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LAND LAW QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS NEW EDITION-1

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LANDLAW
Quest
ions&Answer
s

Char
l
esH.
Mwai
hoj
o(LLB,
LLM,
MBA)

(
Ass
t.Lec
tur
eratKampal
aInt
ernat
i
onal
Uni
ver
si
ty
,DSM)
0713-
144090/
0743053257

MWAI
HOJOCHARLES
(
AsstLect
urer(
KIU)
:LLB,
LLM,
MBA)

1
 1.I
n1928, ther
ight
sofoccupancyti
tl
ewasr edefi
nedt
oincludet
heoccupat
ionof
publi
cland by nati
ve as pernati
velaws and customs.How fardidt he
redef
ini
ti
onhelptosafeguar
dnati
veint
erest?
TheRi ghtofoccupancyi sasy stem oflandtenurewhichisdist
ingui
shesfrom other
system oflandt enuresuchasf r
eeholdandl easehold.Itwit
hinthisstatementI
i
ntendedinthispapert odiscusswhetherin1928theri
ghtofoccupancyti
tl
ewhi chwas
redefi
nedtoincludet heoccupat i
onofpubl i
clandbynat iv
easpernat i
velawsand
customshelptosaf eguardnativ
einter
est.
TheRi ghtofoccupancyi nTanzaniacanbet r
acebackbeforei nv
adingbyColonial
ist
whocamewi ththeirsyst
em oflandtenureandRightofoccupancysy stems.I
tnoted
thatbeforecolonial
i
stcamei nTanzani
a;thelandt
enureduri
ngt hatti
mewasexer ci
sed
undert r
adit
ionalorcust omaryownership.I
tnotedt hatinsomear eat hel
andwas
ownedbychi ef(Chief
dom)whowasv estedthepowert odi
str
ibutetheland.However,
womenwer enotal l
owedt oownland.
Thesy stem saystobechangedaftercomingofcolonial
isti
ntroducedtheirownsystem
andt hosesy stemsactual
lysaidtobedomi nateandsuper iortot hosefoundbefore.
Colonial
istcamei nTanganyi
katof i
ndraw-mater
ial,cheaplabour,areaforinv
est
ment ,
area forset tl
ementand mar ket
.These needs because Af ri
ca be coloni
sed and
Tangany i
kaisinclusi
ve.
TheseCol onial
istcomei ntophases,itsay sthattheGermanywast hefir
stcol onial
ists
tocol oni
zeTangany i
kacamei n1885af tertheBer l
inconference.Inhisadmi nistrati
on,
Germanysi gnedt heimper ialdecreein1895of26th Nov emberwher edecl aredt hat
whol elandoccupi edandt hosethatnotoccupi edwasmadeascr ownland.Itnotedt hat
theGer mani nt heprocessofal i
enatedlandf rom nati
vetonon- nativ
einducedt hel ocal
chiefbysuppl y
ingthem wi t
hsomear msandot hergoodsinexchangewi t
hland.Af ter
taking the land itwas be gr anted toi ndi
v i
dualpeople byt he governorei therby
conv eyanceorl easeholdwi t
hoptiontopur chase.
Wor t
hilyapartf rom havinglandf r
om nat i
vest il
ltheGer mandidnotrecognisedt he
exi
stenceofcust omar yl
andt enur
eduet othef actthatt
heydidnotputthesystem on
hownat i
veshoul downt heland.Theyappl yConv eyanceofownershi
passai dt
obet he
perpetualkindofl andowner shipsimilartotheEngl ishfr
eeholdwhil
eleaseholdwi th
opti
ont opur chasewer ebasi cal
l
yt erm oft earswher ebyt heleaseoftenofferby
ful
fil
l
ingbasi cdev el
opmentcondi t
ionhasanpr oportiont
opurchasetheproper
ty(land)
andenl argehis/hertenur
eintoconv eyanceofowner ship.
In1919Br it
ishtookinTanganyikaandexerci
sedmonopolyoverAfri
canland(Nat
ive
l
and).Itsai
dt hatt
hewholelandi nTangany
ikawhet
heroccupi
edorunoccupiedonthe
dateoft hecoloni
alLandOrdinanceof1923wasdecl ar
edtobe“ publi
cland”asper
secti
on3oft heLandOr nance1.
di
ContrarytotheGer manyadminist
rati
on,theBr i
ti
shadmi ni
str
ati
onasf araslandis
concernedbothstatut
oryl
awandcust omarylawapplysometimesconcurr
ent
lyandat
otherti
mesexclusiv
elyasdemonst r
atedbelow.Itnot
edthatpubli
clandsandallr
ight
s
overthesamewer eplacedunderthecontrolofthegover
noroftheTerri
tor
ytobeheld

1
Or
dinanceNo.3of1923.

2
 2
anddi
sposedofasr
ightofoccupancy.
Itshouldbenot edt hat
,althoughthepr eambl et otheLandOrdinancedecl aredthatit
s
aim wastoassur e,protectandpreservetheexi stingcust
omaryrightsofAfricantotheir
l
and,thesubst anti
vepr ovi
sionsoftheOr dinancedi dnotgivethatprotect
ion.Howev er,
theOr di
nancewasheav il
ycrit
ici
sedbyt hePer manentMandatesCommi ssi onofthe
3
LeagueofNat i
ons ont hataccountthecol oni
al statewascompelledtoredefineri
ghtof
occupancy‘toincludeat i
tl
eofnat i
veornat i
vecommuni t
ylawfull
yusingoroccupy i
ng
4
l
andi naccordancewi thnativelawandcust om .
TheRepor tonTanganyikafor1927pr oudlystateddur i
ngthey earofBillenti
tled:An
Ordinance to armed the Land Ordinance 1523 was dr af
ted and has since been
enacted…Asadoubthadar i
senwhet hernativ
eoccupi er
sofcommunall andt owhom
nocer ti
fi
cateofoccupancyhadbeeni ssuedwoul dber ecognisedasoccupi er
sunder
thepr i
ncipalOr
dinanceandbeent it
ledtot heprotect
ionagainstarbit
rar
ydisturbances
whicht hatOrdi
nancegivesthel awhasbeensoamendedasexpr essl
ytorecogni zea
5
nati
v eri
ghttotheuseofsuchl andasar ightofoccupancyundert heOrdi
nance”.
InthereportofthePer manentMandatescommi ssi
on,thir
teent
hsession,19286,‘
’
He/ Mr
Scott,theaccreditedr epr
esentat
iveoftheMandat or
ypowercal l
edat t
enti
ont othe
enactmentofl egislat
ionconfir
mingthetit
lesofnativ
eoccupi er
sofl andallov erthe
country.Thi
smat t
erhadbeenr ai
sedbyamemberoft hecommi ssi
ont woy earsago,
anditwasonet owhi chtheGovernorhadgivenver
ycarefulatt
ent
ion.Anor di
nancehad
beenpassedwhi chgav ethenati
veat i
tl
easgoodasawr i
tt
endocumentorr ightof
occupancyundert helandOr di
nance.TheOr di
nanceno.7of1928hadbeenpassed
sincetheendoft hey earunderrev
iew’
’.
I
twasr epor
tedfur
therthatPermanentmandatecommi ssi
onwer
eenactmentofthis
l
egi
slat
ionwit
htheobjecttoassur
ingt
othenati
velegal
tit
letot
hel
ands,
theyoccupy
’’
Ont hefaceofi tthenat i
v ehadat i
tl
easgoodasawr i
ttendocumentoroccupancy
underthel andor dinance.Howev er
,whenevertheinterest
sofset tl
ersandpl anter
confl
ict
edwi t
ht hosepeasantst hecustomar
yr i
ghtofoccupancywouldcease7.I
not her
words,itwast akenf orgrant
edt hatonthegrantofri
ghtofoccupancyundert heland
ordi
nanceX,t hecust omar yr
ightofoccupancyheldbyYanat i
ve8 ov
erthesamel and
wouldbeext i
nguished.
Butinreali
ty,thepositi
onofnat i
vei
nt hemat terofr
ightofoccupancyonecoul
dsay
thatal
thought heBr i
ti
shrecogni
setheexistenceoftheAfri
cancustomarylandt
enure
call
edDeemedr ightofoccupancyasi
tr edefi
nedin1928itnotedthatdeemedri
ghtof
occupancyisinferi
orcomparetothestatutor
yorgrant
edofoccupancy.
9
Thi
spoi
nti
sil
l
ust
rat
edi
nthecaseofMt
oroBi
nMwambavTheA.
G. wher
ethecour
t

2
Theor i
ginaldef
ini
tionofrightofoccupancyunders.2.
3
MinutesofthePer manentMandat esCommissionoftheLeagueofNat
ions4sessi
onp.1068
4
Seefootnote2f orori
ginaldefi
nit
ion
5
ARepor tinTangany i
kafor1927pp69- 70par116.
6
atp.141.
7
R.JaphetandESeat on,TheMer uLandCase;E.Afri
caPubli
shHouse
8
Land(amendment )Act1970, Act
.No.28of1970
9
(1953)2TLR.

3
washeldthatwherelandheldbyanati
vethei
nferencemustalway sbethepassionof
l
and( bynati
ve)ispermissi
venotadverset
ot hegov er
nmentov err
idi
ngint
erestthe
nati
vehadonlyusefr
uitr
ighti
.e.Ri
ghtt
ouseorenjoythefrui
tofl
andbutnotowner shi
p
ri
ght.
10
Notonlythatbutal
soindescendantofSheikhMbar akBi
nRashi
dvMi nist
erforl
and”
wherethecourtreact
edthattheappell
antsprocessorwhohappenedtobeAr abwer e
permit
tedt ooccupylandont erm simil
artot hoseonwhicht heinhabi
tantofthe
ter
ri
tor
ygenerall
ywerepermit
tedtooccupy.
Therefore,tosayinshortalt
hought heri
ghtofoccupancyti
tlei
n1928wasr edef
inedt o
i
ncludeoccupat ionofpubliclandbynat iv
easpernat ivelawsandcustomsbutt hat
redefi
niti
ondidnothel ptosaf eguardnati
veinter
est,t
hedeemedr i
ghtofoccupancy
wasr egardedi nfer
iort
ot hegr antedri
ghtofoccupancyasabov ecasesment i
oned
wherei thappenedincaseofconf l
ictt
hegrant
edr i
ghtofoccupancypr
evail
ed.
11
Readingbetweentheline,nMohanaBi
I nasai
dvRegist
rarofti
tl
eandl andOffi
cer the
courtheldt
hatasamat terofpoli
cy,t
heGer manandBrit
ishgovernmentpermit
tedthe
i
nhabitant(
Afri
can,general
lyofthetenant)tousel
andforthei
rreasonabl
erequi
rement
andsustenancewithoutanyspecialgr
anttoanyindi
vi
dual.
Thissituat
ionhascont i
nuedevenaf t
erindependentasi ti l
lustratedint hecaseof
NationalAgri
cult
ureandFoodCor porati
onv.Mul badawavi ll
agecounci l&ot hers12.
Wher ethevil
l
agercl ai
medt hatt
heyi ndiv
iduall
yhadsepar atef ar
msal l
ocatedtothem
bylocalauthori
ti
esi n1964.NAFCOcl aimingt hatwasinl awf uloccupation,andhad
beengr ant
edr i
ghtooccupancyov erthedisputedland.Thet ri
aljudgehel dthatthe
vil
l
agershadsuper iorti
tl
es.Hestat edthat“theyhadcustomar ytenanciesorwhatwe
call
eddeemedr i
ghtofoccupancy .Thiscour tfi
ndsthatther ightoft hepeasantsand
thi
sv i
ll
agecouncilcouldnotbeextingui
shedacceptbyoper ationofl aw.
InAppealcour t
,thev i
ll
ager
swer eunsuccessf
ulbecausetheydidnotprovet hatthey
werenat i
ves.TheirLordshi
pst at
ed“Itwil
lbeseent hatnoneofthevil
lagerswhohad
tastef
ulcouldbesai dtohav eheldlandoncust omarytenur
easnoneoft hev i
ll
agers
establ
ishedorevenav err
ed,thathewasanat iv
e.Theythusnotoccupi
erintermsoft he
l
andOr dinance.
’
’
Toconcl
udeoneshouldadmi
tthatt
her
edef
ini
ti
onofNat
iveon1928di
dnothel
pto
saf
eguar
dnat
ivei
nter
est

2.Annali
vesinKisir
ir
iv i
ll
ageinIrambaDi str
ict.Shehasinheri
tedtenacresof
l
andfrom herlat
erf at
herBenjaminin2004.Recent l
yadi sputehasensured
bet
weenAnnaandoneMzeeMakal aov erthesaidtenacresofl and.Mzee
Makal
aisallegi
ngt hatbefor
ethedemi seofBenj aminhehadl enthim some
moneytothetimeof600, 000ofwhichthel andinquest
ionwasasecur it
y.He
10
(1960)EA348.
11
(1949)16EACA79.
12
Civi
lAppeal
No.3of1985.

4
 pr
esentsamortgageinst
rumenttot
hateff
ect
.MzeeMakalahasinsi
stedthatif
Annawantstoinher
itthelandfr
eefr
om anyencumbr
ancesheshouldpayhi m
hi
s money ,ot
herwise the l
and i
s hi
s.Discuss t
he fol
lowi
ng alter
nati
ve
si
tuat
ions:
(a)Whati st heappr opri
ateforum tosett
lethedi
sputeandwhy ?
(b)Whet hert he par ti
es are ent i
tl
ed seek l
egalrepresent
ation for
m
adv ocate
(c)Whatwast helegaldut yofMzeeMakal aatthet
imeofcr eatingsuch
amor t
gage?
Thesy st
em oflanddi sput esettlementi nTanzani ai
sprovi
desinsection167(1)ofthe
LandActof1999.I tpr ov idest hat( 1)‘’
thef ol
lowi
ngcourtsareher ebyvestedwith
exclusi
vejur
isdict
ion,subj ecttot hepr ovi
sion ofthispartto hearand det er
mine
proceedi
ngsconcer ningl andt hati stosay-
(a)theCourtofAppeal
(b)theLandDi v i
sionoftheHighCourtest abli
shedi naccor
dancewithlawf orti
me
beinginforcef orest
abl
ishi
ngcourtdivisi
on
(c)theDistr
ictLandandHousi ngTri
bunal
(d)War dTri
bunal s
(e)Vil
lageLandCounci l
Readingbet weent helines,
TheLandDisput esCour tsActundersecti
on3provi
dest hat
(1)Subjecttosection167oft heLandAct, andsect i
on62oft heVil
lageLandAct ,
every
disputeorcompl aintconcerni
nglandshallbei nst
itutedintheCourthav
ingjur
isdict
ion
todeterminelanddi sputesinagiv
enarea.
(
2)Thecour
tsofj
uri
sdi
cti
onundersubsect
ion(
1)i
ncl
ude;
(
a)TheVi
l
lageLandCounci
l
;
(
b)TheWar
dTr
ibunal
;
(
c)TheDi
str
ictLandandHousi
ngTr
ibunal
;
(
d)TheHi
ghCour
t(LandDi
vi
sion)
;
(
e)TheCour
tofAppeal
ofTanzani
a.’
’
ThisLandDi sputeCourtActatl eastel
abor
atesindet ail
sthoseCourtsbyshowi ngi
ts
j
uri
sdicti
on.Butl andActdoesnotmakeanydet ail
spr ovi
siononlandcourt
st hatwhy
thePresidenti
alCommi ssionr ecommendedsy stem ofspeci al
i
zedcircui
tlandcourt
wit
hinthejuri
sdicti
onofjudici
aryandwithpart
ici
pationofthepeopleinthem.
Mor eover,TheNat ionalLandPol i
cyin1995i tnotedthatOrdinar
yCour t
sar eloaded
withotherdi sputesandv erylit
tleti
mei sgi v
ent olanddisputes.Di
sputesr emainin
courtsunsettledformor ethan20y s13.Exagger
ear ati
onapart
, t
heabovestatementwas
foll
owedbypol i
cystatementst atedthatherei sneedt ohaveawel lestabl
ishedland
dispute sett
lementmachi ner
y.Ther efore,exist
ing quasi
-j
udici
albodies should be
strengt
henedt odealwi t
hsuchdi sputesasr esultanew law wasenactedi norderto
giveeffectoft heabov estructure.Thus,thenewl awhasgi venthenamel anddispute
13
Uni
tedRepubl
i
cofTanzani
a,Mi
nist
ryofLands,
Housi
ngandUr
banDev
elopment(
1995)NLP.p.20.

5
 14
Cour
tsAct .
(
a)Whati
stheappr
opr
iat
efor
um t
oset
tl
ethedi
sput
eandwhy
?
Afterobser
v i
ngtheabov epr ovisi
on,i
nouri ncidenttheappr opr
iatefor
um tosettl
ethe
disput
eistheWar dTribunals.Thisisduetot hefactthatitpossessesthejur
isdi
cti
ont o
themat t
erconcerned.Itshouldbenot edthatt hepri
mar yfuncti
onofeacht ri
bunali
st o
securepeaceandhar monyi nt heareaforwhi chiti
sest abli
shedbymedi ati
ngbetween
and assist
ing part
ies to arri
v e ata mut uallyacceptable soluti
on on any matter
concerni
nglandwi t
hinitsjur
isdict
ion.
Ourinci
dentshowst hatMzeeMakal acl
aimedsomemoneyabout600, 000whichhe
hadlentt
oBenjaminf atherofAnna.Ther
et hedisput
eisofcivi
lnat ur
erelat
ingt
oland.
Ther
eforethetr
ibunalhaspowert oordertherecoveryofpossessionoflandandev en
toawardanyamountcl aimedduetothefactthatsect
ion16gav ethepowert odoso.
15
Sect
ion16(
1)oftheAct providesthat“
Notwit
hst
andi
ngtheprovi
sionofsect
ion23of
theWardTr
ibunalAct
,theTr
ibunali
nproceedi
ngsofci
vi
lnat
urerel
atingt
olandmay
(
a)Ordert
her ecoveryofpossessionofland
(
b)Ordert
hespeci fi
cperfor
manceofanycont ract
(
c)Makeor dersinthenatureofaninjuncti
onbot hmandatoryandprohi
bit
ive
(
d)Awardanyamountcl ai
med
(
e)Awardcompensat i
on
(
f)Orderthepay mentofanycostandexpensesi ncur
redbyasuccessfulpart
yor
hi
swi t
nessor
(
g)Makeanyot herorder,whichthejusti
ceofthecasemayr equi
re”
Moreov ersecti
on15pr ovidetheli
mitati
onofj uri
sdi
cti
onwhereitpr
ovidest
hat-
‘
’Notwithstandi
ngtheprov
isionofsect
ion10oftheWardTri
bunal
Act,t
hej
uri
sdi
cti
onof
theTribunalshalli
nallproceedi
ngsofaci vi
lnat
urerel
ati
ngtolandbel
i
mitedtothe
disput
edl andorproper
tyvalueatt
hreemill
i
onshil
li
ngs’
’.
(
b)Whet
hert
hepar
ti
esar
eent
it
ledseekl
egalr
epr
esent
ati
onf
orm adv
ocat
e
16
Secti
on18(1)oftheAct pr
ovi
dest hat“Noadvocateassuchmayappearandactf or
any par tyi
naWar dTribunal,
(2)Subjecttotheprovi
sionofsubsect
ion(
1)and( 3)of
thi
ssecti
on,awardTri
bunalmayper mitanyrel
ati
veoranymemberoft hehouseholdof
anypartofanypr
oceedi
nguponr equestofsuchpart
ytoappearandactforsuchparty
.’
’
Theref
ore,fr
om abovequotati
ontheanswerofabovequestionisclear
lystat
edthat
advocat
eshoul dnotall
owedi nWardTribunal
,onl
yrelat
iveoranymemberoft he
householdofanypar
tyareal
lowedbuti
tdependontherequestofsuchpart
ytoappear
andactforsuchpart
y
Notonlythatbutal
soitprov
idesthatinanyproceedi
nginaWar dTri
bunalwhi
chabody
corpor
ateisapartyi
tsdir
ector
,secretar
y,memberoraper soni
ntheemploymentofthe
bodycorporat
eanddul yaut
hori
zedi nthatbehal
f,ot
herthananordi
nance,mayappear

14
ActCap216.
R.E.2002.
15
Sect
ion16(
1)oftheLandDi
sput
eCour
tActCap.216,
R.E.
,2002.
16

6
andactonbehal
foft
hatpar
ty.
(
c)Whatwast
hel
egaldut
yofMzeeMakal
aatt
het
imeofcr
eat
ingsucha
mor
tgage?
MzeeMakal ahadl egaldut
yt omakesur ethatt
hemor tgageoflandregist
eredunder
theLandRegi str
ati
onActasi tprovi
dedundersect i
on113(4)oft heActt hat‘’
the
mortgageshalltakeef f
ectonlywheni tisregi
ster
edinapr escri
bedr egi
steranda
mortgageeshallnotbeentit
ledtoexer
ciseanyofhisremediesunderthatmor t
gageif
17
shal
lnotsoregister
ed’’.
From t heabovequot at
ionMzeeMakal ashal lnotbeent it
ledt
oexerciseanyofhi s
remedi esunderthatmortgageifitisnotsor egi
stered.I
nthecaseofOlindadeSouza
18
Figulir
edovKasasamal iNanji ,supporttheabovepoi ntwheret
hecourtwasheldthat
oncet hemortgagehadbeenr egister
edi tcouldnoti ntheabsenceoff raudunder
section184oft heRegistr
ati
onofTi tl
esOr di
nanceori ntheexer
cisebytheHighCourt
ofitspowerundersect i
on185oft heOrdinancebei mpeached.
3.Wheni
tisthatonesai
dtohav
eacqui
redal
egalgr
ant
edt
it
leov
erapi
eceof
ur
banl
and.
Thequest i
onbasesonwhenaper sonmayacquirealegalgrant
edti
tl
eov erapieceof
urbanland.Theref
ore,
inthefor
thcomingdi
scussi
onwillbaseonthel
egalissueonhow
andwhent helandisacqui
redintownbygi v
ingviv
idl
yexampl eofvar
iouscasesand
provi
sion.
General
ly,secti
on27ofTheLandofRegi st
rati
onActpr ov
idespr ovi
sionofGr antsof
Publi
cLandt hat‘’
Everygr
antofpubli
clandf oragovernmentleaseandcer t
if
icateof
occupancymadeori ssuedaft
erthecomingintothef
orceoft hi
sActshal lbedeli
vered
totheRegi st
rarwhoshallther
eupononr egist
ertheestatethereincompr i
sedi nthe
grant
eeoroccupancy …’
’
Butasamat t
erwhenacqui r
ingalegalgrant
edt i
tl
eov erapi eceofurbanLandis
debatabl
eduet ot
hef actthatsomet heyar
guedt hatthetit
leofthelandinurbanar
e
acquir
edwhenonceacceptanof f
erbythegovernment,whileother
sargueditwhena
cert
if
icat
eofoccupancyissi gnedbytherel
evantparti
es,andotherssaysthati
swhen
cert
if
icat
eissuedi
sregist
ered.
Tostar
twiththefir
stschooloft
houghtwhosayst
hatthegrant
edt i
tl
eoverapieceof
urbanl
andisacquiredwhensomeonegivesanoff
erandotheracceptthatoff
er.This
meansthattherecogni
ti
onoflegalt
it
leofapi
eceofurbanlandcreatedthr
oughoffer
andaccept
anceofthatoff
er.
19
Section27oft heAct pr
ovi
desthatt hecommi ssi
onershallwhereithasbeen
determinedthatar i
ghtofoccupancyshallgr
ant
edt otheappli
cant,makeanoff
erin
wri
ting,herei
nafterr
eferredt
oasa‘ ’l
ett
erofoffer
’’tothatappli
cantset
ti
ngoutthe
ter
msandcondi tionsuponwhichagrantmaybetothatappli
cant.

17
Secti
on113(4)oft
heLand(Amendment
)ActNo.2of2004.
18
(1962)EA756.
19
LandActCap113R, E2002

7
Subsect
ion(3)oft hesamesect i
onprovidesthatt
he‘’
Commi ssi
onermaywit
hdraw a
l
etteraf
teranaf f
irmativereplyt
otheof ferhasbeenrecei
vedandshallbeli
ableto
compensatetheappl icantforanylosseswhi chhehassuf fer
edbyreasonoft he
wit
hdrawerofthelett
erofof f
er…”
Itsay st hatoncean of f
erhasbeen accept ed,isthen aper son getther i
ghtof
occupancy whi ch contain al
lt he ter
ms and conditi
ons required and si
gned by
commi ssi
onerandot herconditionsthencomet otheeffectthatthet i
tl
ehasbeen
acquiredt otheplotinur banareas.Thisisil
l
ustr
ati
ngalsoinsection28(1)oftheLand
20
Act wher ei tprovi
dest hat‘’
anaccept anceofofferofri
ghtofoccupancyi nwr i
ti
ng
shall
-
(a)bei napr escr
ibedf or
m.
(b)beaccompani edanyf reeordeposi torbanker’sdraftlett
erofcr editorother
irr
ev ocablecommi t
mentt opaysuchf eeordeposi twhi chhaspr eviousl
ybeen
agr eeduponi nwr i
ti
ngasisr equi
redbythelet
terofoffer;
(c)besi gnedbytheappl i
cantorhisdull
yauthori
zedrepresentati
veoragent .
Therefore,ifthedocumentwhi chdoesnotcompl yineveryrespectwi t
hthepr ovi
sionof
paragraphs( a)and( c)ofsubsection(1)aboveshallnotbet akentobeandshal lhave
noaffectedwhat soev erasacceptanceinwri
ti
ng.
Apartfrom abov erelevantauthori
ty,
thepointalsoisil
lustr
atedthecaseofSarj
itSli
ngh
vSebast ian Chr i
stom21 wher ethe factwast hatthe appel l
antoff
ered a r
ightof
occupancybyKi nondonidistr
ictLandoffi
ceron26/ 2/1977.On20/ 3/
1980theappellant
recei
vedt hel et
terforrevocationoff
er,contai
ningRefD/ KN/ A9782JRCof20/ 3/1980
from Dist
rictLandDev el
opmentof fi
cerandof f
ertorespondentwhowasf i
nall
yissued
certi
fi
cateofoccupancyf orthepl ot
.Theappel l
antisappeal i
ngtotheHighcourtafter
beingdissatisfi
edbyt hejudgmentanddecr eeoftheResi dentmagist
rat
ecourt.
Theappel lant
’sadvocatearguedt hattheDi st
rictlandof ficerhasnopoweri nl
aw t o
revokear i
ghtofoccupancydul ygr
ant ed.Headdedt hattheResi dentmagi st
rateerrorin
l
aw inconsi deri
ngthecerti
ficateofoccupancyasconst i
tuti
ngt herightofoccupancy
i
tself.Thatthelear
nedmagist r
ateoughtt ohavehel dt hatt
heaccept edt heofferofright
ofoccupancy .Therespondent’sadvocateargued,i nterali
a,t hatt i
tl
et olandv est
sonl y
whenacer ti
fi
catei
sissued.Thecour theldthatinteral i
athat( i
)Ar i
ghtofoccupancyi s
createdbyt heapproveoft heapplicant’
sapplicationf orthegr antoft hesame( i
.e.A
ri
ghtofoccupancy )andtheacceptancebyt heappl icantoft hegr antedr i
ght.
Inil
l
ust r
ati
on,thispointl
etusobserv ethear gumentf r
om bothsides,forexampl
eMr .
Mwal uaguza( PW2)t hedist
ri
ctlandof f
icerofar i
ghtofoccupancyandaTi tl
edeedhe
hasthi st osay‘ ’
i
tiscommonknowl edget hatwhenoneat temptsthatacquir
eti
tl
et o
anypi eceofl andnotonlyinDaresSal aam,butal soelsewhereonefir
stgetsanof f
er
theoff ermustt henbeaccepted.’
’Hefurthersaidthatthegrantofri
ghtofoccupancyis
notaut omaticassomepeopl etendtothinkorwoul dnecessar
yfoll
owaf t
ertheoff
eris
communi cated.
I
n opposite si
de Mr.Rai
that
hat(
forAppell
ant
)t ook t
he posi
ti
on thata r
ightof
occupancyoveraploti
sgrant
edbyalet
terofof
ferandthenacceptedbytheoff
eree.
20
I
bid
21
(
1988)TLR24.

