property of the Government hence the property of the respondent On those findings, I see no need to interfere with the decision of the tribunal the appeal is hereby dismissed with costs. Appeal Dismissed Dated at Dai )f February, 2020 S.M. MAGHIMBI JUDGE