8
Hesai dthatt
helet
termustpayt herequi
sit
efeesandsupplythei
nformati
onrequir
edin
thelatterofoff
ertoconsti
tuti
onacceptanceonhi spart
.Oncet hi
sisdonear i
ghtof
occupancyiscreat
edandgr ant
edt othegrant
eeandthisi
st hegr
antwhichsecti
on6of
thelandActCap.113refer
.
Headdedt hatthereisnootherwayofgr ant
ingar i
ghtofoccupancyunderCap113and
thatthereisnopr escri
bedfor
m suchagr ant.Herefer
redtothecaseofPat maGarment
22
Industri
alLt d v.TanzaniaManuf actureLtd and submi tted t
hatint hatcaset he
appellantPatmahadonl ybeenofferedar i
ghtofoccupancywher east herespondent
Tanzani aManuf actur
eshadgoneast epfat
herandobt ai
nedacer t
if
icat
eofoccupancy
aswel l.
Wemayt her eforefi
ndt hat,t
houghtherespondenthasacer t
if
icat
eofoccupancyand
theappellanthadnonebutonl yof
fer,t
hecour tofappealsti
llhel
dinf avouroft he
appel
lant.Thi sitmeanst hatonlyof
ferandifthatoff
erhadbeenacceptedonecansay
thati
sthent hel egalgrantedti
tl
eoverapieceofurbanlandhaveacqui
redasdi scussed
byMr .Rai thathaci t
ing apassagef rom ProfessorJamessai dthat“cer t
if
icat
eof
occupancyi snott her i
ghtofoccupancyi t
selfbutitisadocumentev idencingthe
23
ri
ght”
Theref
ore,alegalgr
antedtit
leoverapieceofurbanland(ari
ghtofoccupancy
)is
creat
edwhenanof ferfori
tismadeandnoot herpersoncanrevoketheri
ghtof
occupancyunl
essthePresi
denthasdel
egatedt
hepowertorev
okeanddoneitf
orgood
causeasprovi
dedundersecti
on45oftheLandActof1999.
Comi ngtotheot herside,t
heargumentwast hatanof ferofr
ightofoccupancydoesnot
conferti
tl
et othel andont heoffer
ee.Itsayst hatwhenanof feri
smadeandaccept ed
thenthegrantofr ealtit
lei
smade, thatthelaterofof f
erisonlyacontr
actbindinginthe
governmentt oissueacer ti
fi
cateofoccupancybyi tselfv
estnot i
tl
eintheofferee,t
hat
tosaytheat it
leacquiredwhent hecerti
ficat
ei sissue.
Tosuppor ttheabovepoi nt
,Dr.TengaofaLegalConsul
tancyServ
ices,quotedt
he
passage fr
om Prof.G.M.Fi mbo saidthat“
The gr
antofa rightofoccupancyis
manifest
edbyt hecertif
icat
eofoccupancyandther i
ghtofoccupancyv estist
he
24
rel
evantpersonontheexecuti
onther
eof”
Hef ur
thercont
endedthattheappel
l
antgotuponbei ngoff
eredar i
ghtofoccupancy
wasnotat it
let
othelandbutcommittedf or
mt hegover
nmenttoissueacerti
fi
cateof
occupancy.Hesaidthatwhereacertif
icateisissuediti
satstaget hatt
herightof
occupancyvest
sinthegrant
ee.
Otherargumentpr ov
idest hatwhent her
eisr egist
eredi sthenthelegalti
tl
eacquir
ed.
25
Secti
on30( 4)oft helandAct pr ov i
desthat‘’Theregistrarshal
ltakeanystepsmake
anydi v
isionwhi charei nhisopi nionnecessar yanddesi r
abl
etoensur ethatalet
ter
off
icerr egi
steredprovidesthehol derofar i
ghtofoccupancywi thathesamesecur i
ty
ofti
tleofandt hesamef aci
li
tyforrightofoccupancywi th”

22
(1984)TLR30.
23
LandTenureandPoli
cyinTanzani
ap.117.
24
“Doubl
eAll
ocat
ionofUrbanPl
ots.Al
egalLaby
rint
h,Ci
ti
zenPuzzl
ementandNi
ght
mar
e”
25
LandActCap113R,E2002

9
From thequot
ationaboveonecansayt hati
nor dertoacquiretheti
tl
einurbanarea
ther
emustber egist
rat
ionoftheri
ghtofoccupancy.Iti
swor t
hnot i
ngt
hatanygrandof
ri
ghtofoccupancy ofa per i
od exceedi
ng fi
vey ears shoul
d be compulsor
il
y be
regi
steredasf
ormt hecomingint
oforceoftheAct.
Innutshel
l
,Isubmitt
hisbysay
ingthatt
hegrant
edtit
leov erapi
eceofur
banl
andi
s
acqui
redwhensomeonegiv
esanoff
erandot
heracceptthatoff
er
4. “
Compulsor
yacqui si
ti
onoflandunderthelandAcquisi
ti
onAct,1967hasbeen
usedbythegov er
nmentasaweapont obenefitf
rom it
sownwr ong.Pol
i
ticall
y
thi
s act
ion woul d be justi
fi
ed in ter
m of “ publ
ic i
nter
est’
’overr
iding
devel
opmentalpoli
ciesofNati
onalpr
oject
s.
Wi
tht
heuseofr
elev
antaut
hor
it
ies,
cri
ti
cal
lyexami
net
heabov
easser
ti
on.
Inthispaper,Iam goingtoexami necri
ti
call
ythecontent
ionsayst hatCompulsory
acquisi
ti
on ofland underthe l
and Acquisit
ion Act
,1967 has been used byt he
governmentasaweapont obenefi
tf r
om i
tsownwr ong.Pol
i
tical
l
ythi
sact i
onwouldbe
j
ustif
ied i
nt er
m of“ publ
i
ci nt
erest’
’overr
idi
ng devel
opmentalpol
icies ofNat
ional
proj
ects.
Thesy st
em ofcompul soryacquisi
ti
onofl andst art
edsi ncecolonialti
me,alt
hough
undercolonialadminist
rat
ion itwas used as one among met hod to exti
nguish
cust
omar yintownarea.Buttherealsi
tuati
ontheposi t
ionr emai
nsthesameev enaf ter
i
ndependence.Thelandremainsundert hetr
ustee(president)f
orthepurposeofenlace
publ
icsectorandotherplanst hegover
nmentcr eatestatutetoimplementthatpolice.
Forexample,theLandAcquisiti
onActof1967especi allyundersecti
on3and4shows
thei
mpl i
cati
onofthepoli
cy(plans)
.
Secti
on3oft heActstat
es“ Ev
erypersonlawful
l
yoccupyingland, whetherunderari
ght
ofoccupancywhereverthatri
ghtofoccupancywasgr anted,ordeemedt ohavebeing
grant
edorundercust omar ytenur
e,occupyandhasal way soccupiedt heland,the
occupat
ionofsuchl andshallbedeemedt obepropert
yandi ncludetheuseofl and
fr
om ti
met otimefordepict
uri
ngstockundercustomar
yt enure”
.
Mor eov ersection4( 1)Landshal lbedeemedt ober equiredf orapublicpurposewher e
i
tisr equiredf oranyoft hef ollowingpur poses:f orexcl usiveGov ernmentuse,f or
gener alpubl i
cuse,f oranyGov ernmentscheme,f or thedev elopmentofagr icul
tural
l
andorf orthepr ovi
sionofsi tesf orindustri
al ,agri
culturalorcommer ci
aldev el
opment ,
socialser vi
cesorhousi ng;f orori nconnect ionwi thsani taryimprovementofanyki nd,
i
ncludi ng reclamat i
ons;f orori n connect ion wi t
ht he l ay i
ng outofanynew ci t
y,
muni cipali
ty,townshipor mi norset tlementort heext ensi onori mprovementofany
exi
st i
ngci ty,muni ci
pal i
ty,t ownshi pormi norset tl
ement ;forori nconnecti
onwi ththe
developmentofanyai rfiel
d, portorhar bour;
forori nconnect ionwithminingofmi nerals
oroil;forusebyt hecommuni tyorcor porati
onwi t
hinthecommuni ty;
andf orusebyany
personorgr oupofper sonswho, i
nt heopi ni
onoft hePr esident,shouldbegr ant
edsuch
l
andf oragricultur
aldev elopment .
Fi
rstl
andpoli
cywasf ormulatedbyt heGov er
nmenti n1995.ThePolicyaimsincl
ude
Ensur
ingf
airl
andacquisit
ionandowner shi
p,Provi
dinganavenueforeveryTanzani
an
ci
ti
zentoaccess andownl and,Ensuri
ngexisti
ngrightstol
and,part
icul
arl
yofthose

10
whoar eowni nglandwi thoutl
egaldocument s,aregivenlegalstatus,Put t
ingl i
mitst o
theamountofl andthatcanbeownedbyani ndividual,
Improvi
ngandcl ari
fyingtheway
l
andi stobemanagedandhowdi sputesoverlandcanber esol
vedand, Ensur i
ngproper
managementofl andandi tsconservati
on.Fort hesepolici
es,t
heal llandinTanzani ais
heldintrustbythePresidentonbehal fofal
lTanzani ansandisthereforepubl icproperty.
Inordert oensurehighersecuri
tyofl andtenure,Tanzani ahasthreel aws,namel y,the
LandActNo.4of1999, Vill
ageLandActNo.5of1999andt heLandDi sputes ActNo.
20f2002. Thegener alpurposeoft heselawsi stomakesur et hatthel andpol icy
object
ivesareachieved.
Theactionofacqui ri
ngt hel andthroughlandAcqui siti
onAct,1967seem t oinfri
ngethe
ownershipoft hel andi nTanzani a.Somet imesay sthatthegov er
nmentusedasa
weapont obenef i
tfrom i t
sownwr ong.Pol i
ti
call
ythisactionwouldbej usti
fi
edi nterm
of“publi
cinterest’
’ov err
idingdev elopment alpoli
ciesofNat i
onalproject
s.Ot herssay
thatone oft he legalr i
sks ofdoi ng business in Tanzania has been the risk of
compulsorylandacqui si
ti
onbyt heGov er nment.Undert heLandAct1999,al llandi n
Tanzaniaispublicland.Concer nsaboutl andl awinTanzani ahaveresultedinpositi
v e
governmentaction.
Tosuppor ttheabov epoi ntther earesomecasedi scusst hi
sindet ai
l
.Forexampl ein
26
ATTORNEYGENERALAPPELLANTV.SI SENTERPRI SESLTD Thet rialcour
tf ramed
thefoll
owingissues:-( a)Whet hertherewaspr operandsuf fi
cientnot
icef oracquiri
ng
thesuitlandundert heLandAcqui sit
ionAct1967and( b) 
  
 Whethert hepur posein
whichthelandwaspur portedlyacqui r
edi sapubli
cpur poseundersection4oft heLand
Acquisi
ti
onAct1967.Af t
eraf ullt
ri
altheHi ghCour t
,Ihema,J.answer edt heissuesin
thenegative.I
nessencet heHi ghCour tdecidedthattheacquisiti
onwasnoti npubl i
c
i
nterestandnor easonablenot icewasgi v
enbef or
ethesai dacquisi
ti
on.
Onappealagai nstt heabov edeci si
onoft heHi ghCour t
.There-aref ourgr oundsof
appealwhi chr eadasf ollows:-( 1)thatthet ri
alcour terredinlaw andi nf actinits
fi
ndingt hatt her ewasnopr operandsuf ficientnot iceinacquiri
ngt hesui tl andunder
theLandAcqui sitionAct ,1967.( 2)Thatt het ri
alcour terredi
nl aw andi nf actinits
fi
ndingt hatt heacqui sit
ionwasnotf orpubl icpur poseaspr ovi
dedf orunderSect i
on4
oft heLand Acqui sit
ionAct ,1967.Att hehear ing oft heappealt hepar tieswer e
representedbyt he- sameadv ocat eswhoappear edont heirbehalfatt het ri
al.Mr .
Ngwembe, learnedSeni orSt ateAt tor
ney,appear edf ort heappel
lant.Ont heot herhand,
Mr .Bomani ,lear nedadv ocate,appear edandr esistedt heappealonbehal foft he
respondent .Wepr oposet obegi nwi ththesecondgr oundofappeal .Thecr ucialIssue
herei swhet hert heacqui sit
ionf orpurposesoft heAmer icanembassywasi npubl i
c
i
nter est
.I nhi sor alsubmi ssi
onont hepoi nt,Mr .Ngwembeessent i
allyr epeatedhi s
earli
ersubmi ssionatt het ri
al:-Thatt hegener alpubl icwast obenef itf r
om ser v i
ces
offeredbyt heAmer icanembassyatt heacqui r
edpi eceofland.Withr espect ,wedonot
agreewi thhi mt hatt heacqui sit
ionwasi npubl i
ci nterest.Wesaysof orr easonswhi ch
willemer geher eunder .
Thest
arti
ngpoi
ntisthedef
init
ionofpubl
ici
nter
estorpubli
cpurposeasi
tissomet
ime
cal
l
ed.Inamatterofpubl
icinter
est
:"i
sthati
nwhichacl assofthecommunit
yhavea

26
Ci
vi
lCaseNo.47of2001

11
pecuni aryi nt er
est,orsome i nterestby whi ch thei
rl egalr i
ghts orl i
abil
iti
es are
27 28
affected."I not hertextbook ," publicinterest"means:firstthegener alwel
fareoft he
publ i
ct hatwar rantsrecogniti
onandpr otecti
onandsecondsomet hinginwhi cht he
publ i
c as a whol e has a stake;especi all
yan i nter
estt hatjust i
fies government al
regulation.“ Black’
sLawDi cti
onar yal sodef ines"publi
cpur pose"as:-" Anactionbyor
att hedi r
ect ionofagov ernmentf ort hebenef i
toft heCommuni tyasawhol e."Inthe
caseofELLI Sv.HOMEOFFI CE29 theMor risLJ.Statedthat" Onef eatureoft hepubl i
c
i
nter estist hatjusti
ceshoul dalway sbedoneandshoul dbeseent obedone. "
30
Comebackhome,wehav ethecaseofAgr oIndust r
iesLtdVersusAttor
neyGeneral
31
wherethisCourtcit
edaheadnot einB.P.BhattandAnot herVer
susHabibRaj
ani that
to beint he"publi
ci nter
est "
:-"
itisnotsuf fi
cientthatpubli
cinter
estmaybenef it
i
ndirect
lyorincidental
ly
,ift hepr i
marypurposeoft heappli
cati
onistobenefi
tt he
l
andlord'
sint
erestandnott hatofthepubl
ic.
"
Theabov edef i
nit
ions,itiscleartoust hat"publ
i
ci nt
erest"or"publ
icpurpose"must
i
ncludeapur pose,thati stosayanai m orobjectinwhicht hegeneralint
erestofthe
communi t
yisconcer nedori nvol
ved,asopposedtothepar t
icul
arint
erestofindi
vidual
s
orinst
it
uti
ons.Int heinstantcase,theacqui
siti
onwasmadeunderSect i
on4( 1)ofthe
LandAcquisi
tionAct ,1967.
Thecr ucialquesti
onher eiswhet hertheacqui sitionandt hesubsequentgr anttot heUS
Embassywer ewi thint heambi toftheabov esub- secti
on.Inourrespectfulopinion,t he
answeri sint henegat ive.Theacqui siti
ondi dnotf i
tinanyoft hesit
uationsment i
oned
i
nt heabov esub-sect i
on.I ndeed,thespi ritoftheabov eActwas,andi ndeedst illis,to
acquirelandf orpubl i
cpur poseandnotf oranyot heruse.Therefor
e,thev ali
dityofany
acquisit
ionundert heActdependsonwhet herthel andisrequir
edforapubl i
cpur pose.
Intheinstantmat ter,theacqui sit
ionf orpur posesoft hefor
eignembassywasnoti nl i
ne
wit
ht he''publi
cpur pose"or" publi
cint er
est "envisagedundert heAct.Wewi l
l,theref ore,
fi
ndnot hingtof aultthet r
ialJudgei nhi sfindingsandconcl usi
onsont hepoi ntini ssue.
Wesoor deraccor dingly.
Havingobser vedthatnowIcansayi tisprovedt hattheCompul soryacqui si
ti
onofl and
undert helandAcquisi
tionAct,1967hasbeenusedbyt hegovernmentasaweapont o
benefitfrom it
sownwr ong.Poli
ticallythisactionwoul dbej usti
fi
edint er m of“publi
c
i
nterest’’over
ridi
ngdev el
opment alpol ici
esofNat ionalproj
ects.Howev er,compl yi
ng
wit
hpol i
ciesofthegovernmentonewi l
lfi
ndt hatitisgoodsy stem buttheonl ythingis
howi tisconducted.Usuall
yitexerciseswi thoutfoll
owt heprocedurerequired.

5.“Nei
thertheVil
lageLandAct
,1999northeLandAct
,1999hasbeeni
npl
ace
prot
ectcustomaryl
andowner
s’’
DISCUSS
Thescopeoft
hispaperi
stodiscusst
heabovestatementwhi
chsaysthat“
Nei
therthe
Vil
l
ageLandAct,
1999northeLandAct,1999hasbeeninpl
acepr
otectcust
omaryland
27
Stroud’
sJudi
cialDict
ionar
y
28
Black'
sLawDictionar
ySevent
hEdi
ti
onbyBr
yanA.Gar
ner
29
(1953)2QB135,
30
1994TLR43
31
1958EA536

12
owner s’
.Tanzaniaisoneamongcount ri
esi nAf r
icawhichhav ethesy stem ofland
tenuregov erni
ngbycust omaryrul
esandst atutorylandtenur
e.Undert hi
ssy st
em,we
havecust omaryri
ghtofoccupancyandgr antedrightofoccupancy.Butthi
st wosyst
em
i
ni tsappl i
cati
onbroughtal otofdiscussi
oni nourcount ryduet othef actthatone
system known as cust omaryland tenure system seems t o be undermined si
nce
coloni
altimeupt onow.
Thef i
rstcol oni
ali
sttocomei nTangany i
kawasGer manywhoi nterinTangany i
kasi
nce
1885upt o1918whent heBr i
ti
shtakecont rolofthet err
it
ory .Botht heyintendedto
remov ecust omarylandtenureint ownar eas.Therefore,theyi ntr
oducel andpoli
ce
underwhi chusersofl andinur banar easinvol
vedgov er
nmentandpr i
vatepersons
(i
ncluding compani es).The coloni
alst ate envi
saged t hatpr ivate persons would
predomi natedi nthi
sarea.Generall
y,thebasesoft itl
et olandi nur banar easwerea
grantofar i
ghttooccupancyundertheor di
nance.
Ithadlongbeenf el
tthatcust
omaryl awdoesnotapplyinurbanar east
hepol i
cyofthe
coloni
alst atewascont ai
nedinacircularof1957.Thecir
cularst
at edinparagraph12
“iti
sthei ntent
ionthatinatownshipal ll
andshouldbeali
enatedfrom t
ribalt
enureand
thatAf r
icans should abbey the same l aw ofthe t
ransi
tion withregardtot hei
r
occupati
onasmember sofanyotherr ace”
.
Theabovepolicyseemst osuggestt
hatuponcreati
onorext ensi
onofcit
y,muni
cipalit
y
ortownboundar i
es,urbanlandceasedt obesubjecttocust omaryl
aw.in1928,t he
scopeofappl i
cati
onoft helandordinancewaswi dened.I tcametoaccommodat e
peasantproducti
onaswel l.Theordinancerecognisedoccupationoflandbyt ri
bal
communiti
es.Anoccupi edoflandundercustomaryl aw wasdeemedt obeholdinga
ri
ghtofoccupancyalt
houghhewasnotgi venacerti
fi
cateofoccupancy.
Sincecolonialadmi ni
str
ation,asf arasl andi sconcer ned,bot hst at
utor
yl aw and
customaryl aw appl y
,somet ime concur r
ently and atot hert i
mes exclusively as
demonst r
atedbelow.Thepr i
ncipallegisl
ati
oni stheLandOr dinance32.Thi
sOr dinance
wasenact edt opr ovi
det hel egalf rameworkf orplantati
onagr icul
tureandpeasant
producti
on aswel lasur ban dev elopment .Thewhol eoft hel andsofTangany i
ka
whetheroccupiedorunoccupi edont hedateofthisordinancear eherebydeclar
edt obe
publi
cland.Declaredsection3oft heLandOr di
nance.Publ i
cl andandal lri
ghtoft hee
samet er
rit
orytobehel danddi sposedofasr ightofoccupancy .
Itsaysthatal thought hepr eambletot heLandOr dinancedecl arethatit
saim wast o
assurepr otectandpr eservet heexisti
ngcust omar yr i
ghtofAf r
icantotheirland,the
substanti
v e prov i
sions oft he ordi
nance was heav il
y crit
ici
zed by the Per manent
Mandat eCommi ssi
onoft heLeagueofNat ion33ont hataccount .Thecoloni
alst at
ewas
compel l
ed t or edefine rightofoccupancyt oi ncl
ude a t i
tle ofa native ornative
communi tyl awfulusi ngoroccupy inglandinaccor dancewi t
hnat ivel
awandcust oms.
Itshouldbenot edt hatont hefaceofi tthenat i
vehadat it
leasgoodasawr it
ten
documentorr ightofoccupancyundert hel andOr dinance.Howev er,wher everthe
i
nterestofset tl
ersandpl ant ersconfl
ict
edwi t
ht hoseofpeasant sthecustomaryr i
ghtof
34
occupancywoul dgi veway .
32
OrdnanceNo.3of1923
33
Minist
erofPermanentMandateCommissi
onoft
heLeagueofNat
ion,fourt
hsessi
on,p.106-
108
34
SeeK.JaphethandE.Seaton,
theMer
uLandCase,EastAf
ri
canPubli
shingHouse,Nai
robi
,1967.

13
 35
I
nt hecaseofMTOROBI NMWAMBAVTHEA. G. wherethecour twashel dthatwher e
l
andhel dbyanat i
v etheinfer
encemustal way sbet hepassionofl and( bynati
ve)i s
permissiv
enotadv ersetothegov er
nmentov er
ridingint
erestthenat iv
ehadonl yuse
frui
tri
ghti.e.Righttouseorenj oythefr
uitoflandbutnotowner shipri
ght.Notonlythat
36
butalsoi ndescendantofSHEI KH MBARAKBI N RASHI DVMI NISTERFORLAND”
wheret hecour treactedthattheappell
ants’processorwhohappenedt obeAr abwer e
permitt
edt ooccupyl andont er
m simil
art ot hoseonwhi cht hei nhabit
antoft he
terr
it
orygener al
lywer epermitt
edtooccupy .

Howev er,thisv i
ew hascomeunderat tackasi tisi l
lustratedi nt hecaseofNat ional
Agricul tureandFoodCor porationv.Mul badow Vi ll
ageCounci landot herwher et he
nd
tri
aljudgehel dt hatt hev ill
ager shadsuper iort it
les.Hest ates‘ ’2 t o67t hpl aintif
fs
werei noccupancyof1, 830acr esofar abl el andi nMul badowv il
lagecounci l
.Thev il
lage
counci lr ecogni zedt hatoccupat ionwasl awf ulandt heyhadbeeni noccupat ionf ora
consi der ablet imebef or eNAFCOdeci dedt oexpand.Theyhadcust omar ytenanci esor
whatar ecalleddeemedr ightofoccupancy ….Thi scour tfi
ndst hatr ightoft hepeasant s
andt hisv i
l
lagecounci lcoul dnotbeext ingui shedexceptbyoper ationofl aw.I nt he
courtofappeal ,t hev il
lager swer eunsuccessf ulbecauset heydi dnotpr ov ethatwer e
natives.Thei rLor dshi pst at editwi llbeseent hatnoneoft hev i
llager swhohadt esti
f i
ed
couldbesai dt ohav el andcust omar yt enur e,asnonehadest abl i
shedorev enav erred
termsoft heLandOr dinance.
Thei ssueswhet hert hel andActandVi l
lageLandActpr ot ectedt hecust omar yl and
tenureIcansayt hatt hedef i
niti
onofr ightofoccupancypr ov i
dedi nsect ion2seemst o
protectt hecust omar yl and owner ship.I tsay st hatmeansat itl
et ot heuseand
occupat ionofl andandi ncl udest het itleofaTanzani anci tizenofAf r
icandescentora
communi t
yofTanzani anofAf r
icandescentusi ngoroccupy ingl andi naccor dancel aw’.
Thereal soot herpr ov i
si onsuchassect ion3( 1) (
g)ofLandAct ,sect i
on7( 1)(c)(e),sec.
12( 1) (b),sec. 15(10)( a) ,sect13( 7),sect18( 1),sec.17( 6),sect19- 20(4) ,sect38! )(
e)
sec.39,sec.53( 3)(c)sec. 57,58( 1),60( 4),61( 4)ofVi l
lageLandAct ,of1999r eading
togetherwi th sect ion 155 ofLand ( Amendment )Act2004,t ri
es t o pr otect t he
owner shipoft hel andundercust omar yt enur e.Thishasal sosuppor tedi nt hecase
Met thusel ahPaulNy agwaswavChr istophermbot eny iabu37 oft
r heappel l
anthad
purchasedanunsur vey edpi eceofl andhel dundercust omar yl aw. Onappealt he
appel l
antchal lengedt hedeci sionoft heHi ghCour tmai nlyont hegr oundD t hata
grantedr ightofoccupancydoesnotsuper sedenorext i
ngui sht itl
eov erlandhel dunder
customar ylaw.Thecour thel di nteral iat hat :Ahol derofar ightofoccupancyunder
nativel aw andcust om doesnotaut omat ical l
ybecomeasquat terwhenanar eai s
declar edapl anni ngar ea.
Thecasewhi cht
hejudger
efer
redtoareMohamedNy aki
ozavSofiaMusa38,.Naf
cov
39 40
Mulbadaw ,Pat elvLawrenson & Anot
her ,Al exanderPaterson & Anot
herv
41
Kanji andFazalKassam vA.N.Kassam42.However
,t hecont
radi
cti
onremainsther
e,
35
(1953)2TLR.
36
(1960)EA348.
37
1985TLR103( CA)
38
[1971]H.C.D.no.
413
39
(C.A.Civ
ilAppeal3of1985)
40
[1957]E.A.249
41
[1956]23E.A.C.
A.106.

14
asi tsti
pulat
ed inbot hstatut
es,f orexampleundersect i
on34 ( 3)ofl and Acti t
contradi
ctwit
hsection18oft heVi l
l
ageLandAct ,section34(3)pr ovi
dest hat“wherea
ri
ghtofwhichisoccupiedbyper sonsundercust omar ylawitshallbeacondi ti
onoft hat
ri
ghtofoccupancyt hatthosecustomar yri
ghtsshal lberecognizedandt hoseper sons
sooccupy i
ngthelandshallbemov edorr el
ocatedonl y….’
’Whi l
esect i
on18( 1)prov i
des
that“Acustomaryofrightofoccupancyi si
nev eryrespectofequalst atusandef fectto
agrantedri
ghtofoccupancyandshal lsubj
ectt
ot hepr ovi
sionoft hi
sAct …’’

Itistruet hattot hebi gext entlandActdoesnotpr ot

ectcustomar ylandowner ship
thosesomepr ovisi
onseemst odoso;t heonl yv i
ll
ageLandActi stheret oprotect
customar ylandowner shi p.Howev erLandActt endstounder minethecust omaryland
ownerduet othef actthatt hecust omar yl
andt enurearegoverni
ngbyVi ll
ageLandAct ,
andundersect i
on181oft heLandActpr ovidest hat“onandaf t
erthecommencement
ofthisAct, not
withstandinganyot herwr i
tt
enl awt othelawcont r
ary,t
hisActshallapply
toalllandi nMainlandTanzani aandanypr ovisionsofanyot herwri
tten;awapplicable
tolandwhi chconf li
ctorar ei nconsi st
entwithanyoft heprovisi
onsoft hi
sActshal lto
theext entofthatconf lictoft hatinconsistencyceaset obeappl i
cabletol andorany
mat t
erconnect edwi t
hl andi nMainl andTanzani a’’

6.“Amer
elodgerhasnotenancy
”Wel
lsvKi
ngst
on-
upon-
HulCor
por
ati
on(
1875)
LR.
10CP102.DISCUSS

Theessent ialnatureofaleasehol
dt enancyi sthatiti
sagr antbyal andl
ordtoat enant
ofexclusionpossessi onofthepropertyleased,togetherwithani nt
enti
ont ocreat
et he
rel
ati
onshi pofl andlor
dandt enant.Indoubt fulcases,itisforthecour tstodecision
whethert heagr eementintowhicht hepar t
ieshav eenteredisat enancyagreementi n
l
aw.Thef urtheressenti
alfeat
ureofal easeholdi nt
eresti
st hati
twillendatsomet i
me
i
nt hefutureandwi llnotconti
nueindefi
nitel
y,i.
e.iti
sofadet erminatenature.
Iti
swi thi
nt hisbackgroundIi nt endtodi scusst hecontenti
onwhi chpr ov i
dest hat“A
43
mer elodgerhasnot enancy” thequestionwhoi sal odger?I tsay st hatal odgeris
occupantwhohasmer eusewi thoutactual exclusiv
epossessi on.Accor dingt othecase
ofROBERTSVS.CASEY44 andCEGGI N V.GREGORI O45 def
inedt het erml odgerasa
personwhor entafurnishedorr oom.UnderLawdi ct
ionarydef i
nel odgerast enantof
partofanot her’shouse,onewhof orti
mebei nghascomeathi sl
odgi ngpl ace,onewho
i
nhabitspor tionofahouseofwhi chanotherhasgener alpossessionandcust ody,one
whol i
vesatboar dorinahi r
edr oom orwhohasabedi nanot her’
shouse, onewhol i
ves
i
nahi r
edr oom orr oom i nhouseofanot her,onewhooccupi eshiredaapar tmentsin
another’
shouse.
I
notherwordst heter
ml odgeris al
sodefi
neasaper sonwhol
ivesandsl
eepsina
pl
ace,apersonwhooccupancyi sapartofahouseandsubordi
natetoandinsome
degr
eeunderthecontr
olofalandl
ordorhi
srepr
esent
ati
ve.
Whoi
sat
enant
?A t
enanti
sdef
ini
ngi
nthecaseofLAYTON VS.A.
INAMM AND

42
[
1960]E.
A.1042
43
Wel
lsvKingst
on-
upon-
HullCor
por
ati
on(
1875)LR.
10CP102
44
36Cal
.App.2d
45
CCANM 97F.2d948,951

15
SONS46asani nt
eresti
nrealwhi
chpossessestothet enant,
andapossessionexcl
usive
evenofthatlandlor
d’sent
ryandsav inghi
smaker epair
.Toconst
itut
et enant
,tenant
mustacquir
esomecont rolandpossessi
onofpremises47.
I
tcoul dbenot edthatthedif
fer
encebet weenat enantandal odger,andhow t he
diff
erentisdefned?Onecoul
i dsaythatalodgerenjoysconsider
abl
yfewerrightsthana
tenant,andmyv i
ewalodgeri
sat enant
.AllIalll
etusseet hedefi
nit
ionofal odger.A
l
odgeri soccupantwhohasmer eusewithoutactualexcl
usi
vepossession.
Therefor
e,toconst i
tutel easeitsay sthattherightoexcl usi
vepossessionmustbe
giv
en.I tisoftheessenceofl easethattenantshouldbegi ventheri
ghtt oexclusi
ve
possessionthatisther i
ghtt oexcludeot herpersonsfrom thepremises.Ar i
ghtto
occupycertai
npremi sesf orafixedperi
odcannotbeat enantift
hepersongr anti
ngthe
remainsingeneralcont r
olofthepr oper
ty.Thisi
snor mall
ythecasewithroom i naninn
48
orboardinghouse,sot hatlodgeriscommonl yamer eli
censeandnotat enant
49 50
InthecaseofDai lyv.Edwar d andFr ankWar r7&COLt dvs.L. C.C I tmakesno
diff
erencet hatthepar t
iesmakeaf ormalagr eement ,somakenodi f
ferencet hatthe
parti
esmakeaf ormalagr eementpur port
ingtobeal easeandcal lthemsel veslandlord
andt enantf orthel esti soneoff act,Notoneoff orm.I nthecaseofNewmanv s.
Ander son51 andot hers52br ingsdi scussiont hataper sondescr ibedasal odgerorot her
l
icensemaybeat enanti fhei sinf act,gi
venexcl usi
vepossessi onofsomedef i
ni t
epar t
ofthepr emisest oget herwi tht her i
ghtt oexcludeallot herpeopl eincludingt helandlord
Itsayst hatev enift hel andl ordl i
vesont hepr emises53 andnot wit
hstandi ngacl ause
54
expresslynegat i
veanyt enant . Yetal t
houghexcl usi
v epossessi oni sessent i
al,itdoes
notnecessar il
yest ablishat enancyot herfactmayshowt hattherei sonlyal icenseasi t
i
llust
ratedi nthecaseofAbbey fi
eld( Harpenden)Soci etyLtdv.Wor ds55 wher ethe
courtsaidthatexcl usiv epossessi onofoner oom isoldpeopl e’shone.
Precisel
y,toconsti
tut
eleasetheimportantistohav
ei nt
enti
on,thecourtwil
litseems,
now somet imesbesway edbyt hepurposeoft hetransacti
on,andev enar ightof
exclusiv
eoccupationmaybehel dnomor ethanali
cense.Sincethel
inedivi
dinglease
fr
om l i
censesi
sfineoneaf ewmor eexamplesmaybegi ven.
I
nt hecaseofWel lv.Kingston-
up-HullCorporaton56 suppor
i ttheaboveviewwherea
gravi
ngdockwasl etbyacor por
at i
onsubj ecttocer tai
nri
ghtsofcontrol
,egast o
openingandshutti
ngt hedockgateandseei ngthatthedockwascl eanedouteachday
,
i
twashel dthatnoleasehasbeencr eated.
Ont
hel
i
ghtofabov
edi
scussi
on,
onecansayt
hatt
hedef
ini
ti odgerasat
onofl enanti
n

46
275A.D246
47
Mercant
il
eReal
tyCo.v
.Al
l
enEdmondsShoeCor
por
ati
on597,
92,
SW,
2d.837,
839
48
asperSmi t
hv .StMi chael
sCambri
dgeov er
seer(
1860)3E.&E.383
49
(1900)83.L.T.548
50
[1904]1K.B.713,
51
(1806)2.
B&P. N.R.224
52
AddiscombeGar benEst at
elt
dvs.Crabbeande v
ent het
hreeD’SCo.l
tdv
s.Bar
row
53
Kentv.Fi
tt
al[1906]1K.B.
6
54
SeeFacchinivs.Bray
son[1952]1TLR1386
55
[19968]1W’L.R374
56
(supra)

16
someone' shouse,br i
ngmet otaket hesetwot ermst hattheirdiff
erencesi snegl i
gible.
Howev er,Iagr eet hatat er ml odgeri snotv er
yof tenusedbut Iunder standwhati t
means,becauseoft herootofl odgeandl odging,butIdon' tknow ifI'
veact uallyev er
heardthewor dused.Theonl ydi ff
erenceint het ermsisl egal.At enanthasasi gned
l
ease( contract)withhi slandlord.Al odgermayhav eamor ei nformalar r
angementwi th
the owneroft he house.The l ease def i
nes t he ri
ghts& r esponsibili
ti
es oft he
l
andlord/tenantr el
ationship.Al odgerr esi
des( l
ives)atthehouse/ homei nquest i
on.A
tenantmaybear esidentialtenant( ahouseoranapar t
mentorf l
at)oracommer cial
tenant( business of fi
ce,f actory.r etailst
ore et c.)forexampl ei n The Resi dent i
al
TenanciesAct1987doesnotcov erlodgers,andsot heydonothav et hesamer ight sas
tenant
s.Youar eli
kel ytobeat enantcov eredbyt hisAct
,r atherthanal odger,ify ou:
haveexcl usiveaccess( no-oneel seusesy ourroom andy oucanl ockit),donotget
meals,li
nen,orcl eaningaspar tofy ouragreement ,havey ourowncooki ngfacilit
ies,
anddonothav ehouser ulesenf orced.
Toconcl udet heref
oreat enancycanst i
l
lexistwher
et helandl
ordisliv
ingont he
premises.Itdependsonwhet hert
hepersonhasexcl
usi
vepossessi
onofpartoft
he
propert
y.Ifthepersonismerelygi
ventheri
ghtt
oshareoccupati
on
butnotgivent heexclusi
veuseofaspecifi
cpartoft
hepropert
ythentheyareal
icense
i
eal odger.

7. Easementmaybeacqui
red,expr
essl
y,byi
mpl
icat
ionorby pr
escr
ipt
ion.
DISCUSS
Inthi
spaper ,Iam goi
ngtodiscussthemodesorway sofacquir
ingeasementespeci al
ly
byexpressly,byi
mpl i
cati
onorby pr escri
pti
on.Butbefor
eisbet t
ert
ounderstandwhat
easementi s.
Bydef i
nit
ionanEasementmeansar ightgiv
ent oanot
herpersonorent i
tytotrespass
uponl andt hatpersonorent i
tydoesnotown.Easement sar eusedf orroads,f or
exampleorgi ventoutil
i
tycompaniesf ort
her i
ghttoburycabl
esoraccessut i
li
tylines.
Landlockedhomeowner ssometimespayf oraneasementt ocrossthel
andofanot her
toreachtheirhome.

Thel awundersect i
on144( 1)oft heLandActpr ovidesthatsubj ectt
ot heprov i
sionsof
thisActoranyot herwr i
ttenlaw appl i
cabletot heuseofl and,t herightscapabl eof
bei ngcreat edbyaneasementar e–a)anyr i
ghttodosomet hingov er
,underorupont he
ser vi
entl and;orb)anyr i
ghtt hatsomet hingshoul dnotbesodone;orc)anyr i
ghtto
requiret heoccupi erofser v i
entlandtodosomet hingover,underorupont hatland;any
ri
ghtt ograzest ockont heser vi
entland.Thewor deasement smeant herighttouset he
l
andofanot herf oraspeci alpurpose.Inot herwor daneasementast her ightor
freedom t odosomet hingort her i
ghttopr eventsomeoneel sef rom doingsomet hi
ng
ov erther ealproper tyofanot her.Atcommonl aw, aneasementcamet obet reatedasa
proper tyrightinitselfandi sst i
lltr
eatedasaki ndofpr opertybymostj uri
sdicti
ons.In
some j urisdict
ions,anot hert erm f oreasementi s equitable servit
ude,al though
easement sdonothav etheirori
gininequi ty
.Inot herwor dsitistherightofwaygi vi
ng
i
ndi vidualsothert hant heownerper missi
ont ouseapr opert
yf oraspecifi
cpur pose.

Unl
i
keal
ease,aneasementdoesnotgi
vet
hehol
derar
ightof"
possessi
on"oft
he

17
property,onl
yar ightofuse.Itisdisti
ngui
shedfr
om al i
cencethatonlygivesonea
personalpr i
vi
leget o do somet
hing evenmorelimi
tedont heland ofanother
.An
exampl eofal icenseist heri
ghttoparkacarinaparkinglotwit
ht heconsentofthe
parkinglotowner .Licensesingeneralcanbeter
minatedbythepr oper
tyownermuch
mor eeasilyt
haneasement s.

I
tshouldbenot edthattherightscapabl eofbei ngcr eatedbyaneasementdonot
i
ncludeanyr i
ghttotakeandcarryawayany t
hingfrom theser vi
entl
and;oranyr ightto
theexclusi
vepossessionofanyl andoranypar tofit.Itf
urthercontendst hatexcept
whereaneasementhasbeencr eatedf orspecifi
cper i
odoft i
mewhi chwi l
lterminateat
afixeddateinthefutureoronthehappeni ngofaspeci fi
cev entint
hef ut
ureoront he
deathofthegrantor
,thegrant
eeorsomeot herpersonnamedi nthegrant,
aneasement
burdenstheservi
entlandandrunswi ththelandf orthesameper i
odoftimeast her i
ght
ofoccupancyorleaseheldbythegr antorwhocr eatedthateasement.

Accordi
ngtosect i
on145t hel andf orthebenefitofwhichanyeasementiscreatedisi
n
thi
sActr eferr
edt oast he" domi nantland"andt hel andofthepersonbywhom an
easementiscr eat
edisr ef
erredt oas" theservi
entland".Aneasementis,i
nthisAct,i
n
rel
ati
ontot hedomi nantlandr eferredtoas" benefi
ti
ng"thatl
andandi s,i
nr el
ati
onto
theserv
ientland,r
eferr
edt oas" burdeningthatl
and".

Itshouldbenot edthataneasementmaybecr eatedinanumberofways.Inmostofthe

UnitedStates,
usi ngsomeoneel se'
spropert
y,forexample,f
ori
ngressandegressovera
certai
nnumberofy ear
s,regularl
yandwi t
houtt heconsentoftheproper
tyowner,can
givetheusert her i
ghttocontinueusingthepr opert
yfort
hesamepur poseforaslong
ast heuserwi shes.Thismet hodofacqui r
inganeasementi scalleda" pr
escri
pti
ve
easement "or"easementbypr escri
pti
on."

Inmostoft heUni tedSt at

es,"prescr
ipti
veeasement"cannotbeusedt oacquiret he
ri
ghttoprotectav iewov eraneighboringproper
tynomat terhowlongapr opertyowner
hashadav i
ewov ertheneighbor '
sproperty
.Thisconcept,knownas" ancientl
ights"in
somecommon- lawj uri
sdict
ions,hasrecentl
ybeenrecognizedinCali
forni
a.Prescript
ive
easementscanbecont rastedwi thadversepossession,whichinv
olvest hetakingof
complet
et i
tletolandr at
herthanj ustt
akingther
ighttouset hepr
operty.

Moreover,easementbypr escri
ption,alsocalledprescri
pti
veeasement s,ar
ei mpl i
ed
easement sthatgivet heeasementhol derar i
ghttouseanot herperson'
spropertyfor
thepurposet heeasementhol derhasusedt hepropert
yforacer t
ainnumberofy ears,
whichv ari
esf rom statetost ate.Prescri
pti
v eeasementisnott hesameasadv erse
possession,whi ch allows a par tyto acqui r
et i
tl
et or ealproperty by assert
ing
possession overi tf orthe statutoryperiod.Requirementsv aryamong st ates to
successful
lyclaim adversepossession.

Prescri
pti
veeasementsareatypeofi mpli
edeasement ,i
nthattheyar
iseeventhough
theyarenotexpressl
ycreat
edorr ecorded.Unl
ikeotherimpli
edeasements,however
,
prescri
pti
veeasement
sarehosti
le(i.
e.,wit
houtt
heconsentofthet r
ueproper
tyowner)
.
Prescri
pti
veeasementsdonotconveythet i
tl
etothepropert
yinquesti
on,onl
ytheri
ght
toutil
i
zetheproper
tyforapar
ti
cularpurpose.

18
Theyoftenrequi
r elessst ri
ctr
equir
ementsofproofthanfeesimpl eadversepossession.
Oncet heybecomel egallybindi
ng,easementsbypr escri
ptionhol dt hesamel egal
weightaswr i
tt
enori mpliedeasements.Bef
oretheybecomebi ndi
ng,theyholdnol egal
weightandar ebr okenift hetrueproper
tyowneractstodef endhi sownershiprights.
Easementbypr escript
ioni stypi
cal
lyfoundinlegalsystemsbasedoncommonl aw,
al
thoughotherlegal systemsmayal soall
oweasementbypr escr i
pti
on.

Mor eover
,aneasementcanalsobecr eatedbyi
mpl i
cati
on.Aneasementt hati
scr
eated
byoper at
ionoflawwhensev erspropert
yintot
wopar celinsuchawayt hatanalr
eady
existi
ng,obvi
ous,andcont
inuoususeofonepar cel(asforaccess)i
snecessaryf
orthe
57
reasonableenj
oymentoftheotherparcel
.

Lastbutnotl istaneasementmaybei mpli

edorexpr ess.Anexpr esseasementmaybe
"grant ed"or"reserved"andist ypicall
yincludedinadocumentsuchasadeedorot her
officiall
yrecor deddocument ,ori ncorporatedbyr eferencet oasubdi v i
sionplanby
"dedi cati
on",ori nr estr
ict
ive cov enantsi n an owner s'associ at
ion agreement .For
exampl e,a" paperst r
eet"shownonanappr ovedandr ecor dedsubdi visi
onpl an,but
nev eri mprovedt obecomeanact ualstreet,
createsanexpr ess" easementbyest oppel
"
wher ebyt hegr antorandabuttersoft hewaycannotl aterdenyt heexistenceoft heway
58
oritspot entialbenefit
stoothersi nt hesubdi v
isi
on. Mor eover, court
st y
picall
yreferto
59
thei ntentofthepar ti
esinprescribinganeasementbasedonpr ioruse .

Toconcl
udethi
s,onecansaythatt
heabov
eeasementmaybeacqui
red,expr
essl
y,by
i
mpli
cati
onorbyprescr
ipt
ion

8. “
Eachj
ointt
enanthol
dsnot
hingandy
ethol
dst
hewhol
e”DI
SCUSS

Landmaybehel dbysev eralpersonsasco-owner sasjointtenant

s(somet i
mescal led
'
benefi
cialj
ointtenants'),tenantsincommonorcopar ceners.Therewasal soaf ourth
form ofco-owner ship knownast enancybyent ir
eti
es,conf i
ned t
o disposit
ionst o
husbandandwi fedur ingcov ert
ures,wherethewi fe'
sinterestwasnothersepar ate
proper
ty.Oft hesei nterests,tenancybyentiret
iesnol ongerexists,andt enancyi n
commonandowner shipincopar cenari
escannolongerexistatlawbutonlyinequi t
y.

I
tiswi t
hinthi
sbackgr ound,Iintendint hi
spapert odiscussthestatementthateach
j
ointt
enantholdsnothingandy etholdsthewhol e”
.Itshouldbenotedthati
nestat
elaw,
j
ointtenancyisaspeci alf
orm ofowner shipbyt woormor epersonsoft hesame
pr
operty.Theindi
viduals,whoar ecalledj oi
nttenants,shareequalownershipofthe
pr
opertyandhavetheequal ,undi
v i
dedrighttokeepordisposeofthepropert
y.

Jointt
enancycreatesaRi ghtofSurv
ivorshi
p.Thisri
ghtpr
ovi
dest hatifanyoneoft he
j
ointtenants di
es,t he remai
nderoft he pr
opertyistr
ansf
erred tot he sur
viv
or s.
Descendedfrom common- l
aw tr
adit
ion,joi
nttenancyiscl
osel
yr elatedtotwoot her
for
msofconcur rentpropert
yownership:TenancyinCommon,alessr est
ri
cti
veform of

57
(
cal
l
edal
soeasementbynecessi
ty,
impl
i
edeasement
,wayofnecessi
ty)
58
(e.
g.,
foranundergr
ounddrai
nageli
ne)
.
59
accordi
ngtoDerekL.Hagger
tyofTheOhi
oSt
ateUni
ver
sit
yMor
it
zCol
l
egeofLaw

19
ownershipthatsometi
mesr esul
tswhenjoi
ntt
enanci
esceasetoexi
st,andTenancyby
theEnti
rety
,aspecial
form ofjoi
ntt
enancyf
ormarr
iedcoupl
es.

Joi
nttenantsusual
lyshar
eownershi
pofland,butt
hepropert
ymayi
nst
eadbemoney
orot
heritems.Fourmainf
eat
uresmarkt
histypeofowner
ship:

i
) thejoi
nttenantsownanundi v
idedinter
esti
nt hepropert
yasawhol e;each
sharei
sequal,andnoonej oi
nttenantcaneverhavealargershare.
i
i
) Theest at
esofthejointtenantsarev est
ed(meaningfi
xedandunal t
erableby
anyconditi
on)forexactl
yt hesameper i
odoftime—inthiscase,thetenants'
l
ifet
ime.
i
i
i) Thejoi
nttenantshol
dt heirpropert
yunderthesamet i
tl
e.\
i
v) Thejoi
nttenantsal
lenjoyt hesamer i
ghtsunti
loneofthem dies.

Undert herightofsur vi
vorship,thedeathofonej oi nttenantaut omati
call
ytransfersthe
remainderoft hepr opertyinequalpar t
stot hesur v i
vors.Whenonl yonejoi
ntt enantis
l
eftali
v e,heorsher ecei
vest heentir
eestate.I fthej ointtenantsmut ual
l
yagr eetosell
theproper t
y ,t
heymustequal lydivi
dethepr oceedsoft hesale.Becausedisagreement
overthedi spositi
onofpr opertyiscommon,cour tssomet i
mesi nter
venetodi vi
det he
propert
yequal l
yamongt heowner s.Ifonej ointt enantdeci dest oconveyherorhi s
i
nterestint heproper t
ytoanewowner ,thejointt enancyi sbr okenandthenewowner
hasat enancyi ncommon.

Tenancyincommoni safor m ofconcurrentownershi

pt hatcanbecr eat
edbydeed, wil
l
,
oroper at
ionofl aw.Sev eralfeatur
esdi sti
nguishitfrom j oi
ntt enancy:A t enantin
commonmayhav eal ar
gershar eofpropertythantheot hertenants.Thet enantisalso
freetodisposeofhi sorhershar ewi t
houtt herestr
ict
ivecondi t
ionspl acedonaj oi
nt
tenancy.Unl
ikejoi
nttenancy ,
tenancyincommonhasnor ightofsur vi
vorshi
p.Thus, no
othertenantincommoni sent i
tl
edtor eceiv
eashar eoft hepr opertyuponat enantin
common' sdeath;inst
ead,thepropertygoest othedeceased'sheirs.

Tenancybyt heenti
retyisafor
m ofj oi
nttenancyt hatisavai
lableonlyt oaHusbandand
Wi f
e.Itcanbecr eatedonlybywi llorbydeed.Asaf or
m ofj ointt enancythatal so
createsar i
ghtofsur v
ivor
ship,ital lowst hepr opertytopassaut omat i
cal
lyt ot he
survivi
ngspousewhenaspousedi es.Inadditi
on,t enancybyt heent ir
etyprotect
sa
spouse'si nt
eresti
nt hepropertyfrom t heotherspouse'scr edit
ors.Itdi f
fer
sfrom joint
tenancyi nonemaj orrespect
:neitherpar tycanv olunt
aril
ydisposeofherorhi sinterest
i
nt hepr operty
.Int
heev entofDi v
or ce,thetenancybyt heent i
ret
ybecomesat enancyi n
common, andt her
ightofsurvi
v or
shi pislost.

Jointtenancyacr ucialrelati
onshipint heowner shipofr ealproperty
,whi chpr ov i
des
thateachpar tyownsanundi videdinteresti ntheentireparcel ,
wit
hbot hhav ingther i
ght
touseal lofi tandt her i
ghtofsur v
ivorship,whichmeanst hatupont hedeat hofone
j
ointtenant,theotherhast itl
et oital
l.Procedur al
ly,ont hedeat hofonej oi
ntt enant,ti
tl
e
i
nt he survi
vori s compl eted byr ecor ding an "affidavi
tofdeat h ofj ointt enant,"
descri
bingthepr opertyandt hedeceasedt enant,wi
t hadeat hcer t
if
icateattached, al
lof
whichi sswor nt obyt hesur vivi
ngj oi
ntt enant
.Thi spr ocessav oidspr obat eoft he
propert
y ,butmayhav esomet axconsequenceswhi chshoul dbeexpl or edwi than
accountantatt heti
meofr ecordingtheor i
ginaldeed.

20
Iftheownersdonotwantf ullti
tl
et othepr oper
tytopasst ot hesurv
ivor,thenjoi
nt
tenancyshouldnotbeused.Joi nttenancy(aswel lasanyothercommonowner shi
p)
betweenapar entandami norchi l
dshoul dbeav oidedsi
ncet hepropertycannotbe
transfer
redinthef ut
urewi thoutthepar entbecomi ngappointedaguar dianoft he
child'
sestat
ebycour tpetit
ion,andt hepropertyandt heproceedstherefrom willbe
undercourtcont
rolunti
lthechildis18.

Incommuni typroper
tystates,
somecour tshavefoundt hatjoi
nttenancypr esumesthat
thepropertyisnotcommuni typropert
y,(which couldr esul
tinl ossofest atetax
l
imitat
ionont hedeathoft hefir
stspousetodie),
butpr oofofcommuni t
yi nter
estscan
be establi
shed.A bank accounthel dinj oi
ntt enancy also presumes a r ightof
survi
vorshi
p,butthispresumpt i
oncanbeov ercomebyev idencethattheaccountwas
real
lythepropert
yofonlyone, andthejoi
ntt
enancywasf orconvenience.60

Foraj ointtenancyt oexist

,each'tenant'musthav eanidenti
calint
erestinthewhol e
l
andandev er ypartofit
.Thei nt
erestofeachper sonisthesamei nextent,nat
ureand
durati
on.I nt hecaseoff r
eeholds,thesei zi
ng,and,inthecaseofl easeholds,the
possessioni sv estedinall;nonehol dsanypar ttot heexcl
usionoft heot hers.At
commonl awt heinter
estofeachmustv estatthesamet i
me.Thesear ethefouruniti
es
oftit
le,i
nterest,
possessionandt i
me.

Unit
yofI nterest
:Theco-ownersmusteachhav et
hesamei nter
esti
nt heland.Sofor
example,ifthereisaconveyancetoBi l
lofthreequar
ter
soft heequi
tableinter
estand
onequartertoBen,infeesimple,theyhavethesamei nt
erestinthel
and( al
thoughnot
thesamesi zeofshare)-uni
tyofinter
estinpresent
.

Unit
yofTit
le:Fort
histobepresent
,alloft
heco-owner
smustrecei
vethei
rint
erestin
l
andunderthesamedocument.Bil
landBenintheexampleabov
erecei
vethei
rint
erest
undert
hesameconv ey
anceandsothisispr
esent
.

UnityofTime:Eachco- owner'
sti
tlemustvestatthesamet i
meandsosi nceBilland
Benr ecei
vethei
rshareunderthesameconveyanceinfeesi
mple,
thisuni
tyi
spresent.I
f
howev er,
thepropert
ywasl ef
ttothem '
onatt
aini
ngtheageof40'andtheyar
ediffer
ent
ages( andsowi llat
tai
nt heageof40atdi ff
erentti
mes),nounit
yoft i
mewoul dbe
present.

Unit
yofPossessi
on:Al
lpar
ti
esmustbeenti
tl
edt
opossessi
onoft
hewholeofthel
and,
andmaynotexcludeeachotherasco-
owner
s-Bil
landBenwoul
dsati
sfythi
stesti
n
ourexampl
e.

InTanzanial
aw, undersection159.provi
des ( 1)Inthi
sAct ,co-
occupancymeanst he
occupati
onofl andheldf orar i
ghtofoccupancyoral easebytwoormor eundivi
ded
sharesandmaybeei therjointoccupancyoroccupancyincommon.( 2)Where,subject
tothepr ovi
sionsoft hi
sAct ,twoormor eper sonsnotf ormi
nganassoci ati
onof

60
See:
communi
typr
oper
ty,
tit
le

21
personsunderthi
sActoranyotherl
aw whi
chspeci f
iesthenat
ureandcont entofthe
ri
ghtsoft hepersonsformi
ngthatassoci
ati
onoccupyl andtogetherunderar i
ght
specif
iedbythi
ssecti
on,t
heymaybeeit
herj
ointoccupier
soroccupiersi
ncommon.

(3)Ani nstrumentmadei nfav ouroft woormor epersonsandt her egist

rati
ongi ving
effecttoitshal
lshow( a) whet hert hoseper sonsarejointoccupi ersoroccupi ersi n
common; and(b) wher etheyar eoccupiersincommon, theshar eofeachoccupi er.(4)
Wher et helandisoccupi edj ointlyunderar i
ghtofoccupancyorl easenooccupi eris
entit
ledt oanysepar ateshar ei nt helandand,consequent l
y( a)di sposit
ionsmaybe
madeonl ybyal lthejointoccupi ers;(b)ont hedeathofaj oi
ntoccupi er,hisinterest
shallvestinthesurvivi
ngoccupi eroroccupi ersjoi
ntl
y;(
c) a j oint occupi er may
transferhisint
erestint
erv ivotoal ltheotheroccupier
sbutt onoot herperson,andany
attemptt osotransferhisinterestt oanyot herpersonshal
l bevoid.

Wher eanyl and,leaseormor t

gageisoccupiedi ncommon,eachoccupi ershal lbe
enti
tledt oanundi videdshar einthewholeandont hedeat hofanoccupi er;hisshar e
shallbet r
eatedaspar tofhisestat
e. No occupi eri n common shal ldealwi t
h his
undividedshar einfavourofanyper sonotherthananot heroccupierincommon, except
witht heconsenti nwr i
ti
ngori nanyot hermannerwhi chsignifi
esclear l
yt hatt he
consenti sgi venf r
eelyandwi t
houtunduepr essure,oft heremai ningoccupi ers,but
suchconsentshal lnotbeunr easonabl
ywi t
hheld.
(7)Jointoccupiers,notbeingt rust
ees,
mayexecut eaninst r
umenti ntheprescr
ibedform signif
yingthattheyagreet osev erthe
j
oiningoccupancyandt hesev er
anceshallbecompl etebyr egi
str
ationinthepr escribed
regi
st erofthejointoccupiersandoccupiersincommon.

9. Cr
it
ical
ly
,exami
net
her
ight
soft
hepar
ti
esunderamor
tgageorchar
ge

Thequest i
oni sal
labouttherightofmor tgagortodischargingmortgaget ransact i
onA
mortgagei sthetr
ansferofaninteresti
npr opert
y(orinlawt heequi
valent-achar ge)to
alenderasasecur i
tyforadebt-usuallyal oanofmoney .Whi l
eamor tgagei nitsel
fis
notadebt ,itisl
ender'
ssecuri
tyf oradebt .I
tisat r
ansferofani nt
erestinl and( orthe
equiv
alent),fr
om theownert othemor tgagel ender
,ont heconditi
ont hatt hisinter
est
wil
lber eturnedtotheowneroft herealestatewhent het ermsofthemor tgagehav e
beensatisfi
edorper f
ormed.

Inotherwords,themor t
gagei sasecur i
tyf orthel oant hatthelendermakest othe
borr
ower.Inotherwordsamor tgageloanisal oansecur edbyr ealpropert
ythroughthe
useofamor tgage(al egali
nstrument).Howev er,thewor dmor tgagealone,i
nev ery
day
usage,ismostof t
enusedt omeanmor tgagel oan.Italsodef ineundersection2of
LandAct(cap113)t hat"mortgage"meansani nterestinar i
ghtofoccupancyoral ease
securi
ngthepay mentofmoneyormoney 'swor thorthef ulf
il
lmentofacondi tionand
i
ncludesasub-mortgageandt hei nst
rumentcr eati
ngamor tgage.

Part
iestomor tgagetransact
ionaremort
gageeandmor
tgagor.Mortgageeist
helegal
ter
mf orthemor tgagelender
.Themainfunct
ionoft
hemortgagei
st oprovi
desecuri
ty
tothel ender
.Andbel ow ar
er i
ghtsofpart
iestomor
tgagestart
ingt otheri
ghtof
mortgagee.

22
Thest at
utoryr i
ghtsofthemor t
gagee( l
ender)i ncl
ude:f i
rsttherighttoeentryi nto
Possession:underthi
srightthemor tgageehast her i
ghtt oenteri
ntopossessionoft he
propert
yort oexerci
set hepowerofsal ei fthemor tgagordefault
si nmakingt he
necessarypay mentsundert hemor t
gage.A l egalmor tgageecanent erimmedi atel
y
FourMai dsLtdvDudl eyMar shall(Propert
ies)LtdExceptf or2reasons:i)Acov enant
stati
ngthatent rywil
lonlytakepl aceonbr eachandi i)Equityfor
bidst hemortgagee
fr
om obt ai
ninganyadv antageoutoft hemor t
gagebey ondt hepaymentofpr inciple,
61
i
nt er
estandcost sWhitevCi t
yofLondonBr ewer yCo .Themor t
gageewi l
lt ake
possessioniftherei
sabr eachofthemor t
gagee. g.fai
luretomaker epayments.

Thesecondr i
ghti
stheRighttosel l
:Thepowerofsal ewil
lari
seift hemor t
gage:has
beenmadebydeedandt heredempt i
ondat ehaspassedandi fthemor t
gagorisi n
default(i
ncludi
ng t
hef ai
lur
et o payani nstalment
)and ther
ei sno expr essi
onof
contrar
yintenti
onwhichwouldpr ev
entthepowerofsal ebei
ngexercised.Secti
on31( 1)
ofLandActpr ovi
desthatwher eaborroweri sindefaul
tofhisobl i
gat
ionsundera
mor t
gageandr emainsindefaultattheexpiryofthetimeprovi
dedf ortherecti
fi
cation
ofthatdefaulti
nthenoti
ceserv edonhim undersubsecti
on(1)ofsect i
on125, alender
mayexer ci
sehispowertosellthemor t
gagedl and.

Howev er,
inTseKwangLam v sWongChitSen62itwasheldthatt
hecredi
tormustshow
thatheprotect
edtheint
erest
softheborr
owerbyt aki
ngexpertadvi
ceastothemethod
ofsale,astothestepswhichoughtr
easonabl
ytobet akentomaket hesal
easuccess
andast otheamountofthereser
veother
wisethesalemaybesetaside.

Thirdly
,rightt osueundert heCov enantt oRepay:Ther i
ghttosuet hemor t
gagor
personall
yi fthemor t
gagori
sindef aultunderthemor tgagor
’s"per
sonalcovenant"to
payt hedebt( ratherthanthemortgagorenf orci
ngthesecur i
tyunderthemortgageby
taki
ngpossessi onoforselli
ngthepr operty)
.Amor tgagedeedcont ai
nsacov enantto
repayt hepr i
ncipalsum ont he"r
edempt iondate"withinter
est.Whent hatdatehas
passed, t
hemor tgageecansueont hecov enant.

Fourthly
,rightt oappoi nt mentofaRecei ver:thiscanbei ll
ustratedbyexampl et hat
wher ethemor t
gagori st hef reeholderofabl ockoff l
ats.Ther eceiverisdeemedt obe
theagentoft hemor tgagorwhoi sresponsiblehim orher .Thereceiverisboundt oappl y
anymoneyr eceiv edi nt hef ollowingor der(s109LPA1925) :Todi scharger ents,taxes,
ratesandout goi
ngs,i nmaki ngpay ment sthatr ankbef orethemor tgage,I npay ingt he
recei
v er
'sowncommi ssi on,Topayf orinsuranceandr epai
rs,Topayt hemor t
gage
i
nterest,Todi scharget hepr incipalofthemor tgageandAnyr esiduet hatr emai nsmust
63
bepai dtothemor tgagor .InCuckmer eBr i
ckLt dsvsMut ualFinanceLt d, al enderwas
negli
genti n exer cising t he powerofsal e by f ail
i
ng t o adv ert
ise t o pr ospective
purchaserst hef ullext entoft hepl anningper mi ssionwhi chat tachedt ot hepr oper t
y
andasar esultwasf oundl iabl etothemor tgagor s.

Sect
ion127(1)ofthel
andsActprovi
desthatitshal
lbeani mpli
edcondi
ti
oninevery
mort
gage,ot
herthanasmallmor
tgage,t
hatthelendershal
lhavethepowert
oappoint

61
(1889)42ChD237
62
(1983)1WLR1349
63
(1971)Ch949

23
ar
ecei
veroft
hei
ncomeoft
hemor
tgagedl
and.
6 4
Anot herri
ghtofmor tgageei sConsol idat
ion( asperSha rpvPi ck ards )a nd asit
providesundersection119oft heLand( Amendment )Act,of2004,t hatunlesst hereis
anexpr essprovi
siontot hecontraryclearl
ysetouti nthemor t
gagei nstrument ,wherea
borrowerhasmor ethanonemor tgagewi t
hasi nglelenderonseveralsecur iti
eshemay
di
schar geanyorsomeoft hemor tgageswi t
houthav ingtoredeem al lmortgages.That
al enderwho has made pr ov i
sion in accor dance with subsect i
on ( 1) fort he
consol i
dat
ionofhismor t gageshallrecordthatrightintheregist
erorr egistersagainst
al
l t
hemor tgagessoconsol i
dat
edwhi chareregister
ed.

InothersidetheRightofMor t
gagori ncludes,fi
rstRightofRedempt ion,therightto
redempti
oni st heri
ghttor epayt hemor t
gageandt o haveinr et
urnt heproper t
y
rel
easedfrom thechar
geuponi ti.e.thedischar
geoft hemor t
gage.Ther i
ghttoredeem
themor t
gageissaidtobei nv i
olable,i.
e."onceamor t
gageal waysamor t
gage".Two
aspectsmaybeconsi ed: a)TheRi
der ghtToRedeem MustNotBeExcl udedb) The
RightToRedeem MayBePost poned

SecondrightisColl
at er
alTermsoft heMor tgaget hatthemor tgagemaycont ainterms
whichgivethemor t
gageecer tainaddi t
ionaladv antagesbutt hesewi llbevoidi
ftheyare:
65
a) unfai
r orunconsci onable;Ci t
yland and Pr operty( Hol di
ngs) Ltd v Dabr ah
66
Multi
servi
ce Bookbi nding Ltd vMar den b)unf air
lyr est r
ictredempt on;Bi
i ggs v
67 68 69
Hoddinott Noakes&CoLt dvRi ce andBr adleyvCar ri
tt Kr egli
nervNewPat agonia
70
MeatandCol dStorageCoLt d andc)i nr est
raintoft ade;EssoPet
r r
oleum CoLt dv
71
Harper'
sGar age(St
our port)Lt d ;Al ecLobb( Garages)Lt dvTot alOil

Termsmaybei nser
tedt ogivet hemor tgagesomeot heradvant
age.InKregli
ngervs
New Patagoni
aMeatCoLt d72 i
twasst at
edt hatnor ul
eofequitythatprecl
udest he
mortgagee f
rom cr eat
ing collateraladv antages butmustcease on r edemption.
Accordi
ngtosection121(1)(c)oft heLandActcol l
ateraladvant
ageshouldnotbeone
73
whichisunf
air
,unconscionableandi nconsist
entwiththeri
ghttodischar
ge.

Tosayinshottheaboveexplanat
ionisallabouttheright
sofbothmor t
gageeand
mor
tgagee,
thoughnotal
lri
ght
sment i
onbutfewofthem arement
ionedabove.

10.“…acont
ractfordi
spositi
onofl and,whi
chotherwisei
spr
operbutthelackof
r
equi
redconsentisinoperat
ive,thati
s,unenf
orceabl
etot
heextentthatsuch

64
[
1909]1Ch.109at114
65
[
1968]Ch166;
66
[
1979]Ch84
67
[1898]2Ch307
68
[1902]AC24
69
[1903]AC253
70
[1914]AC25
71
[1968]AC269
72
(1914)AC25
73
BiggsvsHoddinnott(
1898) Noakesv
2Ch307, sRi
ce(
1902)AC24.

24
 enfor
cementisprejudicialtotheinterestoftheparamountlandl
ord.However
,
wheresuchenforcementi snotthuspr ej
udici
al,apartwhohasper f
ormedhis
orherpartoft hebar gainingmaybeassi stedbytheCour ttoenf or
cethe
contr
actagai
nstthedef aulti
ngpart…”
Di
scussthispassagewi thr egardtoacont r
actforexchangeofland
hel
dundert hegrantedr i
ghtofoccupancy .

Inthiswor k,Iam goi ngt odiscusst heasser ti

on“ …acontr
actfordispositionofl and,
whichot herwisei spr operbutt hel ackofr equiredconsentisinoper at
iv e,thatis,
unenforceabletot heext entthatsuchenf or
cementi sprej
udici
alt
ot heinter estofthe
paramountl andlord.Howev er
,wher esuchenf orcementisnotthuspr ej
udi cial
,apar t
whohasper formedhi sorherpar toft hebargaini
ngmaybeassi stedbyt heCour tto
enforcethecontr actagainstthedef ault
ingpart…”inrel
ati
ontoacont ractforexchange
oflandheldundert hegrantedrightofoccupancy .
74
Accor
dingtoLand( SpousePr
otecti
on)Act di
sposi
ti
onisanydi
sposi
ti
onbyanact
bet
ween li
vi
ng personsthati
sr equir
ed t
o beexecut ed byt
heowneroftheland
di
sposedof,andi
ncludes
(a)
 atransfer,agr
eementofsal
e,assi
gnmentofanagreementforsal
e,l
ease
orotherinstr
umentint
endedtoconveyort
ransf
eranyi
nter
esti
nland,
(
b) 
amortgageorencumbr
anceint
endedt
ochar
gel
andwi
tht
hepay
mentof
money
,andrequi
redt
obesoexecuted,
(
c) 
adev
iseorot
herdi
sposi
ti
onmadebywi
l
l,and
(d) 
amort
gagebydeposi
tofdupl
i
catei
ndefeasi
blet
it
leori
ndef
easi
blet
it
le,
or
othermor
tgagenotr
equi
ri
ngt
heexecut
ionofanydocument
;

Ingener alspeaking,iti
scommont ochangeowner shipofpr oper
tiesi ncl
udingsuchas
l
and,byt hesaleofshar esofar egister
edcompany .Inthiswayl andallocatedt o
cit
izens t hrough a localcompany may be t ransferred t
o non- cit
izens orf oreign
compani es.Thepol i
cyt hatonlycit
izensshouldhav epr ef
erenti
alaccesst olandcan
thusbeer odedandci ti
zenscanbeusedbyf or
eignerst ogetlandwi thoutgoingthrough
theInv estmentPromot ionCentreandwi thouthav i
ngt opaylandrentandot herchar ges
applicabletonon-cit
izensinforeigncurrency.
Histori
cal,l
andwasnotcommer cial i
zed;itwasunt i
lduri
ngcolonialism thatdispositi
on
ofl andstarted.Thecolonialgov ernment sinAf r
icancountri
esf oundi tf i
ttoenact
75
restri
cti
on,againstthefreedisposi ti
onofl and. Theearli
estr estrict
iveprov i
sionin
Tanzaniawascont ai
nedintheRegi st
rati
onofDocument sOrdinance( Ord.N08/ 1921)
1921.Undersect ion 24 a non-t estamentary documentpur porti
ng t ot r
ansf eror
otherwisedealwi t
hlandbetweenaNat iv
er equi
redt heconsentoft heGov ernororhis
delegate.Thi
spr ovi
sionwasreplacedi n1923bysect ion11oft heLand( l
awofpr opert
y

74
[
RSBC 
1996]Cap.246
75
Uganda:l
andTransf
erOr
dinance(
Cap1140nowCap202: 1957.Keny
a:landCont
rolActNo22/1944
Tanzania:
land(
LawofPropert
yandconv
eyance)Or
dinanceS.11(Cap114)LandRegulat
ion1948.

25
and conveyance)Or dinance76 (
LPAC Or di
nance),whi
ch is a more comprehensive
prov
isi
on.Thesectionst atethat“adisposi
ti
onoflandbelongi
ngt oanati
veinfavourof
anon-nat
iveorconf err
ingonanon- nati
veanyright
soverthelandofanat i
veshallnot
beoperat
iveunlessitisinwr i
ti
ngandunl essandunti
li
tisapprovedbythegovernor”
.
77
Asti
mepassed,af teri
ndependence,thegov ernorwassubst i
tutedforthepresident.
Thepowert oappr
ov etr
ansactionsinlandhasbeendel egatedbyt heprecedenttot he
78
Mini
sterr esponsi
blef orlands who has i ntur
n del egated his powert ot he
Commi ssionerforlands,Assistantcommi ssi
onerforl andsandl andoffi
cers.Ar ea
Commi ssioner
,AreaSecr et
ari
es,AssistantLandOf f
icersandSeni orLandAssi stant s
79
mayappr ovedeali
ngswi t
hshort -
termi
nterest
s.
Afterthei ntroductionoft her ightofoccupancyi nTanzani a,restr
ictionont r
ansf ersof
ri
ght sofoccupancybecameanecessar ycompli
mentt ot hedev elopmentst rategy.
Suchr estrict
ivepr ov i
sionsar econt ai
nedi nthel
andRegul ationasamendedf r
om t i
me
80
totime. i tispr ovidedt hatadi spositi
onofr i
ghtofoccupancyshal lnotbeoper ative
unlessitisi nwr it
ingandunl essandunt i
liti
sapprovedbyt hepr esident .Andt hatt here
i
si mpli
ed i n ev erycont ractand cer ti
fi
catefora r i
ghtofoccupancyofl and f or
agricul
turepur poseorf orpast oralpurpose,ater
mt hattheoccupi erwi llownhousehol d
andhi sempl oyeet owor k.Thi slandsubj ecttother ightoranyposi tionther efore
81
withoutthepr i
orconsentt ot hepr esident’
s consentwoul dt heref
or eber equir
edwhen
forexampl e,ar i
ghthol derappoi ntsamanagerorcar et
akert olookaf terhisfarm whi le
heisaway .
Itisal so t o beunder stood t hat
,principall
y,r estri
cti
on based on economi cpolicy
consideration ar e notexpr essed inr acialterms and t hey affectallhol
der
s and
purportedhol der sofani nterestther
ein.Sect i
on11oft hel and( Law ofPr
oper
tyand
Conv eyanceOr dinance)hasnotbecomeent i
relyi r
rel
ev antbecausei twasexpressly
i
ncor poratedi ntother i
ghtsofoccupancysy stem bysect i
on8oft heLandOrdi
nance.
Theef fecti st hatthecourtswi l
lsti
l
lr esorttot heracialpr ovi
sionwhenani nt
ended
dispositi
oni sout si
dethescopeoft helandr egulat i
onbutwi t
hinthescopeofsect
ion11
ofLawofPr opertyandConv ey anceOrdinance.
Furt
hermore,policyorientedr est
rict
ionhasbeenappl iedt ogovernmentl easehol
ds.
Undersecti
on19oft heFr eeholdTi t
le(Conversion)andGov ernmentLeaseActi tis
sti
pulat
edthat“adi spositi
onofagov er
nmentleaseshal lnotbeoper ati
vewithoutthe
consentoftheCommi ssion”.Secti
on11ofLawofPr opertyandConv eyanceOr di
nance
has notbeen i ncorporated intot he conver
sion enact ment.I tis pr ov
ided in an
amendmentt otheLawofPr opert
yandConv eyanceOr dinancet hatt
hepr ovisi
onofthat
82
ordi
nanceissubjecttothepr ovisi
onoft heconversionAct.
i
naddi
ti
on,
pol
i
cyst
atement
srequi
ret
hatev
eryappl
i
cat
ionf
ort
het
ransf
erofanest
ate
76
Cap114.
77
SeeRepubl i
cofTanganyi
ka(Consequenti
alTransi
ti
onal
andTemporar
yProvi
sion)Act1962,cap500s.
8(
b).
78
SeeGN.478/ 1982.
79
Delegat
ionofpowerOrder1968)no39/ 1968
80
Regs36( 1)(
c).Regwasjustpassedi
n1926GN8/ 1926repeal
edandr
epl
acedbyl andRegs1931GN
no9127/ 1931.
81
Reg3LandRegs.
82
See4thSchoft heConver
sionAct.

26
orint
erestinlandisscrut
inisedinordert oascer t
ainwhetheriti
smadei ngoodfaiththe
requi
rementofconsent ,theref
oreaffords, anoppor t
unit
yforthegovernmenttoprotect
i
tsinteresti
nl andandt ocheckonsev eralofthegov er
nmentt oprot
ectit
sinterestin
l
and and t o checkonsev eraloft heessent i
alofest atemanagementnamel yt he
whereaboutsoft heoccupiedormor tgaged( i
fanywhet herrenthasbeenpaidwhet her
the appli
canthas compl i
ed witht he dev elopmentr equi
rements and whethert he
purport
edal i
eni samanofst r
aw andwoul dt her
eforebeunablet ocommandt he
capit
alinordertomaintainthedev el
opmentt onadequatestandard.
Ther
earesever
alpoli
cyst
atement
sasr
egar
dst
othedi
sposi
ti
onofl
and,t
hef
oll
owi
ng
arej
ustsomeofthem;

 Thoughlandhasv aluealandholdercanonl ytr

ansfertheRightofOccupancy.
Speci
al t
axeswi l
lbei mposedtodet erlandspeculat
ion.
 Nodisposi ti
onofl andunderst atutoryRightofOccupancyot hert
hanland
acqui
redt hroughcust omarytenureandOper ati
onVi ji
j
iwillbeall
owedwi th
thefi
rstthree(3)yearsofitsacquisi
tion.
 Theconsentoft heMi nsterorhisappoi nt
edlandofficersi
snotnecessaryfor
markettransfertotakeplace.

Inrel at
iontosubl ease,Land( Amendment )Regul aton,195883 r
i epl
acedt heor i
ginal
consentpr ovi
sionwi t
hanewr egul ati
onwhichexcludedsubl easesot herthansubl ease
withanopt i
ont opur chase”( ther eversi
on)f
rom t heconsentr equir
ement .The1960
amendmentt ot heconsentpr ov i
sionsinthelandr egul
ati
onomi ttedreferencet osub-
l
easesal t
ogether.i
nt hiscase, therefor
eitwasmadecl earthatanypur por t
edsubl ease
84
i
s expr essed as a deed and notas a mer e agr eement, require consent( ii
)an
agreementf orasubl easer equi r
esconsentasbei nganagr eementbi dingapar tyto
85
conv eyland. (ii
i)Subleaseoff arml andsmustbeconsent edt obyv i
rt
ueofagr eements
betweenanat iveandnon- nat i
ver equireappr
ov albyv i
rt
ueofsect ion11oft heL.Pd.c
Ordinance.
Theref or
e,t he above expl anation t
her efor
ei mpli
es t hatal lthe consentpr ov i
sion
provides thatt he di sposi ti
on shallnotbe oper at i
ve withoutt he consentoft he
86
appropr i
ate authorit
y . Agai n,secti
on 6( 1)( c)oft he Land Regul ati
on pr ohi
bits
subleases ort he transf erofpossessi on wit
houtconsentdoes notst ipulatet he
consonancesofomi ssi on.Incaseofanexpr esster
mi nagr antofar i
ghtofoccupancy
againstalienati
ngwi thoutconsentpar t
icularbyagr antforresidenti
alpurposet owhi ch
theregulationdoesnotappl y,therei
snoexpr essst at
ementast ot heconsequenceof
87
viol
ation oft hegr ant . And final
ly
,t heconsentofCommi ssionto subleaseofa
gover nmentl easeoff ar mlandi sverynecessar y,absenceofwhi chwi l
lr endert he
practicetobev oid.

83
GN456/ 1958.
84
Sees.6oft heLPd.COrdi
nance.
85
Re3( 3)( c)Moreoveri
nmostgrantsofr
ight
sofoccupancyt
her
ewoul
dbeanexpr
essedconv
ent
against
subt i
l
ting
86
s.19(2)(al.Ad)
(B)Conver
sionAct.
87
S.109f )9g)oftheLandOr di
nance

27
 11.Expl
aint
hemai
nfeat
uresoft
heLandDi
sput
eCour
tActof2002
Int
hispaper,
Iam goi
ngt oexpl
ainthemainfeat
uresoftheLand(Di
sputes)Court
sAct
of2002.I
nachiev
ingthi
spurpose,Iwil
lst
artbystat
ingwhatLandDisputeCourtActi
s
andhowitiscomposed.Theexpl
anati
onofitsmainfeat
ureswil
lbegi
ven.
Tost artwith,LandDi sputeCourtActi sast at
utethatconcernswiththefeatureof
Establi
shmentandJur isdi
cti
onofLandCour t
s.I
tisunderPar tIIoft
heActwher ethe
provi
sionsf orLandDi sputesInst
it
utionsandJurisdi
cti
onoft heMagistr
ateCourtare
sti
pulated.Secti
on3oft heActempower sLandCourtstodeterminel
anddisputesina
gi
v enarea”thus,i
tisst i
pulat
edthat“subjectt
osecti
on167oft heLandActandsect i
on
62oft hev i
l
lageLandAct ,
everydi
sputeorcomplaintconcer
ninglandshal
lbeinsti
tut
ed
i
nt hecourthavingjur
isdicti
ontoit
”.
LandDisput
eCourtActpr
ovi
dest
hecour
tswi
thj
uri
sdi
cti
onov
erl
andmat
ter
sunder
subsect
ion(
i)i
ncl
ude
(a)theVill
ageLandCounci l
(b)theWar dTribunal
(c)theDistri
ctlandandHousi ngTribunal
(d)TheHi ghCour t(WardDi visi
on)
88
(e)TheCour tofAppeal ofTanzania.
Inrelati
ont ot heabov el ist
,itmeanst hatonlythosecour t
sment i
onedabov ecan
entert
ainlandmat ters.Andt heestabli
shmentofLandDi sputeCourt
st hatconcernwit
h
l
andmat teratdiff
erentlevelsisbasedonLandDi sputeCourtAct.Secti
ons167oft he
LandActCap113and62oft heVill
ageLandActar eref
erred.int
hiscaset heref
ore,
all
l
andmat tersaretobepr esentedonlyt ot heabove-
mentionedcourtinrespecttoeach
one’sjuri
sdict
ion.
TheActr estr
ictsMagistr
ateCourtsest
abli
shedbytheMagistr
ateCour
tActt ohaveci
vi
l
89
j
urisdi
ctioninanymat t
erundertheLandActandt heVil
l
ageLandAct unl
esssave
when i tis provi
ded byt he Land Act
.Iti sfur
therstated t
hatMagi st
rat
es cour
t
establ
ished undert heMagistrat
escourtshallhav eand exer
cisej
urisdi
cti
on i
n al
l
90
proceedingsofacr i
minalnat
ureundertheLandActandtheVill
ageAct
.
Moreover
,LandDisputeCourtActpr
ovidesforthefunct
ionandpowersofeachcourt.
..
i
nconnecti
ontothis,i
tissti
pul
atedundersecti
on7oft heActprov
idesthat“
subj
ectto
sect
ion61oftheVil
lageLandActthefunct
ionsoftheVil
lageLandCouncil
shal
li
nclude:
(
a)Receivingcompl ai
ntsfrom par
tiesi
nrespectofl
and
(
b)conveni ngmeetingsforheari
ngofdisputesfr
om part
iesand
(
c)Medi ati
ng between and assi stparti
es to ar
ri
ve ata mutual
ly acceptabl
e
settl
ementoft hedisputesonanymat t
erconcerni
nglandwi
thi
nitsar easof
j
urisdiction.
88
S.3(
2)Ibi
d.
89
S.4(
1)Ibi
d.
90
Cap.114,
R.E.2002.

28
Notonl yt hat,butal sot heActshowsj urisdi
ct i
on,powerandPr ocedur eoft heWar d
Tri
bunal .asr egardst othis,itisprovi
dedt hateachwar dTr i
bunalest abl
ishedundert he
War dTr ibunalActshal lbeacour torthepur poseoft hi sAct ,theLandActandt he
Vil
lageLandandshal lhav ejurisdi
cti
onandpower sinr elationt ot hear eaofaDi str
ict
Councilinwhi chitisestablished.Theprov isi
onsoft heWar dTr i
bunalActshal lapplyas
appropriatelymodi fiedbyt hisactandt heev entofconf li
ctbet weent hisActandt he
War dTr i
bunalActi nr el
ationt oWar dTribunal s,thepr ov isionsoft hisActshal lapply.
Thisisshowni npar tI
Voft heLandDi sputeCour tAct .Al so, undersect i
on12t herear e
provisi
onsf orQual ifi
cati
onofmember sandgener alj urisdicti
onandPr oceduref or
medi at
ingpecuni aryjuri
sdiction,powersoft heTr i
bunal ,Ref erenceofdi sputestot he
Tri
bunal ,appear ancebyadv ocateaswell asappeal sfrom War dTribunal etc.
Again,t
heest abli
shmentoftheDistr
ictslandandHousingTribunalisst i
pul
atedinthe
LandDisputeCour tAct.ThattheMinistershal
lbesubjecttosect i
on167oft heLand
Actandsection62oft heVil
l
ageLandActest abli
shineachdistrict
,regionorzone,as
thecasemaybeacur ttobeknownast heDist
ri
ctLandandHousi ngTr i
bunal.The
Courtestabl
ishedundersubsect i
on( 1)shallexerci
sejur
isdict
ionwi thinthedist
ri
ct
regi
on,orzonei nwhichiti
sestabl
i
shed.
I
naddi t
ion,theLandDi sputeCour tActpr ovi
desforor i
ginaljuri
sdict
ionoft heHi gh
Cour
t(LandDi vi
sion)thatt hecourtshallexer
ciseorigi
naljuri
sdi
cti
oni nproceedingfor
ther
ecov er
yofpossessi onofpossessi onofi mmov ablepropert
yinwhi chthev alueof
thepropert
yexceedsf or t
ymi l
li
onshi ll
ings.Inotherpr oceedingwher ethesubj ect
matt
ercapabl eofbeingest i
matedatamoneyv al
uei nwhi chthev al
ueoft hesubject
matt
erexceedsf ort
ymi l
lionshil
li
ngsetc.
Section33oft heActempower st heDistr
ictLandHousingTr i
bunaltohaveandex er
cise
ori
ginalj uri
sdict
ionasdi rect
edbyt heAct .Thati
nallpr oceedingsundert heLandAct,
the Vi l
lage Land Act,t he customar ylease holes (
Enf ranchisement)Act,the Rent
RestrictionActandot herRegul ationofLandTer ms( Est abli
shedVill
ageActandi nall
suchot herpr oceedi
ngsr el
ati
ngt olandunderanywr itt
enl aw inrespectofwhi ch
j
urisdiction isinfer
red on a Di stri
ctLand and Housi ng Tr i
bunalbyanysuch l aw.
Howev er,ther
ei sli
mitati
ont otheabov ejuri
sdi
cti
onaspr escribesundersubsecti
on2
ofsect ion33oft heAct .
Undersect i
on38( 1)oft heLandDi sput eCour tActpr ovi
desf orAppeal sofmat ters
ori
ginatingfrom theWar dTr i
bunal.Section43oft heActpr ovidesf orpoweroft heHi gh
CourtLandDi vi
sionofsuper vi
soryandr ev ersi
onary.Her eiti
sst atedt hati
nexer ci
seof
i
tsrev ersi
onaryjurisdi
cti
on,theHi ghCour tLandDiv i
sionshal lhaveal lthepowersint he
exerciseofitsappel l
atejur
isdict
ion.I
nsect i
on47i tispr ovi
dedt hat“Anyper son,whoi s
aggrievedbyt hedeci si
onoft heHi ghCour tLandDi visionint heexer ci
seofi t
sor i
ginal
,
revi
sionorappel latejuri
sdi
ction,maywi ththeleavef rom theHi ghCour tLandDi v
ision
appeal tothecour tofAppeal i
naccor dancewi thehAppel l
ateJur i
sdicti
onAct .
”
Inrel
ati
ontotheabovepoi
nt,sect
ion48(1)prov
idesthat“subjectt
othepr ovi
sionsof
theLandActandVill
ageLandActt hecourt
sofappealshal lhavejur
isdi
cti
ont ohear
anddetermi
neappeal
sfr
om theHighCourtLandDivi
sion.
”
I
nsummingup,t
heaboveel
aborat
ioni
sjustabri
efexpl
anat
ionofthemainf
eatur
esof
t
heLand(Di
sput
es)Cour
tsActof2002.Infact
,theActi
sveryusefuli
nset
tl
ementof

29
l
anddisputeswhi
chisaveryseri
ousprobl
em inTanzani
a.Bypr
ovi
dingjur
isdi
cti
onand
pr
oceduret ot
hecourt
sconcerned,cour
toff
ici
alsareli
kel
ytoset
tl
et hepredominant
l
andconfli
ctsi
nourcount
ry.

12.
.“Eli
minat
ionofcustomarylandt
enur
ehasalwaysbeenont heagendain
Tanganyi
kaandTanzaniasi
ncecol
oni
alti
mesuptodat
e.’
’Assesst
hevali
dit
y
oftheabovest
atement.

Inthiswork,Iam goingtoassesst
heval
idi
tyoftheasser
ti
onthat:“
Eli
minat
ionof
customarylandtenur
ehasalwaysbeenontheagendainTanganyi
kaandTanzania
si
ncecolonialt
imesuptodat
e.’
’

Onecansayt hatbef orecoloniali

sm inTangany i
ka,thesy stem ofl andt enurewas
governmentbycust omar yrul
es.Thi ssy stem waschangedwhent hecol onistcame.
Duringt hisper i
od,col oni
sts,especiall
yBr it
ish,Fr anceandGer manycompet edand
ali
enatedal lfert
ilelandandcr at edtheirspher esofi nfluence.Theyest abli
shedl arge
agri
culturalpl
ant at
ions.Toenabl eeasyacqui sitionofland, theGov ernorandl aterstate
wasv estedwi thext ensiv
esuper v
isorypower sov erlandt enured.Forexampl e,t he
(German)i mper i
aldecr eeof26thNov ember1995decl aredt hatalllandinGer manEast
Afri
cawasr egardedasunownedandt hebyv estedi ntheempi r
e.
Thesituati
onwast hesamedur i
ngtheBrit
ishadmi ni
str
ati
on.Theytookmonopol
yover
l
and.‘Thewhol eoft helandsofTanganyikawhet heroccupi
edorunoccupi
edonthe
dateoft hecommencementofst heLandOr dinance1923,weredeclar
edt
obepublic
l
ands.TheOr dinancewhichint
roducedtheconceptofpubl i
clandsgavepowertot
he
Governmentt ograndrightsofoccupancyov erlandfortheperi
odnotexceedi
ng99
years.
General
ly
,thebasesoft i
tl
etolandi
nurbanar
easwereagr antofarighttooccupancy
undertheordinance.Between1958and1961,4,
601long-
termr i
ghtofoccupancyand
9,
887 shott erm ri
ghtofoccupancywer efenl
and f
orresidenti
altradi
ng i
ndustri
al,
missi
onandmi scel
laneouspur
poses.
Mor eover,customar ylawwasr estr
ict
edtoappl yinurbanareas.I
nconnect i
ont othis,
thepolicyoft hecol oni
alstat
ewascont ai
nedinci r
cularof195B.Thecircularstatedin
paragraph12“ itist hei
ntenti
onthatinat ownshipal ll
andshouldbeal ienatedf r
om
tri
baltenureandt hatAfri
cansshouldabbeythesamel awofthetransit
ionwi thregard
totheiroccupat ionasmember sofanyot herrace”.Thepoli
cyseemst osuggestt hat
uponcr eationorext ensi
onofci t
y,munici
pali
tyortownboundar i
es,urbanl andceased
tobesubj ecttocust omarylaw.
In1928,thescopeofappl i
cati
onoft helandordinancewaswi dened.I
tcamet o
accommodatepeasantpr oducti
onaswel l
.Theor di
nancerecogni
sedoccupati
onof
l
andbytri
balcommuniti
es.Anoccupi erofl
andundercustomaryl
awwasdeemedt obe
holdi
ngari
ghtofoccupancyalthoughhewasnotgivenacerti
fi
cat
eofoccupancy
.
Lateron,tr
ibali
nst
it
uti
onwithjur
isdict
ionoverl
anddi sintegr
ated,thecustomaryti
tl
e
becamenegot i
abl
ethusbri
ngi
ngitclosertother
ightholdingsthroughpurchase.I
nthi
s
way ,
aclassofri
chpeasant
semergedwi thi
nthepeasantry.

30
Howev er,duri
ng i ndependentthe gov ernmentembr aced peasant,agr i
culture and
pl
ant at
ionagri
culture.Onplantat
ionagri
cul t
ures,
thereisnoclearerstatementt hanthat
ofpresidentNyerereinhisaddresstopar amenton12thMay1964hest
l
i ated”….Aswel l
asindigenousfarmer s,wehaveinTangany i
kaanumberofpr i
vatel
yownedest atesand
pl
ant at
ions.Theyoccupyat i
nypercentageofourl andlessthanoneper centbutat
presenttheyaccountf orsome40per centoft heval
ueofourexpor ts….”
Furthermore,governmentacceptedt helegalframewor kwhichhadbeener ectedt o
faci
lit
ateimplementati
onofthesepolici
es.Thelandor di
nancewi
thi
tsconceptofpubl i
c
l
andwasaccept edandr et
ainedwhatt helegislat
ivedidwast osubsti
tut
et hewor d
president for t
he wor d Governor wherever it appear
ed inthe land ordinance
consequentlythe powerofgr anti
ng l
and rightsoccupancybecame v est
ed int he
presidentoftheuni
tedrepubl
ic.
Hav i
ngtr
acedt hi
sbackground,Icanbesaidt
hatthereareanumberofpr act
icesbythe
governmentthatshow thateli
minati
onofcustomarylandtenurehasal waysbeenon
theagendainTanganyikaandTanzaniasincecol
onialti
met odate.Forexample,si
nce
coloni
alti
met heyappli
edcer t
ainmethodstoexcludecustom anyintownsar ethese
way sar
ehereinaft
ermention
One,accordi
ngt oLandAcqui si
ti
onActof1967, landr i
ghtsbasedundercustomarylaw
areextingui
shedandl andbecomesav ail
abletoal locat
iontoanot herperson.The
presi
dentt o acqui
rel and withi
n a planning area in orderto secureits use i
n
accordancewithapplicableschemei t
erat
ivelyl
andmaybeacqui redifithasnotbeen
devel
opedi tsubmittedt hatcompulsorylandacqui sit
ionisanessent ialmethodof
exti
nguishi
ngcustomar yri
ghtofoccupancy.
Notonl yt hatbutalso i
ssuing ofcerti
fi
cate ofrightofoccupancy underLand
91
Ordinance. Her
etheactgivespowertothepresi
dentwhengr ant
ingaROorwhereany
personisinoccupat
ionoflandunderR.Oorisentit
ledtori
ghtofoccupancyt
oissuea
certi
fi
catetobecall
edcerti
ficat
eofoccupancytenurether
eforeexti
ngui
shcust
omary
tenure.
Again,underruleoft het ownshi p192392 whi chwasmadeundert ownshipordained
thatthegover
norcouldscr ibet hear easintownshi pf orareasforresi
denti
albuil
dingof
Europeantypestobecr eat edar easi nwhi chresidentialandt r
adingbuil
dingmaybe
creat
edandar easf ornat ivequi tters.Butev enaf terindependence,thegov er
nment
adoptedthezonear ease. g.1964t het ownshipor di
nanceswer erei
nedwher ebyt he
township whol
es wer er epr esented and t he Dares Sal aam zone repr
oduced.For
example,oyst
erbuyr esi
dent i
alareaswaspl acedi nthef orthschedul
eandpr esi
dedas
areainwhichresi
dentialbuildingofEur opeantypesmaybeer ectedtownshi
pr ul
esand
93
DaresSalaam zonedr awnt her eunderst il
lsubsisttodat e.
Moreover
,theadopt
ionofpl
anni
ngwhi chfol
lowsundersect
ion23ofCap373which
r
equir
esev enCi
tyCounci
l
,Muni
cipalCounci
ltopr
epareageneralpl
anni
ngschemef
or

91
Cap113.
92
Gov er
nmentnotesNo160of1924dat
ed11/Sept1924
93
Ref
erstomunicipal
i
tyOr
d.1946cap105s.136(
2),seeal
sol
ocalgov
ernmentor
d.No35of1982Cap
333.Section168(
1)

31
pl
anni
ngar
eforwhichi
tisr esponsi
blesect
ion24ofthe373permitaCity
,Muni ci
pal
andTownCounci
ltoprepareadet ail
edschemef ordecupl
eofanyar eawi t
hinits
pl
anni
ngar
eanotwit
hst
andingthatageneralpl
anni
ngschemehasnotbeenprepared
Final
ly
,declar
ati
onofpl anni
ngar eawhichf al
lsunderTownandPl anni
ngOr di
nance
Cap355whi chempower stherelevantMini
stertodeclareanareatobeaplanningar ea.
Thisisaspersection143ofOr dinance.Underthislaw,onceanareaissodeclaredas
planni
ngareasnoper sonshalldev el
opanyl andwi t
hinplanni
ngareas.So,i twas
beli
evedthatdeclarat
ionofanar eaasapl anningareaundercap355ext inguished
customaryri
ghtofoccupancyforexampl e
94
InthecaseofOmarv sOmarA.Bi l
lali,thei ssuewaswhet herholder soflandunder
customar yl aw i
nplannedar eashaveani nf
er iort i
tl
et othosewhoar esubsequent l
y
all
ocated.Onourpar t,wet hinkthisi
st heti
met or evisi
tandconsi dert hedecisi
onint he
95
oldcol oni
alcaseofMt or obi nMwambav sAG andMet husel ahPaulNy agwaswav s
96
ChristopherM.Ny i
rabu ,t het wocaseswhi chwer esowi delycanv assedbot hatt he
tri
alandi nt heHighCour t.Thedecisionsint heset wocasesar enotent i
rel
yfreefrom
dif
ficulti
es.IntheLandOr dinance,Cap.113, Ar ightofOccupancyi sdef i
nedasat i
tl
et o
theuseandoccupat i
onofl andandincludesthet it
leofnati
v esorofanat i
vecommuni t
y
l
awf ull
yusi ngoroccupyingl andinaccordancewi thnativel
awandcust om.
Underthisdefinit
iononer ightofOccupancyi scr
eatedbyadi r
ectgrantofapubli
cland
bythePr esi
denti nt er
msofSect i
on6oft heLandOr dinance,theotheroneisthatofa
personorper sonshol dinglandinaccordancewithcust omarylaw.Mt or
obinMwamba
andNy agwaswacasesont hestatusofholdersofl andundercust omar yl
aw,equated
them wit
hsquat t
er sandt hattheeffectofthedecisionofi nNy agwaswacasewast o
renderholdersofl andundercust omarylawsquattersoncet heareainwhichtheirl
and
i
s,isdecl ar
edapl anningareaandt hattherebytheyl oseal lr
ight
sexceptther i
ghtof
compensat i
onf orunexhaust edimprovements.
Inconcludingmyassessment ,If
indt
hev al
idit
yoftheassert
ionthat“ El
i
minat
ionof
customar ylandtenur
ehasalwaysbeenont heagendainTanganyikaandTanzania
sincecolonialt
imesuptodat
e’ist
ruei
ntheli
ghtoftheaboveexpl
anation.
The Fr
13. eehold Ti
tl
es (Conversi
on and GovernmentLeases)Act ,1963 was
passed i n orderto achieve t
he devel
opmentofl and and t
o enablet he
Governmentt o exer
cise contr
oloverthe disposit
ion offr
eeholdland.To
implementt hesepoli
cies,itwasquiteunnecessarytoconver
tfreehol
dt i
tl
es’
’
Justif
yt heabovecontent
Thequestionbasedont hei
ssueoftheimplement
ati
onofthegov ernmentpoli
cesaf
ter
i
ndependencewasi nf actqui
teunnecessarytoconvertf
reeholdtit
leint
olease.But
beforetackl
et heissueonecoul dunderstandfi
rst
,thehistor
icalbackgr
oundoft he
system offreehol
dt it
lewher ei
tcomef rom upatt hetimei twasconv ert
edinto
governmentlease.
I
tshoul dbenotedthatthesyst
em oflandtenur
einTanzani
acanbetracebacksi
nce
pr
e-coloni
al.Thatbef
orecoloni
ali
stcameinTanzani
athelandt
enureduri
ngthatt
ime
us tr
aditi
onalorcust omar
y ownershi
p.The land ownerwas nat
ive,some ar
eas
94
Civi
lAppealNo.19/96–Mwal i
mu
95
1953-57]2Tangany
ikaLawReport
s327,
96
[1985]TLR103

32
chi
efdom e.g.Bukobaetc.waschar
act
eri
zed.Underchi
efdom t
hechi
efwasv
est
edt
he
powertodistri
butethel
and.
Undert heperiodther
ewasequaldi st
ri
but
ionofl andinfamil
yunderprimi
ti
vemodeof
production.Butduri
ngthecoloni
ali
sm,thesystem changedforexampleinTanganyi
ka
bothGer menandBr i
ti
shcoloni
ali
stadministr
ationadoptedident
if
iedlandpoli
cies.
Underbot hadmi ni
str
ati
ons,
thestatewasrestedwi t
hextensi
vesupervi
sor
ypowerov er
l
andt enure.
Germanwast hefir
stcol
oniali
stcomei nTanganyika.Hesignedt
heImperi
aldecreeof
26thNovember1895wher ehedeclaredthatwholelandwasmadeasCr ownland.Aft
er
taki
ngthelandi
twasbegr antedtoindust
ri
albythegov er
nmenteit
herbyconveyance
ofownershi
porleasehol
dwi t
hoptiontopurchase.
Lateron,t he German l
eftTangany i
ka.Likeitspredecessor(Germany)theBri
ti
sh
colonialadminist
rat
ion exerci
sed monopoly overAfri
ca land.The wholeland i
n
Tangany i
ka whetheroccupied orunoccupied on t
he date ofthe col
oni
ali
sm l
and
ordinance1923wasdeclaredt obepubli
cland”
The l and ordi
nance 1923 provi
ded l
egalFr ance walkf orplant
ation and urban
development .UnderBrit
ish Ger
manypr evi
ouslygr ant
ed German tenures (
about1
mil
lionacresoflandall
)wereconvert
edintoorbecomef reehol
dandexistedupto1963.
Ther estoflandwasregul
ati
ngunderthelandOrdinance1923.
I
tshouldbenot edthattheabov esy st
em waschangedaf t
erTanganyi
kaachiev
ed
i
ndependencewi thagov ernmentcommi tt
edt obui
ldacolonial
i
stsoci
ety.Thefi
rst
pr
oblem concer
nl andtenurewhichconfrontedthegover
nmentwasthatofchoosi
ng
whi
choft hefol
l
owi ngal
ternat
ivecauseofactiont
oadopt.
Thei
ssuesai
medwer
e;
(a)Shoul dt he countr
y per mitt he devel
opmentofa f r
eehol d sy st
em outof
customar ytenureort i
tl
ebyusi ngitswasi ndependencet or aiseal lcustomary
tenureort opermitittober aisedbyr egi
strati
on.
(b)Woul ditbemov epr operempl oytheprerogativeagainstthemar ketf orcesand
discouragef r
eeholdt endenciesandorputt oanendwhat everfreehol dexist
ed
97
possi bi
l
itybyidenti
fyingsov ereignt
yofthest ateandforproper t
y.
The quest ion requi
red urgentanswernot ed abovet he freeholdl and t enure was
i
ntr
oducedi nTangany ikabyt heGer manyandl aterfoll
owedbyBr i
ti
sh.Towar dt heend
ofBri
tishr uleinTangany i
kat heAf ricanpeasantact i
vit
iesbeganl osingf ormswi t
hthe
col
onial government.
Butaft
erTangany ika/Tanzani
aachievedindependencehasitplanswhichl
orditfoll
ow
suchast oenlargi
ngt hepublicsect
or,tochargestradi
ti
onalsector
,andot
herpol i
ces.
Aswoul dabov egov ernmentcommi ttedtobuildasociali
stsociet
ythefi
rstproblem
concer
ninglandt enurewhi chcomfortedthefoll
owingalter
nativ
ecourseofactionto
adopt.
Ther
efor
ein1963t
hegov
ernment
sconv
ertal
lfr
eehol
dint
ogov
ernmentf
reehol
dbyt
he

97

33
vi
rtueofFr eeholdTi t
le(conver
sionandgov er
nmentlease)Actonthegroundthatall
l
and mustbe owned by t he people as a whole as an impor
tantstep i
nt he
i
mpl ementationoft hepolicypaperitbroughtint
othepublicsect
orofthelandtenure
str
uctureanot hermi l
l
ionacresofl andandatt hesometimeemphasizedthefol
l
owi ng
ancientpr
inciples;
( 1) Landbel ongst osoci etynott oindivi
dual s.
( 2) onesnott ol ardhusbandanyr equir
ementar esubst i
tut edf ort
heuseand
abuser i
ghti nherenti nt hef reeholdpr oper tyconcept
( 3) l andi snotacommer cial commodi ty
TheGov ernmentenact edt heFr eehol dsTi t
les(Conv ersion)andGov ernmentLeasesAct
No24/ 1963,Cap523wi t
ht heai mt oconv ertest atesoff eesi mpl ei ntogovernment
st
l
easesf or99y ear seffect i
vef r
om 1 Jul y1964.I tcoul dbesai dthatt hemotivef orthe
Gov ernmentt oenactsuchl awwast oassumemor econt roloverl andaswel lasbei ng
98
ablet or egul ateand moni torl and dev el
opment . Theexpr ession f eesi
mpl ewas
t
h
definedt oi ncludeanest ateofabsol uteowner shi pcr eatedbef or e26 Jan1923and
anyot herabsol uteest ateori nterestwhi chi si fhadbeenr egister edundert hel and
RegistryOr dinancepr i
ort ot heappoi nteddaywoul dhav ebeenr egist eredasaf reehold
99
estate. TheLandRegi stryOr dinance1923wasr eplacedbyt heLandRegi strati
on
100
OrdinanceCap334. Undert heLandRegi stryOr dinancet heRepubl icasal andlord
101
wasent i
tl
edt oar entfrom t hef or merf r
eeholder.
Alt
houghGov ernmentLeaseswer edi sposablei
nterestsanyl esseehadt oseekt he
consentoft hecommi ssionerforlandsbef oreanydi sposit
ion.Fai l
uret oabidewi th
102
devel
opmentcondi t
ionswoul dleadtot heleasebeingf orf
eit
ed. Governmentleases
wereconv er
tedi nt
oRi ghtsofOccupancyundert heAct .Itcangener al
lybestatedt hat
conversi
onoff reeholdt i
tl
esint
or i
ghtsofoccupancywast heonl ymaj ortenurereform
i
nt hepl ant
ationsect or.Asaconsequenceoft heconv ersionoff reehol
dt it
lest o
GovernmentLeasesv aluablel
andwassubj ectedtogovernmentcont rol
.
Wasi tnecessarytoconv ertfr
eehol dti
tl
ei nt
ogov ernmentleasehol dinachievi
ngt he
abov epolici
es?Lookingatt hesociali
stviewtakenbyTangany i
kaaf teri
ndependencei n
trytobui l
daj ustsocietyitwasnecessar ytoconv ertfr
eeholdt i
tl
ei nthegov ernment
l
easehol dfort
heformersy st
em dependst hesocialistpr
inci
pleinindivi
dualtousei tas
theylike.Toall
owf r
eehol dsystem inTangany i
kawasexpect edt obechr oni
ceconomi c,
socialand pol i
ti
calpr oblems and whathad been descr i
bed byNy er
ere as Rur al
prol
et ari
atbythi
ssoci al
istoutl
ookt heconv er
sionwasneeded( social
lyandpoliti
call
y)
Economicall
yhoweveritwasnotnecessarytoconvertfreehol
dti
tl
eintogov
ernment
l
easehold and r
atheritcoul
d be necessar
yt o convertsuch f
reehol
dtorightof
occupancydir
ect
lyundert
helandor
dinance1923invested.
Theconv
ersi
onAct1963andt
hel
andor
dinance1923wer
esi
mil
art
hatt
hef
ormer

98
SeeGov ernmentPaperNo2of1962whi chstatedinteral
iathattherewasaneedt oconvertf
reehol
d
tit
lestoGov ernmentLeasesandannexdev elopmentcondi t
ionstorightsofoccupancygrantedpri
orto
1948.Bef ore1948therewer edev
elopmentregulati
ons.
99
Section2oft heAct
100
ConsiderLandRegistr
ationActCap334RE( 2002)
101
Seesect i
ons17and18oft heOrdinanceseealsoconv er
sionofFr eehol
dsintoRightsofOccupancy
102
SeetheGNspr omulgatedin1966and1970oni ntenti
ont ofor
feitGovernmentleases.

34
seemedtobeasubsetoft
helat
terhencenoneedoft
hef
armerasf
orast
heabol
i
tion
offr
eehol
dti
tl
ewasconcer
ned.
Therefore,t
hefreeholdti
tle(conver
sionandGov er
nmentlease)Act1963waspassedin
undert oachievet hedevelopmentofl andandt oenabl
et heGov er
nmentt oex
erci
se
controloverthedispositi
onoff r
eeholdland.Toimplementthesepoli
cies,i
twasqui
te
necessarytoconv ertf
reeholdti
tl
esasnot edabove.

14.Expl
ainsunderwhatci r
cumst ancesandproceduresfor
eignerscanacquire
i
nter
estinlandinTanzaniainTanzaniaundertheexi
sti
nglaws.Doy outhink
t
hatt he l
aw is st
rong enough to pr
otectthe l
and againstal
ienat
ion by
f
orei
gners?Expl
ain.
Thequesti
onisallaboutthedisposi
ti
onoflandt onon-cit
izen.Ther
efor
e,thefort
h
comingdi
scussi
onIam goingtoexplaint
hecircumstanceunderwhichtheforei
gner
s
acqui
rei
nter
esti
nlandinTanzaniameaswell
asi tsfor
cesureundertheexi
sti
nglaws.
I
tshouldbenot edthatanyper sonwithi
nthecountr
y(Tanzania)hasrighttooccupythe
pieceofland.I
tnot edthatther i
ghtstooccupyl
andwhi chaci t
izenagr oupoftwoor
mor eci
ti
zenwhet herformedt ogetherinanassoci
ati
onundert hisaanyot herl
aw or
not,apartner
shiporacor poratebody,i
nLandActcall
edr i
ghtholder
s’’mayenjoyunder
theActarehereby’decl
aredtobe
(
a)Agr
ant
edr
ightofoccupancy
.
(b)Arightder
ivat
iveofar
ant
edr
ightofr
ightofoccupancyi
nthel
andActcal
l
eda
deri
vat
iveri
ght
I
tshouldbenot edthatapersonoragr oupofperson,undert
hecompanies,Actor
other
wisewhichisorar
enon-cit
izensi
ncl
udingacor
porat
ebodytheonlyobt
ainari
ght
ofoccupancyorder i
vat
iver
ightf orpur
posesofinvest
ment prescr
ibedunderthe
Tanzani
aInvest
mentAct.
Asagener alrul
eforei
gnersarenon-cit
izenarenotall
owedtobegr ant
edthepieceof
l
andwi thi
nt heTanzania.However,t
herear ecert
aincir
cumstancesunderwhichthe
for
eignercan acquire pi
ece ofland withi
n Tanzani
a such as f
orthe pur
pose of
i
nvestment.
103
Thi
spositi
oni
sprovi
dedinsect
ion20(1)oftheLandAct that“
Forav
oidanceofdoubt
anon-ci
ti
zenshal
lnotbeall
ocatedorgrantedlandunderi tisf
orisfori
nvest
mentof
i
nvest
mentpurposesundert
heTanzaniaInv
estmentAct.
Therefore,theabovepr ovisionshowst hatforthepurposeofinv
estment,non-ci
ti
zen
(f
oreigner)shallacquir
et hepi eceoflandi nTanzani
a.Thisisprovi
dingalsointhe
104
TanzaniaI nvest
mentAct undersect i
on4whi chest
abli
shabodyt obeknownast he
TanzaniaInv est
mentcent re.Thecentr
eshal lbeanAgencyoftheGovernmentandshal
l
beundert hegeneralsuper visi
onoftheMi ni
ster
.

103
Cap13of1999.
104
Cap38R.E.2002.

35
Subsection3ofabov esect
ionprovi
dedthatthecentreshal
lbeabodycor poratewith
perpetualsuccessionandacommonsealandshal lit
sownwher ebecapableof( a)
acquiri
ngandhol dingmovableandi mmov abl
epr opert
ytodi sposeofproperty
,t o
disposeofpr opert
yandt oenteri
ntoanycontractorothert
ransacti
on.(b)Suingand
beingsued,and
(c)Duri
ngandsuf
fer
ingallot
heractsandthi
ngswhichbodiescor
porat
emanyl
awf
ul
doorsuff
erf
ort
heproperperf
ormanceofi
tsfunct
ionundert
hisAct
’’
Theproceduresforacquiredinteresti
nl andinTanzaniashowsundersection20(2)of
l
andAct,thatlandtobedesignat edforinvestmentpurposeundersubsecti
on(1)oft
his
secti
onshallbei dent
if
ied,gazet t
esandal l
ocat
edt otheTanzaniaInvest
mentcentre
whichshall
createderi
vaterighttoinvestors.
Itshouldbenotedthatasamat terofdisposit
ionofr i
ghtofoccupancyitsaysthatany
personproposi
ngtocarryoutadi sposi
ti
on,otherthandisposit
iont
osection38appli
ed,
shallsendordeliv
eranot ifi
cat
ioninthepr escri
bedf ormt othecommi ssi
oneroran
authori
zedoffi
cerbefor
eoratt het i
met hedisposit
ionisclamedouttogetherwiththe
paymentofallpremium,taxesandduespr escri
bedinconnectionwit
hthatdisposi
ti
on’’
There mustappr ovalfordi sposi
ti
on t hatt he commi ssi
onershal lhave powert o
consi
derandappr ovecategoriesofdisposit
ionsofl andunderthi
sAct .Anyassignment
ofarightofoccupancywhi chwasgr antedtot heassigneristotakeeffectshal
lrequi
re
theapproval
ofthecommi ssi
oner,whichappr ovalshall
notbeunr easonabl
ywi t
hheld.
Subj
ectt
osecti
on37(8)oflandActal
ll
andacquir
edpriort
otheenact
mentoft
hisshal
l
bedeemedtohavenov al
uesaveunexhaustedi
mprovementsforwhi
chcompensat
ion
maybepaidundert
helandActoranyotherl
owland.
Forthepurposeoft
heActanybodycor
porat
eofwhosemaj ori
tyshar
ehol
derorowner
arenon-ci
ti
zenshal
lbedeemedtobenon-ci
tizenorf
orei
gncompany’
s
Itf
urthernotedthatattheexpi
ryter
mi nati
onorexti
ncti
onoftherightofoccupancyor
deri
vati
verightgrant
edt oanon-cit
izenoraf orei
gncompanyr eservat
ionI
nvestment
centr
eoranyot herauthor
it
yastheMinistermayprescr
ibei
nthegazette.
Alli
nall
,thoseabovepoint
swhichsuppor t
edbyexistinglaw,onecancaset hatthei
r
l
awswhi chgiv
ecir
cumstancesandprocedure,
forf
oreignertoacqui
reint
eresti
nlandin
Tanzani
aisnotst
rongenoughtoprot
ectthelandagainstbyforei
gner
s.
Itshouldbenot edt hatthedoesnotgi vedeeperdet ai
ltosat
isf
ytheacqui
sit
ion,i
tis
showsonlyt hatthef or
eignershal
lacquir
etheland forthepur
poseofi
nvest
ment, and
condit
ionforrightofoccupydonotdi ff
ertotherightofoccupancyf
orci
ti
zen.
Thelawalsodoesnotshowt heli
mit
ati
onoff
orei
gnerwhosupposetobegrant
edthe
peaceofland,thusitmeansthatabignumberoffor
eignercanacqui
rei
mmov abl
e
proper
tywit
hinTanzani
a.
Towi ndupt heaboveexplai
nitismypointofviewthatt
heexi
sti
nglowdonotsati
sfy
theprovi
sionfortheacquir
eroflandbyforei
gner,t
hatt
osayarenotst
rongenoughto
notedthatlandagai
nstal
ienat
ionbyfor
eigner
s.

36
 15.‘’i
nor dert ocontrollandinthevillagesandt opr ot
ecti tf rom ali
enat
iont o
foreigninvest
ors,Vill
ageCounci
lwillbegivendocument sindi cat
ingboundar i
es
oft hei
rland….i
ndividual
sshould beal l
owed toobtainindividualti
tlewit
hinan
area notdesi gnated forcommunaluses…Vi l
lagers t hrough t hei
rVi l
lage
assembl ieswil
ltherefor
ebeall
owedt osurveyl
andsgetsepar atecorti
cat
ed..’
’
Showhowabovepol
icyst
atementi
sref
lect
edi
ntheVi
ll
ageLandActNo.
5of1999
Thequest i
oni sallaboutt oshow thepol i
cystatementherebelow isreflectedint he
vil
l
agelandActNo5of1999t hestatementsay sthatinordertocontroll andint he
vil
l
agesandt opr otecteditfr
om alienationt oforei
gninvestorVi
ll
agecounci lwil
lbe
givendocument si ndicat
ionboundar i
esoft hei
rlandindivi
dualshouldbeal lowedt o
obtai
ni ndi
vidualt i
tle wit
hin an ar
ea notdesi gnat
ed forcommunaluses…v i
ll
agers
thr
ought heirv i
l
lageassembl i
eswi llthereforebeal l
owedt osurveyl andsandget
separat
ecertif
icates.
Itshould berated thatt hev i
l
lageland mean land decl
ared to bev i
ll
agel and i
n
accordancewit
hsect i
on7oft heVLA.Al t
houghVil
lageLandActcar riest
hisdefi
niti
oni
t
doesnotr egul
atedemar cati
onofv i
ll
ageboundari
essuchdemar cationi
sr egul
atedby
105
otherlawspri
ncipal
l
yt helocalgover
nment(Dist
ri
ctAuthori
ti
es)Act.
Thecommi ssi
onerforl
andisinv
olvedatt
hetai
landbyissuecer
ti
fi
cateofv
il
lagelor
din
presidedform.Thecertif
icat
eisissueinthenameoft hepresi
dentandcoursesthe
vi
llagecouncil
thefunct
ionofmanagementofvil
lagel
and.
Actuall
yt hevil
lagelandconsi stofl andwithint
heboundari
esofav i
llageregister
edi n
accordance wi tht he provisi
on ofsect i
on 22 oft he l
ocalGov ernment( Di
str
ict
Authorit
ies(ActtheLandt heBoundar i
esofwhichhavebeendemar catedisv il
l
ageland
underanyl aworadmi nist
rati
vepr ocedureinfor
ceatanytimebef or
et hisActcomesi n
toforcewhet herthatadmi nist
rati
v eprocedurebasedonorconductedi nevidencewi th
anyst atutelaw orgener alpr i
ncipleofot herrecei
vedorcustomar yl aw applyi
ngi n
Tanzaniaandwhet herthatdemar cationhasbeenf or
mall
yappr
ov edorgazet tedornot.
Itconsistsal
lthelandboundariesofwhichhavebeenagr
eeduponbet weent
hev i
ll
age
councilclai
mingjuri
sdi
cti
onov erthatl
andandherethel
andsurr
oundingorcont
iguous
tothatv i
l
lageisvi
ll
agelandthev i
ll
agecounci
loft
heconti
guousvi
ll
agesetc
Itshouldbenot edthatwhereav i
llageclai
mingoroccupyingandusi nglandasv i
ll
age
l
andi sunabl etoagr eewithitori sindisputewit
haper sonorbodyr ef
erredtoin
paragraph( c) of subsect i
on( 1) ofsection7oft heVi ll
ageLandActast othe
boundariesoft helandwhi chiti sclai
mingoroccupy i
ngandusi ngasv i
l
lageland
wishest odeter
minet heboundari
esoft hel
anditisoccupyingandusi ngi
naccordance
withpar agr
aphofsubsect ion(1)oft hesamesect ion,t hemi ni
stershal
lonbei ng
sati
sfiedthateveryeffor
thasbeenmadet otryandreachpaagr eementont hebroken
aseither.
a)Appoi
ntapersont
oactasamediat
orbetweenthevil
l
ageandthe
per
sonorbodywit
hwhicht
hev
il
lageisunablei
sreachagr
eement

105
ActNo.7of1982.

37
 thef acti
onoft hatper sonshal lbet owal kwi t
handper usedt he
vil
lageanot herandper sonorbodyt oreachacompr omiseov ert he
bounderi sor.
b)Wher et he medi ater eportt ot he ministert hatdisput e his best
endeav ourhei sunabl etoper suadet hepar tiestot hedi sput et o
reach to compr omi seon t heboundar i
esadducet hemi nist ert o
appointani nquiryundersect i
on18oft heLandActt oadj udicat eon
thedemar cat edtheboundar iesoft hatvil
l
agel and.
Acit
izenlandseekermayobt ainar i
ghtofoccupyundert helandAct .Al ter nati
vely,ifhe
i
sav i
l
lageanotav i
llagehemaysei zet heoppor tunit
yof fer
edunderv i
llagel andact
1999byobt ainacust omar yri
ghtofoccupyi nvil
l
agecounci lav i
ll
agerwi thappr ovalof
thevi
ll
agecounci lvi
ll
agecounci lhaveawaycooper at
edont hi
sr egard.Thepr esidential
commi ssi
onheadev i
denceofal i
enati
onofl andbyv il
l
agecounci l t
oout sides.
Itwasformedt
hatinsomecasestherewaselusi
onbet
weenv i
ll
agel
eader
sanddi
str
ict
author
it
iest
ograntl
andtoout
sidestothepr
ejudi
ceofv
il
lage.
Anon- cit
izenl andseekerhasbeengi venspeci alconsiderat
ioni nt heNat ionalLand
Policyandr egulati
on.TheNat ionLandPol icyr ecogni
zesandemphasi zesthatlandi s
availablef orinvestmentpurposes.Howev er ,itisnotedt hatbi gparcel sofl andhav e
beenal locatedt oindivi
dual
spr iv
atefr
om incl udingfor
eigni nv
est orregar dl
essoft hem
prov eabili
tytodev el
opedtheland.Asar esul t,l
argeareasofl andr emai nundev eloped
orahol dforspecul ati
vepurpose.Iti
stherefor earguedthatlandshoul dbesel ectedfor
106
i
nv estmentandal locati
onshouldbeconditional onabil
itytodev el
opt hel and.
Itshoul
dbenotedthatanon-ci
ti
zenmayobtai
naderi
vat
iver
ightfr
om vi
ll
agecounci
l
.In
secti
on32(2)prov
idesthatanappl
icat
ionf
oragr
antofader
ivateri
ght
.Shal
lbe
a)Madet ot hev i
l
lagecounci lonaprescribedf orm
b)Si gnedbyt hepar tapplyi
ngf ortheder i
vativ
er i
ghtorhisdul yappointedagentor
representactive
c)Accompani edbysi mplepl anshowingt hel ocati
onandboundar iesoft heland
anyot herinformati
onwhi chmaybepr escri
beorwhi chmayber equiredbyt he
v i
l
lagecounci l
…
d)…”
Thev i
llagecouncilmayr equireanyr el
evantinf or
mat i
onaddi t
ionaltothatreferredtoin
paragraph (c)ofsubsect ion (2)abov e and shal lnotbe underanyobl igati
on to
determineanappl i
cationinrespectofwhi chaddi ti
onalinformationhasbeenr equi
re
unti
lthatinformationhasbeensubmi t
tedtoi torasat i
sfact
oryexpl anat
ionast owhyi t
cannotbesubmi tt
edhasbeensubmi tt
edtoi t[aspersect ion32( 3)]
.
Towi ndupt heaboveex pl
anat
ionsubmittedthi
sbysay i
ngthatthev i
l
lagecouncilhas
dutytomakesur ethatheprot
ectsthelandf r
om ali
enati
ontoforeigninvest
orv i
ll
age
council
hast oindi
cateshoul
dbealsoall
owedt oobtaini
ndivi
dual
tit
lewhichanar eanot
desi
gnatedf orcommunalusesv i
l
lagethroughtheirvi
ll
ageassembl i
eswi l
ltheref
ore
al
lowedt osurveyl
andasseparatecert
if
icates

106
MuhenaBi
nSai
dvRegi
str
arofTi
tl
es(
1948)16EACA399.

38
 16.Discusstheimpact
soft
heRegul
ati
onofLandTenur
e(Est
abl
ishedVi
ll
ages)
Act22/1992.
Landtenureist
herelat
ionship,whetherl
egal
lyorcustomar
il
ydefi
ned,amongpeople,as
i
ndivi
dualsorgroups,wi threspecttoland.(Forconveni
ence,“
land”i
susedher et o
i
ncludeothernatur
alresourcessuchaswat erandt r
ees.
)Landtenurei
saninsti
tuti
on,
i
.e.
,rul
esinvent
edbysoci eti
estoregulat
ebehaviour
.
Rulesoft enuredefinehowpr opert
yr i
ghtstolandar etobeal l
ocatedwi t
hinsocieties.
Theydef inehowaccessi sgrantedtoright
st ouse,contr
ol,andtransferland,aswel las
associated r esponsibil
i
ties and restr
aints.In simplet erms,land t enure systems
determinewhocanusewhatr esourcesforhowl ong,andunderwhatcondi ti
ons.Int hi
s
question,wear egoi ngt odiscussont hei mpactoft her egulat
ionofl andt enure
(establi
shedv i
l
lage)Act1992.
The Regul ati
on ofLand Tenur e( Est
abl i
shed Vi
l
lages)Act ,No.22 of1992 was
i
nst r
ument ali
nt her el
ocati
onofpeasantsdur i
ngOperati
onVijij
iwi
thoutcompensat
ion
andhenceacauseofl andtenur
econfusionandnumer ousdisput
esinTanzani
a.This
continuedunt i
lt heclauseswerehel dt obeunconst it
uti
onalandst r
uckoutoft he
statutebookbyt heCourtofAppealofTanzani aatt heinst
anceoft wopeasantsin
107
Attorney-
General vs.AkonaayandLohay .
Generall
y,theActwasenact edtobr i
ngt oanendanycl ai
msr el
ati
ngtol andacquired
duri
ngoper ati
onv ij
i
ji
.TheActpr ovidedt hatal lr
ightstouseandoccupyl andunder
108
cust
omar yl awheldbyv i
l
lagersbeforeoper ati
onv i
ji
jiwereexti
ngui
shed. I
twasonly
ri
ghtsthatwer eacquiredduringorafteroper ationvij
ij
ii
nv i
ll
agesest
abli
shedasar esult
ofoperationv i
ji
j
iandcust omaryri
ght si nar easthatwer eanotaffect
edbyoper ati
on
109
vi
ji
ji
thatwer erecognizedundertheAct .
110
Nocompensat ionwast obepai dasar esultofoper at
ionv i
ji
ji
. Thel
aw pr ohibited
fi
li
ngofcasesandorexecut ionofdecr eev al
idlyissuedongr oundsofext inguishment
111
ofcust omaryri
ghts. Al
lsui t
si ncourthadt obet erminatedandnoor deri ssuedby
112
ordinanry cour
ts was v al
id. Suit
s coul d only be br oughti n specialt ri
bunal s
establi
shed.Anyaggrievedper soncoul dappealt otheAppeal sTr i
bunalandi fhei snot
113
sati
sfiedhecouldappeal t
ot heMi nist
erwhosedeci si
onwasf i
nal andconclusive.
Theimplicat
ionoft
hestatut
orysy stemswast oremovelandtenur
efrom thedomainof
customarylawandassimil
ateitinthest atutorysyst
em ofri
ghtofoccupancy.Theland
tenureandusewer etobeadmi nisteredf r
om t hetop.Part
ici
pat
ionofpeasantsand
pastoral
i
stsintheuse,pl
anning,admi nist
rationandmanagementofl andwasv i
rt
uall
y

107
AsperG.M.Fimbo,“I
n1992t heRegul
ati
onofLandTenure( Est
abli
shedVi
ll
ages)Act,No.22of1992
prov i
dedforext
inct
ionofcustomaryt
enurewit
houtcompensat
ionandoustedthejur
isdi
cti
onofcour
ts.
108
Secti
on3(1)oftheRegulat
ionofLandTenur
e(Establ
i
shedVill
ages)Act22/
1992
109
Ibi
dsecti
on3(2)
110
Ibi
dsecti
on4
111
Ibi
dsecti
on5
112
Ibi
dsecti
on6
113
Ibi
dsecti
on9

39
non-
exi
stng.114
i
Theef
fect
sofv
il
lagi
sat
iononl
andt
enur
ewer
ethef
oll
owi
ng:
1.Relocat
ion115ofscatt
eredhouseholdsi
ntomorecompactr esident
ialVi
ll
ages,
wit
hapur poseofprovidingcommonsoci
alser
vices.Suchmovementsali
enat
ed
peoplefrom ancestr
al(famil
y)l
ands.
2. I
n some places v i
ll
agisat
ion caused l
and degr adat
ion and envi
ronment al
116
damage .Peasantagr i
cult
ureandagr i
cul
turalproduct
iondeteri
orat
ed,lar
gel y
duetot enur
ei nsecuri
tyandal soduet of armlandbei ngfarawayf r
om t he
homesteads.
3. Substant
ivechangesinthedist
ri
but
ionoflandout-
of-
ownerconsentoccurr
ed
amonggr oupsandi ndi
vi
dual
s.Manyi
ndivi
dual
slostt
hei
rhomesandl andsi
nthe
processwithoutr
eceivi
ngcompensat
ion.
4. Replacementofcust
omaryl
andall
ocat
ionaut
hori
ti
esbyel
ect
edv
il
lagecounci
l
s,
withoutaconsentedi
nst
rumentf
orsuchachange.

17.Art
icle22(1)oft
heAfricancharteronhumanandpeopl es’right
swhi chrel
ati
on
tori
ghtdevelopmentpr ovi
desthat“allpeopl
eshallhaverightoftheireconomic,
socialandcultur
aldevelopmentwi thduer egardtotheirfreedom andi dent
it
y
andt heequalenj
oymentoft hecommonher i
tageofmanki nd”discusshowt hi
s
ri
ghti spr
oceedorinf
ringedinTanzani aasfaraslandissuesar econcerned.
Land i
sa cent ralresource in secur
ing l
ivel
ihood and addressing pov ert
yin most
devel
opingcountri
es.Iti
sabasi csourceofl i
veli
hoodanddeny ingaccesst oi
tamounts
toseri
ousi nf
ri
ngementoft herighttoli
veli
hood.Thatwomenar ediscrimi
natedagai
nst
i
nt heaccess,ownershipandcont r
oloflandandot herproductiver esour
ceshasbeen
acknowledgedinmaj orinter
nat i
onaldocument s.InTanzania,landi spubli
clyowned
andthePr esi
denthastheradicalti
tl
e.

Governmenthast heultimateauthorit
yov ert hemanagementandadmi ni
str
ationofl and.
Undert he1923LandOr di
nance, t
hePr esidentt hr
ought heMi ni
str
yresponsiblef orland
canallocateaplotoflandbyi ssui
ngat itl
edeedt oani ndivi
dual.Thesamel awpr ovides
fornativestocontinueowni nganddev elopingl andundercust omaryandt raditi
onal
l
aws.Few womenhav elandt i
tl
esint heirnames,ev ent hought hestat
utoryl aw does
notdiscr i
minat
e againstwomen i nt hei ssuanceoft i
tl
edeeds.Ther ear el i
mi t
ed
opportunit
iesforwoment oacqui r
el andot herwiset hant hroughinheri
tance.Under
Customar ylaws,women’ srightstolandar ei ndi
rect
,insecur eandinferi
ort ot hoseof
114
Shi
vj
iI;NotYetDemocr
acy
:Ref
ormi
ngLandTenur
einTanzani
a(1998)at6
115
Inasoci ali
stTanzania,ouragr iculturalorgani
zati
onwouldbepr edomi nantlythatofco-oper
ati
vel i
vingand
wor kingf ort hegoodofal l.Thi
smeanst hatmostofourf ar
mingwoul dbedonebygr oupsofpeoplewhol iveasa
communi tyandwor kasacommuni ty
.Theywoul dl i
vetogetherasav i
ll
age;t heywouldf armtogether
;mar ket
toget her;andunder taketheprov i
sionofl ocalservi
cesandsmal llocalrequirementsasacommuni ty(J.Nyerer
e,
1968) .
116
Severaler rorswer emadedur ingt hepr ocessofv i
ll
agi
sati
on.Somev i
ll
agesar ebadl
ylocatedfr
om thepoi ntof
viewofwat ersuppl y,soi
lcondit
ions,et c.,whil
esomehav er
atherlargepopulationswhichcouldposeeconomi cas
wel lassoci alproblems.Inallvi
llagest her ei
st heri
skthatthechangef r
om shi f
ti
ngtopermanentculti
vati
onmay
leadt osoi ldeterior
ationanderosioncausedbyov er
grazi
ng(JASPA/ I
LO,1978) .

40
men.

TheLocalCust omar yLaw( Declarati

on)Or derNo.4of1963codi fi
edv ari
ouscust oms.
Thisordercontainsrulesr egulatingmat t
ersofi nheri
tance.I tisthel awt hatr egulat
es
i
nherit
ance amongstt he pat ril
inealcommuni ti
es.The or derpr ovides thatwomen
cannotinher
itclanlandbutcanusei tduri
ngt heirl
if
eti
mewi thoutpowerofdi sposingit.
Womencanonl yinher i
tcl anl andi ftherear enomeni nt hecl an.Gi vent hewi de
defi
nit
ionofrelati
onsinAf ri
cansoci eti
es,itisinconceivablet hatacl anwoul dhav eno
malemember s!
Insomei nst
ances,Cour tshav emadeef fortstodeclaret hesedi scri
mi nativ
ecust oms
asoutdatedandunconst itutional.

ThecaseofBer nadoEphrai
m vHol ari
aPastoryandGer vasiKaizi
lege( Ci
vilAppealNo.
70;1989)i sagoodexampl e.Int hecaseJusticeMwal usanyastatedi nhi
sj udgement
t :“
hat Ihav efoundasaf actthatS.20ofther ulesofInheri
tanceG. N.No.436/ 1963of
theDeclarati
onofCust omaryLaw,isdiscr
iminatoryoffemalesint hatunli
ket hei
rmale
counter
par t
s,theyarebarr
edf r
om sell
ingclanland.ThatisinconsistentwithAr t
.13(
4)
oftheBillofRightsofourConsti
tuti
ononaccountofsex. ”

Thi scasehasaf fi
rmedt herightofwoment oinheritclanlandorsel f-acqui
redl andof
theirfat
hersanddi sposeoft hesamei nthesamewayasmen.Howev er,aslongast he
l
awi sinforce, suchpr ot ecti
oni slimitedtot hepar t
icularcase.Thosewhodonotgot o
cour ttochallenget hel aw cont i
nuet osuf ferunderi tasl ongasi tisnotr epeal edby
Parliament.The I ndian Successi on Actof1865 appl iest o Afri
can Chr i
stiansand
Europeansdy ingdomi cil
ei nTangany i
ka.Undert hi
slaw, widowsar eent it
ledt
oone- t
hir
d
oft hedeceasedhusband’ sestateincl udi
ngl and.Thechi l
dren,regardlessoft heirsex,
areent i
tl
edt ot wo-t
hir dsoft hei
rdeceasedf ather’
sest ateincludi
ngl andt oshar ethe
sameequal ly.Unfortunat ely,thi
slawi sv eryrarelyusedandi sunknownt omostpeopl e.
AmongAf ricans, i
tist hedi scriminatorycustomar ylawoft hedeceasedhusbandt hatis
oftenappliedi ndistri
but ionoft heest ate.

Courtsar e empower ed t
o applyrules ofI slamicl aw to member s ofthe Afri
can
communi tywhof oll
ow t
heI sl
amiclaw i nmat ter
sofmar ri
age,di
vorceguar di
anship,
i
nheritanceandsuccessiont omenti
onbutaf ew.Islamiclawisfoundedi nQuran,and
thegener alrul
eisthatbywayofWi l
l,aMosl em cannotdisposeofmor ethanone-thir
d
ofhi s estate aft
erpaymentoff uner alexpenses and debt s.Two-t hir
ds oft he
deceased’ spropert
ymustf ol
l
ow principlesofi ntestat
esuccessionaspr ovi
dedby
Quranwher ebyheirsaregroupedinf ourcat egori
esandmakeat ot
alof12shar es.
Womenwi dowsar eamongt heshar eswhoseshar esar e1/8t
hoft hedeceased’s
propertyonly.Alt
houghthereareot
herbenef i
tswhichgowi t
hthe1/8th,normall
ythese
aredisregardedduet oi
nfl
uenceofpatriarchalnorms.

ThelawofMar ri
ageActof1971r ecognizestherightofmar r
iedwoment oacquirehold
anddi sposeofpr oper
ty.Furt
her,thel aw provi
desf ordistri
buti
onofpr opertyupon
divor
ce,thoughi tissil
entondi st
ri
butionofpr opertyupondeat h.Marri
edwomencan
alsoenterint
ocont ract
s,canbesuedandsuei nthei
rownname.Thespousewhoowns
thehomei sst oppedf r
om ali
enati
ngt hesamewhi lethemar ri
agesubsistswithoutthe
consentofanot herspouse.Althought hislaw seemst ohav eef fect
edconsi der
able
refor
m wi threspectt ot herightsofmar ri
ed personsto mat r
imonialproperty
,its

41
ef
fect
ivenessi
scompr
omi
sedbyt
hehol
dofcust
omsandt
radi
ti
onal
pract
ices.

TheConst i
tuti
onoft heUnitedRepubli
cofTanzani aprov
idesforequali
tybetweent he
sexes.Indi
vidualshavether ighttopossesspr oper
tyandt ogetpr otecti
onf orthe
proper
tyacquiredlegal
ly5Ar
. t
icl
e13pr ohi
bit
sdi scri
minati
on.Recentl
y,t
hisar t
icl
ewas
amendedt oincludethewor d‘gender
’init
sdef i
niti
onofthewor d‘di
scri
mi nat
ion’.Thi
s
i
sawel comepr ovisi
on,whichisexpectedt
opr omot ewomen’sright
sinthecount ry.

Thecurrentpositi
onofthismat teri
sTheLandActdecl aresthatawomanhast hesame
ri
ghtstoacqui r
e,ownanddeali nlandasaman.I thasbeenar guedthatthispr ov
isi
on
i
samer erestatementofthel awasi tal
readyexi
sts,andaddsl i
tt
letot heexi
stinglegal
si
tuati
on.Ther eare,however,thosewhof eelt
hattheprovisi
onmar ksthebeginningof
manifest
ationofwomen’ srights,whichwereprev
iouslyt
akenf orgranted

Secti
on161( 2)createsapr esumedr ightinnat ureofoccupancywhi chi
scommont o
l
andhel di
nt henameofonespouseandt heot herspouseorspousescontri
but
ingthei
r
l
abourtot heproduct i
vi
ty,upkeepandi mpr ovementoft hatland.Thi
sprov
isi
onex t
ends
i
tsprotecti
ont obot hownershipright
s, i
.e.undert heri
ghtofoccupancyandcustomary
ri
ghtofoccupancyandhencepr otect
st hemaj orit
yofwomen.Thesamesect i
onmakes
adisposit
ionwhi chhasnotbeenconsent edt obyt heotherspouseorspousesvoidor
voi
dableattheopt ionofthepar t
ynotconsent ing.

According t o vil
lage Land Act,The Act pr ovides f
or the management and
administrat
ionoflandinv i
ll
ages.Ittooprov
idesthatwomenhav ethesamer i
ghtto
acquir
el andasmen.Awomancanbeal l
ocatedlandbytheVill
ageCounci
laft
erthe
approvaloft heVil
lageAssembly.Alt
houghvi
ll
ageassembliescompri
sebothmenand
women, theyar eor
dinar
il
ydominatedbymen.

Secti
on20( 1)oft heActl egalizesappl i
cat
ionofcust omar yl aw indi sputeset t
lement ,
successionori nher it
anceandanyot hermat teraffecti
nglandhel dundercust omaryl aw
wheret hemat t
eri snotpr ov i
dedf orundert heActoranyot herenact ment .Subsection2
rest
rictsappl i
cationoft hesai dcust omar ylawandanydeci siont akeni nrespectofl and
held undercust omar yl aw by st ating t
hati tshoul d be i n accor dance wi tht he
fundament alprincipl
esofl andpol icyandanyot herwr i
ttenl aw.I tfurthermakesi t
i
noper ati
v eandv oi
d,ifisdeni eswomen,chi l
drenandper sonswi thdi sabili
tylawf ul
accesst oowner ship,occupat ionoruseofanysuchl and(Aut hor’semphasi s)
Thispr ovisionleav esal ott obedesi red.Becauseoneneedst odi f
ferentiatebetween
whati slawf ulandwhati sar ight.Thepr ovisionshav eclearlyindicatedt hatcustomar y
l
awi sappl i
cable,andcust omar yl
awi sinfactpar toft heLawsofTanzani a.Customar y
l
awi sdi scr i
minativeasal readyst ated.Customar yl awiswhatl awf ull
ylimi t
swomen’ s
ri
ghtsinl and.

Arti
cle13oft heUnitedRepubli
cofTanzani aasamendedi nthey ear2000prohibi
ts
di
scriminati
onont hebasisofGender .Underart
icl
e24,i ndi
vi
dualshav etherightto
possesspr opert
yandgetpr otect
ionforthelegal
lyacqui
redpr oper
ty.Howev er
,ithas
beenarguet hattheBi l
lofRi
ghtsenshr i
nedintheconsti
tuti
oni snotabsolut
east hey
aresubjecttothelawsofthecountry.

Toconcl
udet
heabov
eexpl
anat
ionsonecanagr
eewi
thmet
hatAl
lpeopl
esshal
lhav
e

42
ther i
ghttot heireconomi
c,socialandcult
uraldevel
opmentwit
hduer egar
dt ot
heir
freedom andi denti
tyandi
nt heequalenj
oymentoft hecommonheri
tageofmankind.
Statesshallhavetheduty,
indiv
idual
lyorcol
lect
ivel
y,t
oensur
etheexerci
seofther
ight
todev el
opment .

Al
18. thoughitissaidthatt
hereisafairpl
ayt owar
dst
hepr
ocedureofrevocati
on
ofr i
ghtofoccupancyi nTanzani
abutt hi
sappeartobemor ecosmeticthan
reali
ty.Cr
it
ical
lyexaminetheaboveassert
ion.
Revocati
oni st heactoft er
minati
ng,rev
ersi
ng,orov err
idi
ngsomet hing.Itcanbe
deli
berat
e,asi ncaseswherepeoplechosetorevokepowersorwithdrawactions,andit
canalsohappenasamat t
eroflaw,aswhenanewl ypassedlawactstorevokeanol der
onebecausei tconfli
cts.Thereareanumberofset ti
ngswherethislegalconceptcan
ari
seandi tisimportantforpeopl
et obeawareoft hei
rri
ghtsandresponsibil
i
tieswith
respectt
or evocat
ion.
Abr eachofcondi ti
onr equir
ingcont inuousper f
ormancear i
sesassoonandcont i
nues
aslongast hecondi ti
oni snotcompl iedwi t
h.Thismeansf ail
uret ocompl ywi ththe
117
obli
gationsorl iabil
i
tiesconst i
tutesabr eachoft heconditi
on. Wher et heoccupierof
l
andhasbr eachedt hecondi t
ionsoft her i
ghtofoccupancycer tainconsequencesf ol
low.
Thel awempower sthePr esi
dentt orevoket heri
ghtofoccupancyf orgoodcause.Good
causei ncl
udesbr eachofcondi ti
oncont ai
nedi ntherightofoccupancy .Othergood
causesi ncludeabandonment s118 (
un-used)f or2y ears,attempt eddi sposit
ionoft he
ri
ghtofoccupancyt oanon- citi
zencont rarytotheActandanyot herlawet c.Ar i
ghtof
occupancywhi chhasbecomel iabl
et ober evokedceasest obel i
ableifthebr eachis
119
subsequent lyr
emedi ed.
Wher eanybreachofacondi t
ionhasar i
senanditappearst othecommi ssionerthatt
he
breachiscapabl eofbei ngr emediedbyt heoccupierwithinreasonablet imehemay
120
savenot i
cespeci fy i
ngt heact ionr equir
edforr emedyingt hebr each. Wherethe
commi ssi
onerissat isfi
edt hatanot iceundersection47oft helandActi sservedand
hasnotbeencompl iedwi t
h,hei srequiredtoser
veanot i
ceofr evocati
onandcopyt he
samet oallper sonsi nterestedi ntheland.Assoonast henot iceofr ev ocat
ionhas
comei ntoeffectthecommi ssionerhast orecommendt ot hepresidentt or ev
okethe
121
ri
ghtofoccupancy .
TheCommi ssionercanser veanot i
ceofr evocation.Thenot i
cet akesef f
ect90day s
afterithasbeenser vedThenot icecanbeser vedincaseswher e( a)anot i
ceser ved
undersect i
on47hasnotbeencompl i
edwi th;or( b)t hebr eachofcondi ti
oni sso
seriousandoff ar-r
eachingconsequencest hat( i
)itwoul dnotbepr acti
cablef orthe
occupiert or emedyt hatbr eachwithinar easonabl et i
me;or( i
i)theoccupi erhas
demonst rat
edacl earunwilli
ngnesstocompl ywi tht hecondi t
ionsoft hegr antoft he
ri
ghtofoccupancymadet ohim;(c)therehasbeenanat tempteddi spositi
onofar i
ght
ofoccupancyt oanon- cit
izencontrar
yt othisActandanyot herlaw gov er
ningt he
disposit
ionofar ightofoccupancyt oanon- ci
tizen;(d)thel andthesubj ectofther i
ght
117
Ibi
dsect
ion44
118
SeeChaptert
enforfur
therdi
scussi
on.
119
Secti
on45oftheLandAct
120
Ibi
dsect
ion47
121
Ibi
dsect
ion48

43
ofoccupancyhasbeenabandonedf ornotlesst hantwoy ears;(e)wher et heri
ghtof
occupancyi sofl andofanar eaofnotl esst hanfiv
ehundr edhect ares,notl essthan
eightypercent um oft hatareaoflandhasbeenunusedf orthepur posef orwhi cht he
ri
ghtofoccupancywasgr antedf ornotlesst hanf i
vey ears;(f)t herehasbeena
disposi
tionoranat t
emptatadi sposi
ti
onwhi chdoesnotcompl ywitht heprovisi
onsof
thisAct;(g)anyr ent,taxesorot herduesremai nunpaidsi xmont hsaf terawr i
tten
noticei
nt hepr escri
bedf orm wasservedont heoccupierandsubsect ion(8)ofsect ion
33doesnotappl ytotheoccupi er.Assoonast henoticeofrevocat i
onhascomei nto
effecttheCommi ssi
onershal lrecommendt othePresidentt or ev oket her i
ghtof
122
occupancy .
As soon as the Presi
dentapproves a r
evocati
on ofa rightofoccupancy the
Commi ssi
onershallcause i
tto bepubli
shed inthe Gazet
te and i
n one ormore
newspaperscir
culat
ingintheareawheret helandthesubjectofther ev
ocati
onis
si
tuat
eanot i
fi
cati
onofthatr
evocati
on.
Uponappr ovaloft her evocat ionbyt hePr esident ,(a)ther ightofoccupancyt owhi chi t
refersdet erminesi mmedi atelyand wi thoutf urtheract ion;( b)al lder i
vativer i
ght s,
creat edoutoft her ightofoccupancywhi chhasdet ermi neddet er
mi nesi mmedi ately
andwi t
houtf ur t
heract i
on;( c)allri
ghtsandi nterest sint hel andt hesubj ectoft her i
ght
ofoccupancyr ever ttot hePr esidentandt hesameshal lber egi
steredi nt heLand
Regi ster;( d)subj ectt o sect i
on 49( 3),al lunexhaust ed i mpr ovement sv esti nt he
Presi dentwi thoutf urtheract i
on;( e)anyr ent,t axes orot herdues owi ng t ot he
Gov er nmentar isingoutoforat t
ributablet ot hegr antoft her ightofoccupancyar e
extingui shed;and( f)allproceedi ngsr elatingt ot her i
ghtofoccupancyort hel andt he
subjectoft her i
ghtofoccupancywhi chwer eorcoul dhav ebeencommencedagai nst
theoccupi erandal lpr oceedi ngswhi chwer eorcoul dhav ebeencommencedagai nst
anyper son,ot hert hant heCommi ssi
oner ,byt heoccupi ershal lbet akenov erbyt he
Gov er nmentandt hereaftershal lbepur suedagai nstorbyt heGov ernmentast hecase
123
maybe.
Thef ormeroccupierwhoser ightofoccupancyhasbeenr evokedhasto bepaid
compensati
on.The compensat ion shallbe equalt ot
he v al
ue ofunexhaust
ed
i
mpr ovement
smadei n accordancewi tht hetermsand condit
ionsoft
her i
ghtof
124
occupancyonthelandattheti
meoft her evocat
ion.
Althought hepr ocedur eforr evocationseem t obef airbutpr acti
call
yt hesi t
uationi s
dif
f er
entasi tisi l
l
ustrat
ingi nt hesecasebel ow,f orinstanceI n SARJI T SINGH v
SEBASTI AN CHRI STOM125 itwasst atedthatt hegr antofRi ghtofOccupancyi snot
automat icassomepeopl et endt othink,orwoul ditnecessar i
l
yf oll
owaf tertheof feris
communi cated.A r ightofoccupancyi screatedbyt heappr ovaloft heappl i
cant '
s
appl i
cati
onf orthegr antoft hesame( i
.e.arightofoccupancy )andt heaccept anceby
theappl i
cantoft hegr antedr ight;onef ir
stget sanof f
er,t heof f
ermustt henbe
accept ed.Oncei tisacceptedt her ealti
tlei
sgr anted.Ar i
ghtofoccupancyov erapl otis
grantedbyaLet t erofOf f
erandt henaccept edbyt heof f
eree.Thel att
ermustpayt he
requisitefeesandsuppl ythei nformat i
onrequi redint heletterofof fertoconst i
tute
122
Ibi
dsecti
on48
123
Ibi
dsecti
on49
124
Ibi
dsecti
on49
125
(1988)TLR24

44
acceptanceonhispart.Oncet hisi
sdonear
ightofoccupancyi
scr
eatedandgrantedto
thegrantee.Li
kewiserevocationmustbedonebysomeonewhohaspowert orevoke
ti
tl
esot herwi
sei twil
lbeofnoef f
ect
.SeealsoPatmanGar ment
sI ndust
ri
esLt d.v
TanzaniaManuf act
urersLtd126
InColonelKashmi r
ivNagi nderSinghMat haru127,therespondentwasal locatedapi ece
oflandbyt heUr banPl anningCommi t
teeon18t hNov ember1980oncondi t
iont hathe
paysthenecessar yfeeswi thi
nthirtydaysfrom dat eofof fer.Hewasdel ayedinpay ing
thefeesbyt helandof f
icerwhot ol
dhi mt owai tuntilcer t
ainmat tersconcer ning
resurv
eyoft hesur r
oundingar easwer ecomplet ed.Twomont hsaf t
ert herespondent
wasal l
ocatedt hepl ot
,theappel lantwasal soal locat
edt hesamepl ot
.Thet r
ialjudge
foundt hatther espondentobt ainedt heplotthr oughappr ovedchannel sandt hel ate
paymentoff eesbyhi m wasdul yaut hor
ized.Theappel l
ant '
sapplicati
on,ont heot her
hand,didnotf ol
low thepr operpr oceduresandwasnotappr ovedbyt heDi rectorf or
LandDev elopmentSer vices.
InRajabuHassar avSar ayaRashid128theappell
antwasof f
eredt her i
ghtofOccupancy
i
nr espectofacer tainplotin1968.TheRi ghtofOccupancywasev ent
uallyrev
okedby
thePresidentforal legednon- compliancewit
ht heconditionsst i
pulatedi ntheRi ghtof
Occupancyi nquest i
on.Thecr uxoftheappealiswhetherornott herehadbeen" good
cause"forther evocat ionof theRightofOccupancy ,
foll
owi ngwhi chthesai dplotwas
real
located tot her espondent.Itwashel di nteral
iat hatnon- compliancewi tht he
conditi
onsst i
pulatedi nt heRightofOccupancy const i
tutes" goodcause"f orther i
ght
tober evoked.
InAgroI
ndustr
iesLtdvAG129itwasst
atedthatnoti
cebef orerevocat
ionwasi
mport
ant
andthewholepurposeofissui
nganoti
cetor ev
okear ightofoccupancyistoaf
for
da
part
yanopport
unitytoputupacaseagai
nsttheproposedr evocati
on.
Tosayi
nshor
t,t
hepr
ocedur
eforr
evocat
ioni
sfai
rbutpr
act
ical
l
yisnot
.

19.
Therearef
our(4)essent
ial
swhi chbepresentedinor
derf
oraneasementt
o
exi
st.ReEl
lenbor
oughPark[1956]Ch131.Discuss.
Aneasementi sacer tai
nr ighttousether ealpropert
yofanot herwithoutpossessingit
.
Iti
s" besttypif
yi nther ightofwaywhi chonel andowner,A,mayenj oyov ert
helandof
another,B."Hi stori
cal l
y,thecommonl aw cour t
swoul denf orceonlyf ourtypesof
easement :Right -
of-way( easement s ofway )
,easement s ofsuppor t( per
tai
ning to
excavations),
easement sof" l
i
ghtandai r
"andr ightsper
tai
ningt oarti
fi
cialwater
way s.I
t
withi
nt hisintroductionIam goi ngtodi scussf ouressenti
alel ementsofeasement
presentedinthecaseofReEl lenBoroughPar k.

126
[
1981]T.
L.R.30

127
(1988)TLR163
128
(1983)TLR111
129
(1994)TLR43

45
Actually,t
hef actofthecaseofREELLENBOROUGHPARK130, Cour
tofAppealwast hat
theowner sofhousessi t
uatedarounda‘priv
atesquare’i
nWest on-super-Mar ecl
aimed
therighttouseapr i
vat egardeninthemiddleofthesquareforthepur poseofex er
cise
andr elaxati
on.Thecour theldthattheneighbouri
ngowner shadeasement sov erthe
garden.SI RRAYMONDEVERSHEDsai dthatthepurposesoft hear gumentbef oreus
counselwer econtentt oadopt ,ascorr
ect,thefourcharacteri
sti
csf ormul at
edi nDr.
Cheshire’sModer nRealPr oper
ty(7t
hedn.),p.456etseq.Theyar e(i)Ther emustbea
domi nantandaser vi
entt enement:(i
i
)aneasementmustaccommodat et hedomi nant
tenement :(ii
i)dominantandser vi
entowner smustbedi ff
erentpersons:and( iv)the
ri
ghtov erlandcannotamountt oaneasementunl essitiscapabl eoff ormingt he
subject-matterofagr ant.

Theref
oreaneasementisessent
ial
l
yar
ightov
eranother
'sland,anyri
ghtcl
aimedasan
easementmustsatisfythecommonlaw def
ini
ti
on,outl
inedi nthecaseofReEl l
en
131
boroughPark .Her e,Danckwert
sJlayoutabov eessentialchar
acter
ist
icsofan
easementasfoll
ow:

Thef i
rstrequir
ementi sthat
,theremustbet wodi st
inctplot
sofl andaf fectedare
centr
altot hedefini
ti
onofaneasement .A ri
ghtofwaygr antedtoani ndividuali
s
grant
edint hei
rcapacit
yasalandowner ;i
far
ightofwayisgrantedt
oani ndividualwho
i
snotal andowner ,i
tismerel
yalicense.

Secondl y,i
tmustbeshownt hatt herighti sconnect edwi tht heenjoymentoft he
domi nanttenementi nsomeway .I
ti si
mpor tanttothisendthatt heri
ghtmustbenef i
t
anindividualinthei
rcapaci
tyasal andowner ,andnotmer el
yf or
m apersonalri
ght.For
exampl e,ithasbeen j udi
cial
lyst ated thata r i
ghtofwayov era pl otofland in
Northumber landtoanestateinKentwoul dnotf or
mt herequisit
ebenefit,t
heproxi
mi t
y
132
ofthet wopiecesoflandbeingtoor emote .

Theabov epointwasi l
l
ustrat
edint hecaseofPughvsav age133,wher et hequest ion
whichar osei nthi
scasewaswhet hera‘ri
ghtofway ’exist
ingov ernef ieldt ogett o
anotherf iel
d,whereat hir
dfiel
dlaybet weenthedomi nantandser vi
entt enement s,
couldexi stasav al
i
deasement . Thecour thel
dt hatther ightofwaywasav ali
d
easement .InanothercaseTodrickvWest ernNationalOmni busCo.Lt d134 CrossLJ
showst hatar i
ghtofwaymayexi stforthebenefi
tofadomi nantt enemental though
betweent hedominanttenementandt heservi
entt
enementt herei ssomei nterv ening
l
and.

Thir
dly,domi nantandser v
ientowner smustbedi f
ferentpersons.Aneasementi s
essentiall
yar i
ghtin al
ienosolo( i
nt hesoilofanother).A personcannothav ean
easementov erhisownland.iewher eanownerofplotAandBpassesov erAtoBhei s
notexer ci
singar i
ghtofwayi nrespectofB,
hei smerelymakinguseofhisownl andto
getfrom onepar tofittoanother.Thesameper sonmustnotonl yownbothtenements
butal so occupybot h oft hem bef or
ethe exist
ence ofan easementi sr ender
ed
130
[1955]3AllER667
131
ReEllenbor
oughPark[
1956]Ch131
132
PerBy l
esJ,inBai
l
eyvStephens(
1862)12CB(
NS)91,
at115
133
[1970]2AllER353
134
[1934]Ch561

46
i
mpossi
ble.

Fourt
hl y
,t herightcl ai
medmustbecapabl eoff ormi ngt hesubj ect-
mat t
erofagr ant.
Wheret heeasementgr antedbydeed( ifonegr ant edbydeed) .Ther emustbeacapabl e
grant
ore. gt heser vienttenementmustbeownedbysomeonecapabl eofgr anti
ngan
easement .Ther emustbeacapabl egrantee.Itcanonl ybecl aimedbyaper soncapabl e
ofreceivingagr ant.Theel ement st hatensur ecapaci tytocont ractar eimportant.The
ri
ghtmustbesuf fi
cient
lydef i
nite.Thispoi ntisdi scussedi nt hecaseofCol lsvHome
andCol oni alStoresLt d135,wher ehomeandCol onialSt oresLt dhel dpr emisesf rom
whicht heycar r
iedont heirt r
ade.Theysoughtani njunct i
ont or estr
ainCol l
sf rom
buil
dingont heopposi tesideoft heroad.Theybasedt heirclaim ont heneedt opr otect
thei
rrightt oli
ght.Thecour thel
dt hattheinjunctionwasr efused.I twasnotsuf f
ici
entt o
showt hatt heer ecti
onofbui l
dingswoul dresul tint herebei ngl essl i
ghtthanbef ore.A
substantialdeprivati
onmustbeshown.

To concludet heabov epointonecanagr eewi thmet hatInt hatcaseoft he Re

136
Ell
enboroughPar k, t heabovepointswer eoutli
nedast heessential
sofaneasement
suchas( a)dominantandser v
ienttenement ,(
b)theeasementmustaccommodat et
he
dominanttenementi eitmustbeconnect edwithitsenjoymentandf orit
sbenefit
,©the
ownersoft hedomi nantandservi
enttenement smustbedi ff
erentpersons,and(d)t
he
ri
ghtclai
medmustbecapabl eoff ormingthesubj ectmatterofthegrant.Theparkwas
theservi
enttenementandt hehousest hedomi nanttenement.

20. Anal
yse cr
it
ical
lyt
he maxi
m “
once a mor
tgage al
way
sa
mor
tgage”

Amortgageisal oanthatissecur
edbyahouseorotherr
ealestateproper
ty.That
meansifyoufai
ltofull
yrepaythel
oan,t
hel
endercant
akethepropert
yandsel li
tin
or
dert
opayofftheloan.

Amor t
gageisaloansecuredbyr eal pr
opertythrought
heuseofamor tgagenotewhich
evidencestheexistenceoft heloanandt heencumbr anceoft hatrealt
ythroughthe
granti
ngofamor tgagewhichsecur est heloan.However,thewor dmor tgagealone,i
n
everydayusage,i
smostof tenusedt omeanmor t
gageloan.Inotherwor dmortgageisa
LawFr enchterm meaning" deat
hcont ract,
"meani ngt
hatthepl edgeends( dies)when
ei
thertheobli
gati
oni sful
fi
ll
edort hepropertyistakent
hroughf orecl
osure

Mor t
gagorhasmanyr ight
sandoneamongt hem ist her i
ghtt or edeem.TheRi ghtof
redeem isther ighttorecoversomethingbymaki ngcertainpay ment s.Mor t
gagor'
sright
ofredempt ionmeansmor tgagor
'sri
ghttorecoverorgetbackt hepr opertyaft
ermaki ng
paymentofl oan.Mor tgagei sat ransferofani nterestini mmov abl
epr oper
tyf or
securi
ng t he loan.Bywayofsecur it
y,the mortgagort ransfersan i nt
erestin his
i
mmov ablepr operty.I
ft heloanhasbeenpai d,theinterestsot r
ansf err
edmustr evert
backt ot hemor tgagor.Themor t
gageecannotr etainanyi nteresti nthemor tgage-
propert
yifdebtdoesnotexi st
.

135
[
1904]AC179
136
(
1956)3Ch131

47
Thus,amor tgageehasnotent it
ledtopr eventt
hemortgagor
’sri
ghttoredeem.Thi s
meanst hatt
hemor tgagorisenti
tl
edtor epaymoneyowingundert
hemor tgagebefore
theduedat especif
iedinthecont r
act.From thi
siswherethemaxim oncemor tgage
alwaysmor t
gagecomef rom,thatnochancet omort
gageetopreventmor tgagorto
exerci
sehisri
ghttoredeem themortgage.

Itfurt
hernotedt hatamor tgageemaynotat t
emptt ogainsomeaddi t
ionaladvantage
from themor tgagorotherthanf ul
lrepaymentoft heloanpr i
nci
palandi nt
erest,and
costs and expenses.Ther efor
e,ift he mortgage transact
ion i
ncl
udes some ot her
agreementgivingt hemor t
gageeaf urtheradvantagef orexample,t
hatt hemortgagor
wi l
lbuycer
taingoodsonl yfrom t
hemor tgageethatotheragreementwil
l bevoi
d.
Amor tgageemaynotat tempttogai nsomeaddi ti
onaladv antagefrom t
hemortgagor
otherthanful
lrepaymentoft heloanpr i
ncipalandi nterest,andcostsandexpenses.
Therefor
e,ifthe mortgage tr
ansacti
on includessome ot heragreementgi
ving the
mor t
gageeafurtheradvantageforexample,t hatthemor t
gagorwil
lbuycert
aingoods
onlyfr
om themor t
gageethatotheragreementwi ll
bev oid.
Itshouldbenot edt hatanypr ov i
sioni nthemor t
gagedeedwhi chprev entr edempt ionis
137
repugnantandt hereforev oid hence,‘ onceamor tgageal waysamor tgage. ’One
cannotturnthet r
ansact ionint osomet hingel seort heremustbenocl ogorf etteront he
equit
yofr edempt ion.Thi sappl i
esi nt woway s:-( i)Ifat ransact
ioni sinsubst ancea
mor t
gage,equityt reatitassuchev eni fitisdr essedupi nsomeot herf or ms.egby
document sbeingcasti nt hef orm ofabsol ut econv ey ance.Itist hesubst ancewhi ch
138
mat t
ersandnott hef orm…‘ equi tytreatsasdonewhatoughtt obedone. ’ ( ii)Ther e
mustbenocl ogorf etteront heequi tyofr edempt i
on.i .enotonl yt hatt hemor t
gagor
cannotbepr ev
ent edf rom redeemi nghispr oper t
ybutal sohecannotbepr ev entedf r
om
139
redeeming itf r
ee f rom any condi tions or st i
pul ations int he mor tgage. In
140
Knightsbri
dge Est ates Tr ustLt d vs By rne a pr ov i
sion postponi ng t he dat e of
redempt i
onuntilsomef utureper iodthant hecust omar yper iodisinv alidunl essi tisnot
sooppr essi
veandunconsci onabl ethatequi t
ywoul denf orceitandpr ov i
dedi tdoesnot
141
maket heequitabler i
ghtofr edempt i
oni ll
usor y thatanyopt i
onwi llbev oidi fitmakes
theequitabl
eri
ghtt oredeem i llusor y
.
InFair
cloughvs.SwanBr ewer yCoLtd142acl
ausetopostponethedat
eofredempt i
on
ofamor tgagedleaseaftertheex pi
ryof20yearsto6weekswasdeemedt orenderthe
equi
tableri
ghttor edeem il
lusoryandhencev oi
dunlesstherewasabargai
nbet ween
thetwopar t
iesonequalf ootingevenifitj
ustpost
poneredemptionf
oraconsiderabl
e
peri
od.
Towinduptheaboveexpl
anationoncecansaythatiti
simpossi
bletoprov
idethata
mor
tgageshal
lbetot
all
yir
redeemableort
hattheri
ghtofredempt
ionshal
lbeconfi
ned

137
Secti
on128)oftheLandAct
138
Secti
on121(1)(a)oft
heAct
139
Secti
on121(1)(
b)oftheAct
140
(1939)1Ch441
141
ReadalsoSamwel vsJar
rahTi
mber&Woodpav
ingCoLt
d(1904)AC323
142
(1912)AC565

48
 143
tocertainpersonsort oal i
mi t
edper iod. Aprovisi
onint hemor tgaget hattheproperty
144
shallbecomet hemor tgagee’sabsol utelywhensomespeci f i
edev entoccur sisvoid.
Accordingt osect i
on125( 1)oft heLandActanyr ulethatent i
tlest hemor tgageeto
forecl
oset heequi tyofr edempt i
oni sabol i
shedinTanzani a.For ecl
osur eatcommon
l
aw wast henamegi vent ot hepr ocesswher ebyt hemor tgagor ’
sequi tabl
er i
ghtto
redeem wasext i
nguishedandt hemor tgageel ef
towneroft heproper tybothatlawand
i
nequi t
y.Theowneroft heequi t
yofr edempt i
onmayr edeem asi ftherehadbeenno
suchr estr
icti
onunlessi nasepar atet r
ansact i
onthemor tgagorgiv esthemor t
gageethe
optionofpur chasi
ngt hepr opertyandt husdepr iv
ingthemor tgagoroft heequityof
145
redempt i
on.
21.
Forthepr
acti
calpur
posetheenactmentofbothl
andtenur
e(v
il
lageSet
tl
ement
)
Act1965No27RanchDev el
opmentManagementAct1964No51of1964was
toconver
tcust
omarytenuretost
atut
orytenur
e.Di
scuss
Thelegalandadmi ni
strati
vemachi ner
ygov erninglandt enureinTanzaniaMainlandhas
i
tsgenesisi ntheColonialperi
od.Bef oregoingf urtherletusseewhati sLandt enure?
Bydef i
nit
ionlandtenureisat er m usedt ocov erthewi destrangeofi nter
-r
elati
onship
betweenaper sonandl and.Briefl
y,itisasy stem byl andi sownedoroccupi ed.Tot he
l
awy er’
sv i
ew,landtenuredenot est hetype(s)ofi nterestinlandt hatcanbehel dina
parti
cul
arsy stem.Itiswi thi
ni ntr
oduct i
onIi ntendi nt hispapert odiscusswhet her
i
ntroducti
onofbot hlandt enure(vill
ageSet t
lement )Act1965No27ManagementAct
1964No51of1964wast oconv ertcustomaryt enuretost atut
orytenure.
Afterindependence,t her
e wer e att
empt s atcust omaryt enur
e conversi
on.The
approaches thataimed atcust omaryt enure conversi
on were:-the improvement
approachandt het r
ansfor
mat i
onappr oach.Theset woappr oacheswerefir
stadopted
i
nt hef i
rst5-yearplan(1964-1969).Thei mpr ovementapproach/st r
ategyaimedat
encouraging agri
cul
turaldevelopmentwi t
hint heexisti
ng fr
amework.Thisi nvol
ved
concentrati
ngoni mprovi
ngwhatwasexi sting.Farmerswereencouragedtoapplynew
crop variet
ies and new met hods ofpr oduction and to devel
op new mar ket
ing
organi
zations.
Thisenactmentcr eatedt hel egalframewor kf ortheconser v
ationanddev el
opmentof
pastoralorr
angear easi nor dertoensur eopt i
mum util
izat
ionofsuchar easaswel las
putti
ng them underef fectiv
econt rol
.The i mplementati
on oft he Acti nvol
ved the
fol
lowingstages:-Fi r
stl
y ,theMi nisterresponsi bl
eforanimalhusbandr yappointedfor
eachRangeDev elopmentAr eaaRangeDev elopmentCommi ssionwhichwaschar ged
withthepower stor ehabili
tate,conserve,dev elopandimprov ethenaturalresourcesof
theRangeDev elopmentAr ea.
Secondly,i
tfol
l
owedt heestabl
ishmentofar anchingassoci
ationwhichhadt obe
regi
ster
ed.Uponregi
str
ati
on,theranchingassociat
ionbecameabodycor porat
ewith
consequenti
alr
ight
s.Itcouldt hus sue,be sued and could acqui
re and manage
propert
ies.
Thi
rdl
y,t
hePr
esi
dentoft
heUni
tedRepubl
i
cmi
ghtf
ormal
l
yal
l
ocat
elandorgr
ant
eda

143
SeeWatersvsmy nn(1850)ReWel
l
s(1933)Ch29.
144
Toomesv sConset(1745)
145
Reev
esv sLi
sle(1902)AC461

49
ri
ghtofoccupancy( undersection6oft heLandOr di
nanceCap113)t ot her anching
associ
ati
onTheobv iousimplicat
ionwast hatoncet hepr esidentgrantedar i
ghtof
occupancyinanar eawhi chwasf ormerlyheldundercust omar yri
ghtt henew gr ant
uproot
edt heformert enure.Thisledt oallcustomaryt i
tlestot helandincl udi
ngsuch
ri
ghtsasgr azi
ngr i
ght sandwat errightstobeext inguished.Itcouldbet akent hatall
thi
swer edonewi thl egi
timatemot i
vebutt hei
rlegali mpl i
cati
onhad f arr eaching
consequencesont hosewhohadsomepr e-exi
sti
ngr i
ghtsundercust omar yt enure.No
argumentcouldjust i
fysuchanactespeci all
yast heexer cisewasmai nlyconduct ed
withnoconsult
ation.
Itshouldbenot edt hatTanzani aenact edlegislationofl andt enurewhi chint endst o
extinguishal lcust omar ytenur ethatexistedbef or ev i
ll
ageli
sation.Thei deabehi ndt he
146
extincti
onofcust omar ytenurewi llpromoteagr icultureproductionwi thi
nthecount ry.
Fori nstanceaf teri ndependenti nt heFi rstFi ve-yearplan soughtt o achiev er ur al
transformat i
on t hrough v il
lage set tl
ement scheme under t he ‘Transfor mat ion
Appr oach’,hadbeenr ecommendedbyt heWor ldBankMi ssionin1960.Thev iewoft he
gov ernmentwast hatt heretwocar di
nalproblemsofpeasantpr oduct i
on,namel yland
tenureandagr i
culturalunderdev elopment .I
tfeltt hatthesolutiont otheseprobl emsl ay
i
nt het ransformat ionappr oachwhosest ategoalwast heint r
oduct i
onoft echni cal,
socialandl egalsy st
emswhi chal l
ow theexer ci seofmoder nagr i
cult
uraltechni ques
based on r elati
vel yhigh pr oduct i
v i
tyand whi ch consequent l
yj usti
fyconsi der abl e
147
i
nv estmenti ncapi tal’.
Thef ocusoft hisapproachwasr egroupingorr esett
li
ngofpeasant sinnew l ands.It
i
nvolved Capi t
alintensive new set tl
ement swhi ch were super
vised bygov ernment
off
ici
als.A new mi nistr
ywas est abl
ished fort hi
s purpose,the Mi ni
str
yofLand
Settl
ement s and Wat erDev elopment .The l and tenur
ef orv i
l
lage settl
ementwas
enactedbyt he“LandTenur e(Vi
ll
ageSet tlements)Act,No.27of1965asamendedl ater
byActNo.17of1966.ThePr esidentoft heUnitedRepublicofTanzani acouldgr anta
ri
ghtofoccupancy cal led “A Set tl
ementr ight”tot he Commi ssi
onerf orVi ll
age
Settl
ement .TheCommi ssionerhadpowert oassignthesettl
ementCooper ati
v eSociety,
whichi nt ur
nwoul dgr antder iv
at i
ver i
ghtstoi tsmember ’
sDer i
v at
iveri
ght smeant
l
eases, l
icencesforuseandoccupat ionandeasement s.
Toconcludet heabov
eviewonecansayt
hatt
hei
ntr
oduct
ionbot
hlandt
enur
e(vi
ll
age
Sett
lement)Act1965No27ManagementAct1964No51of1964wast oconver
t
cust
omar ytenuret
ostat
utor
ytenur
e.

22.
Oflat
e,thecour
tofAppeal
’
shol
dingi
nthecaseofNI
TINCOFFEEESTATELTD
v.UNITED ENGINEERI
NG WORKSLTD.,C.
A No.15OF1988I SSAID TO BE
GOODLAW.Di scuss
Thequest
ioni
sal
laboutdi
scussont
hehol
dingi
nthecaseofNI
TINCOFFEEESTATE

146
SeethecaseofA.Gvs.LohayAkonay(
1995)TLR80)
147
(seeTangany
ikaGov
er nment(
1964)fi
rstf
ivey an1stJul
earPl o30thJune1969,
y1964t Vol
.1,
Gener
al
Anal
ysi
sp.14)

50
LTDv .UNITEDENGI NEERINGWORKSLTD. ,C.
ANo.15OF1988ont het
erm goodl
aw.
Thus,thef or
thcomingdiscussi
onwi l
lst
artt
ogivethefactofthecaseaswel las
hol
dingthenf i
nall
ywhatdower ealmeanonthegoodl
awi nt
hiscaseandwhetheri
t
hasbeendecider eal
ingoodlaw.
Thefactoft hiscasebr i
efl
ywast hatin1983t he4thand5t happel l
ants,shareholders
anddi r
ectorsoft he1stand2ndappel lants(li
mi t
edliabili
tycompani es),inv i
ewoft he
"cr
ackdown"andt hest
ateoffearitgenerated,soldthet otalshareholdi
ngi nandal lthe
assetsoft he1stand2ndappel l
antstooneMani k,the2ndr espondent .Theasset s
i
ncludedt wof armshel dunderRightofOccupancy .Theagr eementwasmadeor ally
.
Thepr i
ceofshar eswasnotagr eeduponandt herewasnomeansofascer taini
ngi t
.
The2ndr espondent,Manik,wasputinoccupat i
onoft hef ar
msast hebuy er
.In1986,
theappell
ant ssoughttorepudi
atetheagr eementar guingt hattheydidnotsel lthefarm
toMani kandi nthealt
ernati
vethati
ftherewasanysuchagr eementatal litcouldnotbe
enfor
ceabl eforlackofwr i
ti
ngandconsentasr equir
edbyRegul ati
on3( 1)oft heLand
Regulati
ons, 1948.
Basi
ngont
heabov
efactt
hecour
twashel
dthat
e)Ast
hepri
cewasnotagr
eed,andther
ewer
enomeansofascer
tai
ningsuchpr
ice
i
nasal
eofindi
vi
dual
shares,
ther
ewasnoagr
eementduet
ouncert
aint
y;
i
i
) Theagreementby4t
hand5t happell
ant
stosellt
heirshar
eswasv oi
df or
uncer
tai
ntyi
nter
msofsect
ion29oftheLawofCont
ractOrdi
nance,
Cap.433
i
i
i) anoralagr
eementtosel
llandhel
dunderaRightofOccupancyisinoper
ati
ve
andofnoeffecti
nter
msofRegulat
ion3(
i)ofLandRegul
ati
ons,1984;
i
v) Thedoctr
ineofpartper
for
mancecannothelpasi
nTanzani
ather
egul
ati
oni
n
quest
ionrequi
resbothwri
ti
ngandconsent
.
Basi ngont heabovef actandhol dnow Iam goodposi ti
ont odiscussonwhet herthe
holdingwasi ngoodl aw ornot .FranklyspeakingIam i nt heshoesofj udgewho
dismi sst heappealduet hef actthatont heissueofor alcont r
actt helawunder" Land
Regul atons 1948148 as pr
i ovi
ded undersect i
on 3( 1)A di sposition ofa Ri ghtof
Occupancyshal lnotbeoper ati
veunl essitisinwriti
ngandunt ilitisapprov edbyt he
Presi dent( l
aterto be Di r
ectorLand Dev el
opmentSer vi
ces).( 3)I nthisr egulati
on
"disposition"means-( a)aconv eyanceorassi gnmentot herthanbywayofmor tgage..
..
(c)a deed oragr eementordecl aration oftrustbi nding anypar t
yt o makesuch
disposi t
ionasaf oresaid,incl
udinga deedoragr eementent it
lingapar t
yt heretoto
requi reanysuchdisposi t
iontobemade.
Inhisv i
ew anor alagreementoft het ypesuedont oselll
andhel dunderaRi ghtof
Occupancyi sin-operat
iveandofnoef fect.Ther
eisalongli
neofauthori
tytothateffect
.
149
InPattersonandanot hervKanj i att heCourtofAppealofEastAfri
cadealingwitha
simil
arr egul
ationst at
edt hatonecannotseek" t
oenf or
ceatl aw whi
chhecanonl y
establi
shbyr elyingonat ransactiondecl aredbylaw t
obei noper
ati
ve".Thatdecision
wasf oll
owedi nPat elvLawr enson150,
Kassam vKassam151andi nPatelvMar eal
leand
148
(
Cap.
113-Suppl
ement64)
149
(
1956)E.
A.C.
A.106
150
[
1957]E.
A.9

51
 152
Anot
her .
I
tseems t hatthe t
rialjudge was per suaded thatsi nce t he agreementwas par t
performedt heneedforwr it
ingcouldbedi spensedwi th.Butt herewasst il
ltheneedf or
ther equisit
econsent .In England atonest age,in or dert o preventf raud,certain
transacti
onshadt obeev i
dencedbywr it
ing;otherwiset heywer eofnoef fect
.Asa
result
,anumberofi njust
icesoccurred.Tomi ti
gatet hehar shnessoft hatr ul
e,part
performanceofanagr eementwasl aterheldtobesuf fi
cientev idenceoft het r
ansacti
on,
i
fnowr it
ingexist
ed.Andt hatwaslaterincorporat
edi ntheSt atuteofFr audsi nEngland.
Thedoct rineofpartperformancecannothel pasi nTanzani at her egul
ationi nquesti
on
requiredbothwr i
ti
ngandconsent .
Mr .Marandof ort herespondent ssubmi t
tedthatthereissomeconf usi
onont hismatt
er
i
nt heHi ghCour t.Her efer
redt oaHi ghCourtdecisionSy l
veniMushungavTheonest i
na
Rwekani ka153Mf ali
la,J.inthatcasepur portedtodi sti
nguishitfrom Patt
ersonvKanj i
(supra).Mf ali
la,J.st ated:It hinkthatRegulati
on3oft heLandRegul ati
ons1948may
beabusedbyunscr upuloussel lers.Ithi
nkt hatRegul ation3i sapplicableonlyto
sit
uationswher et hePr esident'
sconsenthasbeensoughtandr efused..
.ACont r
actof
saleisnotcont empl atedbyRegul ati
on3.Thisr egulat
ionr ef
erst odi
spositi
onswhich
aredef ine. .
.t omeanconv eyancesorassi gnment s.Acont ractofsalei sneit
herof
these.
Obv i
ousl y
,Mf ali
l
a,J.hadov erl
ookedRegul ati
on3( 3)( c)wher esuchacont racti
sa
"di
sposi ti
on".Withrespect,thatdecisionofMf ali
la,J.waswr ong.Outofcour t
esyto
Mfalila,J.and ot herj udges ofhi s way oft hinki
ng per haps some subsi di
ary
obser vati
onsmaybei norder.ARi ghtofOccupancyi ssomet hi
ngi nt henatureofa
l
easeandahol derofar i
ghtofoccupancyoccupi est heposi ti
onofasor tofleaseevi
s-a
-vi
st hesuper i
orlandlord.Arightofoccupancyi sf orat er
m,andi shel dundercer tai
n
condit i
ons.Oneoft heconditi
onsist hatnodi sposi ti
onoft hesaidr i
ghtcanbemade
withoutt heconsentoft hesuperiorl andlor
d.Ther ei snow no f reehol dtenurein
Tanzani a.Alll
andisv estedintheRepubl ic.So,landhel dunderar ightofoccupancyi s
notaf r
eelydisposableormar ket
abl ecommodi tyl i
keamot orcar .Itsdisposalis
subjectt otheconsentoft hesuperiorandpar amountl andlordaspr ov idedforinthe
rel
evantLandRegul ati
ons.
154
Mr.Mar andoalsocalledourat tenti
ontoDenni ngvEdwar desandanot her ,acase
ori
ginati
ngfrom Keny a.Thatcasewasi nterali
a,concernedwi thsecti
on99( 3)ofthe
CrownLandsOr dinanceofKeny a.Intermsoft hatsect
ionani nst
rumentwhi chpur port
s
toeffectanyofthetransactionrefer
redtoin'section(
2),thatistosell
,l
ease,subl ease,
assi
gn, mort
gageorot herwise..
.'
,wil
lbev oidwithoutt
heGov ernor'
sconsent.
Howev er
,noconsentwasr equi
redtoanagreementfortheabov
et r
ansacti
onasan
agreementdidnot"eff
ectatransact
ion"
.However
,accor
dingt
oRegulati
ons3ofthe
LandRegulations1948inTanzania,anagreementofsaleisa" di
sposi
ti
on"whi
ch
requi
resconsent.

151
[
1960]E.
A.1042
152
Cour
tofAppeal
C.A.5/
84(
unr
epor
ted)
.
153
[
1974]LRTn.30.
154
[
1960]EA755(PC)

52
Thecour
tsati
sfi
edthattheoralagr
eementconcer
ningt
hesaleofthetwof ar
msi
s
i
noper
ati
veandofnoeff
ect,i
nter
msofRegulat
ion3(
1)ofLandRegul
ati
ons1948.
Basi
ngontheabov
edi
scuss,ofl
ate,t
hecourtofAppeal
’
shol
dingi
nthecaseofNI
TIN
COFFEEESTATELTDv.UNITEDENGI NEERI
NGWORKSLTD. ,C.ANo.15OF1988I S
SAIDTOBEGOODLAW.
23.
TheLandAct1999seemsinawaytofoll
ow t
hepoli
cyart
icl
esint
heNat
ional
LandPol
icyont
hemarket
abi
li
tyofl
and.Di
scusswi
thexamples.
Thequesti
on isallaboutLand Actof1999 towardsNationalland pol
i
cyon t he
market
abi
l
ityofl
and.Thus,byviv
idl
yexampl
eIam goi
ngtodiscusstheaboveasserti
on
toseewhethertheLandActisawayt ofol
l
ow t
hepolicyar
ti
clesintheNationalLand
Pol
icyont
hemar ket
abil
i
tyofland.
They ear1999 marked apoi
ntofcruciali
mportanceint hemaking ofTanzanian
l
egisl
ati
on;theLandActandtheVi
ll
ageLandActwer epassedintheparl
iament
.The
previ
ousstr
ongreli
anceont
heBri
ti
shinf
luencedLandOrdinancef
rom 1923wasfinall
y
doneawaywi t
h.

Section3( 1)ofLandActof1999pr ovi

dest hepr ovi
sionforFundament alpri
nci
plesof
theNat i
onalLandPol i
cyprovi
de.i
tprovidest hat(1)Thefundament alpri
nci
plesofthe
NationalLandPol i
cywhichitistheobject i
veoft hi
sActt opr omoteandt owhi chall
personsexer cisi
ngpowersunder,apply
ingori nterpr
eti
ngthisActaret ohaveregardto,
are–( j)tofacil
it
atetheoperat
ionofamar ketinland;(k)t
or egul
atetheoperati
onofa
mar ketinlandsoast oensurethatrur
alandur bansmal l
-holder
sandpast oral
i
stsare
notdi sadvantaged;

Actually
,inTanzania,t
heideasofuj amaahadt akendeepr oots,anddespitethetur
nt o
l
iberali
sati
oni nthe1990s,t herewer eel ementswhowant edtosow t heseedsf ora
diff
erentpath,basedont hedemocr ati
sat i
onofsoci alrelati
onsi nthev i
l
lagesandt he
vesti
ngofr ealpower satthegr assroots.Thisist hebasi cthrustoft heCommi ssi
on's
report.Thisreporthascal l
edf oranat ionallandpol icy,andt hecomponent softhis
poli
cyar esour cesofheat eddebat es.Tobr oadent hedebat et oreachtheor di
nary
Tanzanian,aKi swahil
iversionoft heCommi ssion'sfindings,Ar dhiNiUhai,hasbeen
producedbyGeor gi
osHadjivayani
s.

Thus,theNationalLandPolicywasadopt edbyt hecabi netandwaspr esentedt o

Parl
iamentin1995.TheLandCommi ssionhadr ecommendedasy stem thatv ested
ri
ghtsintheusersofthelandandsubst ant
iall
yreducedtheExecuti
ve’
sadmi nist
rat
ive
prer
ogati
vesovertheuseandowner shi
pofl and.TheNationalLandPoli
cy,ont heother
hand,eschewed anyeffecti
ve at
temptati mposing new checks and balances on
155
execut
ivepower.

In1996,
theMini
str
yofLandshi r
edaBriti
shconsul
tantt
odr af
ttheLandAct
s.Hefaced
anunenvi
abl
etaskinthathewasst r
ict
lyboundbythelett
eroftheLandPoli
cy,wi
thall
i
tsambigui
ti
esandinherentcontr
adi
cti
ons.ThetwoAct srefl
ectt
hecomplexi
tyofthi
s
155
Foradetail
eddiscussi
onoftheNati
onalLandPoli
cy,
seemyD.Phil
disser
tat
ionont
hePol
i
ticsofLandi
nTanzani
a
(
1997).Iam curr
entl
yprepar
ingitf
orpubl
icat
ion.Al
soseeShi
vj
i1998.

53
 156
task. ThattheActscanelici
tsuchdi ff
erentr
esponsei
sstr
iki
ng,butper
hapsnotso
surprisi
ng consider
ing t
heconsi der
ablecompl exi
tyoftheActsand someoft hei
r
i
nher entcontradi
cti
onsandambi guit
ies.Wenowt ur
ntoamoredetail
edexaminat
ionof
thelegal l
ett
ersoftheActs.

Onei ssueofmar ket abilityofl and,whi chhasr eceivedsomeat tent ion,i st hemuch-
vaunt ed al lowancef oral and mar ket .Sect ion31oft heLandActst at est hatt he
“Mini stermayr equi r ethepay mentofapr emi um ont hegr antofar ightofoccupancy .
”
Thepr emi um shal lbedeci dedbyt heMi nist er, whoi sdi rect edt ohav er egar dt of actors
suchaspr ev ailingmar ketpr icesandt heassessmentofaqual i
fiedv aluer .
Insect ion52, wef i
ndt hatt heMi ni stermaydi rectt hatt hel andbesol datanauct ionor
through a pr ocess oft ender ing,wi tht he r elev antpr ocedur es t o be accor ding t o
regul ations made by t he Mi ni ster .As we can see,t he scope f ordi scret i
on i s
consi der able, andi ti sdoubt fulwhet hert hesepr ovisionspr ov i
deanyst r
ongguar ant ees
agai nstl andbei nggr ant edt ocompani esori ndiv i
dual satbel ow mar ketr at e.The
absenceofanysuchguar ant ee,ofcour se,cont inuest ol eav er oom f ori l
licitr ent
seeki ngi nt heal l
ocat ionofl and.
Forahol derofaGr ant edRi ghtofOccupancywi shingt osel l
, ther ei sst il
ll essev idence
ofany thingappr oxi mat inganopenl andmar ket .Eni gmat ical l
y ,theActpr ov i
dest hat:
“Unl essot her wi sepr ovidedf orbyt hisActorr egul ationsundert hisAct , adi sposi tionof
ar i
ghtofoccupancyshal lnotr equi ret heconsentoft heCommi ssioneroranaut hor ized
157
officer ” .
Thef ol l
owi ngsub- sect ionpr ov i
dest hesi gni ficantpr ov i
sot hatt hesel leri sr equi redt o
notifyt heCommi ssi oner ,andt hatt heCommi ssi onerneedst o“ endor se”t henot ificat i
on
befor et heRegi strarofl andcanr egi st ert het ransf er.TheActf urtherexpl icit
lyst ates
thatgr ant st hathav ebeenhel df orl esst hant hr eey earsr equi repr i
orappr ov alfrom t he
Commi ssioner( s.37) .
Insect ion38wef indt hatt heCommi ssionermay ,athi sorherdi scr etion,askf orany
addi ti
onali nf ormat ionr elev antt ot hesal eanddi rectt hatt hesal eshal lnott akepl ace
befor eappr ov ali sgr ant ed.I not herwor ds,nof ormalappr ov ali sr equi r
edunl esst he
Commi ssionersay sot her wise.Gr oundsf orr ef usingappr ov alr angef rom non- f
ulf il
ment
ofdev el opmentcondi ti
ons, anypr ev i
ouscr imi nalr ecor doft hesel ler, suspi ciont hatt he
l
andi sbei ngsol datbel owmar ketv al ueort hatt her eisanyf or m ofcor rupti nfluences
i
nv ol ved.Appr ovalmayal so ber ef used i ft her ei sabr each oft her i
ght sofany
158
disadv ant agedgr oups, suchaswomen, chi l
dr enorl ow- incomeper sons.
Evenaf terasal ehasbeenf or mal lyr egi st ered, theCommi ssi onermay , withint woy ears
oft het ransf er,mov et oannuli t.Int hi sper iod,t heCommi ssi onermayannult hesal ei f
heorshe“ hasr easonabl ecauset obel iev e”t hatt hesal ehasbeen“ af f
ect edbyf raud, or
unduei nf l
uence,orl ackofgoodf aith,ort hef actt hatonepar tyappear st ohav et aken
159
unfai radv ant ageov eranot herpar ty .
..” .
Itisi ndi cat iv eoft heov er allspi ri
toft heActt hatt hiski ndofsaf eguar di sputi nt he
handsoft heheadadmi nist rator ,r at hert hant hecour ts.Thepr ov isionofr etroact i
ve

156
I
nter
viewwi
thPat
ri
ckMacAusl
an,
conduct
edi
n1997,
aft
erhehadcompl
etedt
hef
ir
stdr
aftoft
heAct
s.
157
(Secti
on36( 2)
)
158
TheLand( Fi
nes)Regulations(GN84, 2001)setsafi
neof2%oft heval
ueoft hel
andforthef
oll
owing
offence:“Disposit
ionoftheRi ghtofOccupancyorpartthereofwi
thouttheapproval
oftheCommi ssi
oner
ofLandsoraut horizedoff
icer.
”Thisfur
theril
lust
ratet
heambi gui
tyconnectedtowhethert
hereisan
explici
trequirementt ohavetheapprovaloftheCommi ssionerf
orthedisposi
ti
onofar i
ghtofoccupancy
.
159
(s.38(3))

54
admi nistrativescr uti
nyonl yser vest oaddanunnecessar yl ay erofbur eaucr
acyand
uncer t
aint yt owhati salreadyadensewal lofbureaucr aticpr oceduresanddi scr
etionary
decision-maki ng.Consi deri
ngal ltheabov e,itiscl eart hatt henew Actpr ovi
desno
strongguar ant eef orwoul d-besel lersandbuy ersofl andt hatt heywi l
lnotbesubj ected
tounduei nterferencef rom theAut horit
ies.
Theot herpr ovisionoft heLandActt hatisseent obeasi gnificantdeparturef
rom t he
previoussy st em i sther estri
ct i
onagai nstnon-nat i
onal sfrom acqui ri
ngl and.Theone
signifi
cantexcept i
ont othisr uleisf orlandacqui siti
onsconnect edtoi nv
estmentst hat
160
hav eInv estmentAppr oval. Thebaragai nsthol dingl andal soappl iestocompani es
wher enon- citi
zenshav eamaj ori
tyshar eholding.Ci vi
lact i
vistsi nTanzaniahavelauded
ther estricti
onagai nstforeignershol di
ngl and,althoughsomemi ghthav eli
kedtosee
stil
lstrongerpr otectionagai nstf oreignersamassi ngl andatt heexpenseofnat ionals
andsmal l
hol der s.

Toconclude,stil
l
,itmaybear guedthatt
heper ceivedthreatoffor
eignmass- acquisiti
on
i
seasi l
yov er
-stated.Themai nthreatagainstthel andholdi
ngsofsmal l
holders( and
urban‘squatt
ers’fort hatmat t
er)isnotanunr estri
ctedlandmar ket,wit
horwi thout
forei
gnparti
cipati
on, butaregulat
edmar ketthatmaybemani pulat
edbypol iti
ciansand
bureaucr
ats.Ther eisaweal thofempi ri
calev idencef r
om compar ablecount ri
est o
161
supportthi
sassertion.

24.
Crit
ical
lydi
scusst
hesev er
alofl
easesort
enanci
esy
ouknowandst
atewhet
her
theyareofanyrel
evancetoTanzani
a.
Tenancyi snor mall
yusedf orinterest
sl asti
ngf orar el
ati
velyshortper i
odonl y,whil
e
l
easei susedt oindicateamor eenduringinterest .Thegrant
oroft heleasei sknownas
thelessororlandlord.Thegranteeofthel easei sknownast helesseeort enant.Onthe
grantofal ease,t
hel essor
/l
andlordretainsarev er si
onwhichhemayassi gn.Itiswithi
s
thi
sintroducti
onii ntendsinthi
squest iontodi scusst hevar
iousofl easesort enanci
es
iknow.
Bydef i
nti
ontenanti sonewhohast heoccupationort emporarypossessionofl andsor
tenementsofanot her;specifi
cal
ly: onewhor entsorl eases( asahouse)f rom a
l
andlord.I
not herwor dsat enantissomeonewhohol dstherighttouseapi eceofland
orast r
uctur
ebyagr eementwi t
hthepropert
yowner .Forthedur at
ionofthet enancy,t
he
tenanthastherightt ousethelandaspermittedbyt hetenancyagr eement,alongwitha
numberofr esponsibili
ti
es.Thelandowneral
sohasr ightsandr esponsibi
l
iti
es.
Therearemanysev
eraloft
enant
srecogni
zedbyt
hel
aw.Her
ebel
owar
esomeoft
he
sever
aloft
enant
s.
a)Fi
xedt
enant

160
Theso-call
ed“Invest
mentAppr oval
s”arenowi ssuedbytheTanzani aInv est
mentCent re( TIC)under
theTanzaniaInvestmentAct ,
1997.
161
SeeShipton1988andCol l
ier1983foradiscussionofKeny asexper i
encewi thlandmar kets.Alsosee
Sundet1997.Not ethattheargumentnott hatl
andmar ketsmightnotpr oducemor eunequal dist
ri
buti
on
ofl and,
theyoft
endo, butthattheimpositi
onofr egulat
orypower swhichar ewieldedinadi screti
onary
mannerbybur eaucratsandpol i
ti
ciansismorelikelytoleadtoincreasedinquali
tyinlandhol dings.

55
Af i
xed-termt enancyort enancyf oryearslastsforsomef ixedper iodoft ime.Ithasa
defi
nitebegi nningdat eandadef init
eendingdat e.Despi t
ethename" tenancyf ory ears"
,
suchat enancycanl astf oranyper iodoft i
meev enat enancyforoneweekmaybe
call
edat enancyf ory ears.Atcommonl awt hedur ationdidnotneedt obecer tain,but
couldbecondi ti
onedupont hehappeni ngofsomeev ent,(
e.g.,
"untilt hecr opsar er eady
forharvest "or" untilthewari sov er
").Inmanyj uri
sdicti
onst hatpossi bi
lit
yhasbeen
part
iall
yort ot
allyabol i
shed.Af i
xedt ermtenancycomest oanendaut omat i
call
ywhen
thefixedt ermr unsoutor ,i
nt hecaseofat enancyt hatendsont hehappeni ngofan
event,whent heev entoccur s.Ifahol dovert enantr emainsont hepr opertyaf t
ert he
ter
mi nati
on oft he l ease,s/ he maybecome a t enantatsuf fer ance because t he
l
essor /l
andlordhassuf fered(oral l
owed)t het enantt oremainasat enanti nsteadof
evi
ctinghi m orher .Suchat enancyi sgener all
y"atwi ll
,"meaningt het enantort he
l
andlordmayt erminateitatanyt ime, uponthepr ovi
dingofpr operst at ut or
ynot i
ce.

b)Per
iodi
ctenanci
es:

Thesearisewherei
nanyl easet hetermi snotspeci f
iedandnopr ovi
sioni
smadef or
thegi
vingofnoti
cetoterminat et
het enancy.I
tincludesl easefrom yeartoyear
,month
162
tomont horweektoweek. Wher ethet er
mi snotspeci fi
ed,thetenancyisdef
ined
163
withr
eferencet
otheperi
odt owhi chrentispayable.
c)Tenancyatsuff
erance

Tenancyatsuf ferancen.a" hol d-

ov er"tenancyaf t
eral easehasexpi r
ed,butbef orethe
l
andl ordhasdemandedt hatt het enantqui t(
vacate)thepr emi ses.Duri
ngat enancyat
suf f
er ancet het enantisboundbyt het ermsoft hel ease( includi
ngpay mentofr ent
)
whi chexi stedbef orei texpired.I not herwor dsat enancyatsuf fer
ance( somet imes
cal l
edahol dovert enancy )mayexi stwhenat enantr emainsi npossessi onofpr opert
y
ev enaf t
ert heendoft hel ease, untilthel andl
ordactst oejectt hetenant.Theoccupant
mayl egallybeat respasseratt hi
spoi nt,andt hepossessionoft histy
pemaynotbea
trueest atei nland,ev enifaut horit
iesr ecognizethecondi tiont oholdthet enantliabl
e
forr ent .

Thelandlordmaybeabl etoevi
ctsucht enantatanyt i
me, withoutnotice.Acti
ont oevict
willt
erminateatenancyatsuff
erance,becauset hetenantnol ongerenjoy spossessi
on.
Somej uri
sdi
cti
onsi mposeani rrev
ocabl eelecti
onwher ebyt helandl ordtreatsthe
holdoveraseitherat r
espasserorasat enantatsuf f
erance.At respasserisnoti n
possession;butat enantatsuf fer
ancecont i
nuest o enjoypossessi onoft her eal
propert
y .Simplyleavi
ng property behi nd on t he premi ses does notconst it
ut e
possessionandt hus,atenancyatsuf ferancecannotbeest abl
ishedasperNat han
164
LaneAssocs.v.Mer chantsWholesale, Brownv.Musi c165.

d)Tenantatwi
ll

162
Ibidsect
ion79(1)(a)and(b)
163
Ibidsect
ion79)(3)
164
698N. W.2d136(Iowa2005);
165
,Inc.
,359P.2d295( aska1961)
Al .

56
At enantatwil
lhasper missi
onofthel andl
ordtostaybeyondtheexpi r
ati
ondateofthe
agreement,whilethetenantatsuff
erancedoesnot .t
enancyatwilln.occupat
ionofreal
propertyownedbyanot herunti
lsucht i
meast helandl
ordgivesnoticeofter
minati
onof
thetenancy(usuall
y30day sbystatelaworagr eement)whi
chmaybegi venatanyti
me.
At enancyatwi l
liscreatedbyagr eementbetweent hetenantandt helandl
ord,butit
cannotbet ransferr
edbyt hetenantt osomeoneel sesincethel andl
ordcontrol
sthe
ri
ghttooccupy
e)Fut
ureLeases/Rev
ersi
onar
yl i
eases(nt
eresset
ermi
ni)

Thisi sal easemadef orat ermt obegi nonaf uturedat enotbei nglat erthan21y ears
from t hedat eonwhi cht heleasei sexecut ed.21y earsi sthemaxi mum dur ationf or
whi chi tcanst aypendi ng.Suchf utureleasecanbemadeoutofar ightofoccupancy .
Accor dingt otheLandActandt heLandRegi strati
onAct ,i
fthecommencementoft he
l
easei smor ethan5y ear ssuchal easemustber egisteredasanencumbr ancei nt he
166
l
andoutofwhi chi thasbeencr eat ed. Undert histypeofal easet het enantacqui res
noact ualestateint hel andunt i
lhehast akenpossessi ondur i
ngt het erm oft hel ease.
167
Hei sjustleftwi thinter estint het erm( interesset ermi ni)
.InDoev sWal ker i
twas
statedt hatinteresset er minimer elygivesar ightt ohav et hepossessionataf ut uredat e.
Itisar ightnotanest at e.Ithasal ltheproper ti
esofar ightnotofanest ate.InLewi svs
168
Baker i
twashel dthatar eversionaryleasemer el
ycr eatesani nt
eresset ermi niunt il
entryt hereunder .I
tdoesnotenl ar gethet erm oft heor i
ginalleasewhat soever
.
f
) Tenantbyest
oppel
s

Tenancybyest oppelsi sat enancyt hatremainsi

nef f
ectdespi
tethefactthatitsgrantor
hadnol egalrightt ogr anti t.Inot herwords,atenantbyestoppelsislease( tenancy)
thatexistsdespi tethef actt hattheper sonwhogr antedithadnol egalri
ghtt odoso
(because,f orinstance,t hel andlordhol dsnoestatei ntheland)
.Suchat enancyi s
bindingont helandlordandt enantbutnotonany oneelseasperBr ut
onvLondon&
169
Quadr antHousi ngTr ust .I fthelandlordsubsequentl
yacquir
esanest ate,t
heest oppel
170
i
s“ fed”andt hel easebecomesaf ulll easeasperEHLewi
egall s&SonLt dvMor el
li ;
171
andMacl eyvNut t
ing .

Towi ndupthefor
egoi
ngdiscussi
on,onecanagreewit
hthattheabov
ear
esomeof
tenanciesi
nthecontr
actofl
andlor
dandtenant,
call
edlease.

25.
Crit
ical
lydi
scusst
hesev er
alofl
easesort
enanci
esy
ouknowandst
atewhet
her
theyareofanyrel
evancetoTanzani
a.

166
Seesections83(1)and(
2)oft
heLandActandsect
ion55ofCap334
167
5B&CI I
I,118
168
(1905)1Ch46
169
[2000]1AC406( HL)
170
[1948]2AllER1021
171
[1949]2KB55)

57
 SEEQUESTI
ON24

26.
Assesst
hesi
gni
fi
canceofl
andl
aw?

Inthisquesti
on,Iam going to assessthesignif
icanceofl and l
aw.Thus,dur
ing
assessi
ng,Iam goi
ngtogiv
efir
sttheconceptofthetermland,
meani ngofl
andl
awand
fi
nall
ytogi
v et
hesigni
fi
cantofl
andlaw.

Bydefi
niti
on,l
andmaymeant hesoil
,l
egall
ylandincludesev er
y t
hingt
hatisat
tachedt o
i
tthusQuicquidPlant
atursol
osolocedit
.Itdoesi ncludetangibl
eandintangi
blethings
i
.ecorporealandincorpor
ealher
edit
aments.Wi t
hl and,therearesuperi
orandi nferi
or
i
nter
ests.Thelat
tercannotexi
stwit
houttheformer.

Accordingtosecti
on2ofLandActdef inel
andasi ncl
udesthesurf
aceoft heearthand
theear thbelow thesurfaceand al
lsubstancesotherthanmi neral
sorpet r
oleum
formingpartoforbelowthesurf
ace,t
hingsnatural
l
ygrowingontheland,buil
dingsand
otherstruct
urespermanentl
yaf
fi
xedtoorunderlandandlandcoveredbywat er
;

Asamat t
erofl andlaw,Icansayt hatlandlawisalawr el
ati
ngtopr oper
tyi
nl and.In
otherwords,landlaw ist hefor
m oflaw thatdealswi
tht herightstouse,al
ienate,or
excludeother
sf rom land.Inmanyjuri
sdicti
ons,t
hesekindsofpr opert
yarereferr
edt o
asrealest
ateorr ealpropert
y,asdi
sti
nctfrom per
sonalpropert
y.

The import
ance ofland l
aw i
sthatitint
ersect
ion ofpr
oper
tyand cont
ractl
aw.
Encumbranceont hel
andri
ght
sofone,suchasaneasement,mayconst
it
utethel
and
ri
ghtsofanother
.

So, l
ongasLandi snecessaryt oallproducti
on,nomatt
erwhatbet hekindorform;land
i
st hestanding-pl
ace,t
hewor kshop,thestorehouseofl
abor;i
tistothehumanbei ngthe
onlymeansbywhi chhecanobt ai
naccesst othemateri
aluni
verseorut i
l
izei
tspower s.
Withoutlandmancannotexi st.Towhom t heownershi
poflandisgiven,tohi
mi sgiven
thev i
rt
ualowner shipofthemenwhomustl i
veuponit.Theref
ore,landlaw t
endst o
preserveall
thingsmentionedabov e.

Landlawalso,hasandalwayswi l
lbeofgreatimpor t
ancetopeopl
e,forastart
;weall
need somewheretolive.Whet heri
tisf reehold pr
opert
yora leasehold pr
opert
y,
becausei
tshowspeople’
sright
,boundar
iesandt heregul
ati
onsandlawsthatgover
nus.

Landr i
ghts,parti
cul
arl
yi nt
hecontextofdev
elopi
ngcount
ries,areinextr
icablyl
i
nked
withther i
ghttof ood,theri
ghttoworkandahostofot herhumanr ights.Inmany
i
nstances,therighttolandisboundupwithacommunity’
si dent
it
y,it
sl i
veli
hoodand
thusi
tsv erysur
v i
val
.

58
Gener
all
y,t
hesigni
fi
cantl
andlawleadstot hepeopl
etounderst
andi
ngoft
hemanner
l
andismanagedandregul
ated.However
,thespeci
fi
cal
lyhel
p:-

(
i) t oacqui
reknowledgeonther
ight
sandl
i
abi
l
iti
esat
tachedt
oint
erest
sin
l
andandhowtoaddressthem.

(i
i
) t oacqui
reknowledgeont
hemeani
ngofl
andandi
tsdi
sti
nct
ionwi
th
otherset
sofproper
ti
es.

(i
ii
) t oprov
ideanunder
standi
ngont
her
ulesandpr
ocedur
ethatr
egul
ates
convey
anci
ng.

A convey
ancerdeal swithvari
ouspeoplehemusthav eincont emplati
on:-These
i
nclude vendors and v
endees,mor t
gagors and mortgagees,lessorand l essees,
ownershi
pandencumbr ancesetc.Hemustensur ethatthecli
entgetswhathewant s
fr
eefrom burdens.Hemustdohisbesttoensuret
hatwhatheget sisnotlessvaluabl
e.

Inshor t,whenst udyi

nglandl aw,webenef i
t,asinanyot herl egalsubject,fr
om a
disci
plinedapproachandl ogicalanal
ysis,andasusualyoual soneedt odev el
opthe
skil
loft hi
nki
ngandar gui
ngconcept uall
y.However,l
andlaw isf ullofcategori
esand
subcategori
es.A successf ulanswert oanypr obl
em questi
onwi lltheref
oredepend
uponaccur ate,comprehensiveandlogicalanal
ysi
sofhowt hef actsoft hequesti
onfi
t
i
nt othosecategories.

Toconclude,onecansayt hatLandlawhasevol
vedsigni f
icantl
yoverhundredsofy ear
s.
Workinginthisareaofl
andl awcanbeparti
cul
arl
yinterestingandsti
mulating.Al
though
theremunerationisnotashi ghasyoumightexpectincor porat
eorcommer ci
allaw,it
canstil
lbelucrat
ive;
especial
lywhenyouconsi
derthehi ghv al
uepeopleplaceonland.

27.
The extended si
gni
fi
cance ofthe term land is someti
mes expressed by
ref
erencetotwolati
nmaximsf i
rstCuiusestsolum eiusestusqueadcoelum
atadinfer
osandquicqui
dplant
atursolosolcedi
t.Di
scuss

Thequest
ioni
sallaboutdiscussi
ononthetwomaximsnamel yCuiusestsolum
ei
usestusqueadcoelum atadi nfer
osandqui
cqui
dplant
atursolosolcedit
.Thus,i
n
causeofdi
scusswi
ll
givetheconceptofi
taswel
lasi
tcontr
adict
ionfrom eachot
her.

Start
ingwi t
ht hemaxi m quicquidpl antatursolosolocedi t,Icansayt hatt hi
si slat
in
phrase “ whatev erisaf fi
xed tot he soi lbelongst oi t”
.Thegener alrule,‘qui
cquid
plant
at ursolo,sol ocedit
’,hi
ghli
ght sthei deathatallthatisat t
achedt olandbecomesa
partofi t
.Itseal sthispositi
onbyst ati
ngt hatowner shipoft helandessenti
allydenotes
owner shipofal lthatisatt
achedt oi t,asagener alprincipl
e.Ther efor
e,t
hisunderscores
thef actt hatland andt hedev elopment st hereupon,cannotbesepar ated,butar e
consideredasanent i
reentit
y,land;pat ently
,asagener alrul
e,t heownershipofland,
andowner shipofi tsdevel
opment sarei nseparable.

59
 Onecanal sonotethatther
earefactor
sf ordet
erminati
onofwhet
hertheit
em
att
ached form a partofl and ornot.These two factor
s ar
efist Degr
r ee of
annexat
ion(
attachment
)andsecondt
hepurposeofannexat
ion.

i
) Degr eeofannexati
on
Accordi
ngt othedegreeofannexati
ontest,anar
ti
clei
saf ixt
ureifi
tisatt
achedtol
and
orabui l
dinginasubst anti
almanner,suchasbynailsorscr ews.Themoref i
rml
yor
i
rrev
ersibl
yt heobjectisaffi
xedtotheearthorabui l
ding,themor el
ikel
yitistobe
cl
assifi
edasaf i
xtur
e.Theremustbeaphy si
calconnecti
onwi ththelandorwi t
h
somethingthatispartofthel
andandobject.

ii
) Thepur poseofannexation
Thedet er
mi nati
onofthestatusofani t
em i
snotconclusiv
elydeterminedbythedegree
ofannexation.Ifthecir
cumst ancesshowthattheobjectwasi ntendedtof
orm partof
thelandscapingorar chit
ecturaldesi
gnoft hepremisesandi sresti
ngbyt hei
rown
weight,thent heycanber egardedasf i
xtures.I
temsat tachedt othelandf orthe
purposeofenj oymentareregardedaschat
tels.

Tosuppor ttheabovepoints,i
nt hecaseofHol landv.Hodgson172 t
hecourt
appl
i
edt hepri
nci
pleofquicquidpl
antat
ursol o,
solocedittodet
erminewhetherthe400
l
oomsi nst
all
edinthemi l
lwaspartofthel and.Itwasheldthat,t
hemannerwhi chthe
l
oomswher eaffi
xedtothelandwasnotintendedt hati
tbecamepartoftheland.

Moreover,
inElwisv.Maw173wherethefar
merhadbui ltathisowncostofshade
f
oranimals,
carpent
ersshadeandf uelhouseandthetenantremov edbeforetheendof
t
helease.Thecourtwashel dthatthef ar
mercouldnotr emov echattel
sevenifthey
wer
efixedtohishol
df orhi
ssol
epur poseofimprovi
nghisagricul
tural
operati
on.

Thenont hesecondmaxi m Cuiusestsol um,eiusestusqueadcoel um etad

i
nferos,theref
oret her
eisapr esumptiont hatal andowneral soownsal lmineralor
beneaththesurfaceoftheland.Thisisapr incipl
eofpr opert
ylaw,stati
ngthatpr
oper t
y
holder
shav eri
ghtsnotonlytotheplotofl andi t
self
,butalsototheairaboveand(i
nt he
broaderf or
mulation)the ground below.The pr inci
pleis often ref
err
ed toini ts
174
abbrevi
atedform astheadcoelum doct r
ine .

Bydefi
nit
iontheterm Cui
usestsolum,ei usestusqueadcoelum etadinf
eros
175
means"Whoseisthesoil,
hisiti
suptothesky' , orinamoresimpleexpl
anat
ion"He
176
whopossessesthelandpossessesalsothatwhi chisabovei
t"
. Ot herel
uci
dati
ons
177
e:"
ar Hewhoownst hesoilownsever
ythi
ngabov e( andbel
ow)f
rom heaven(t
ohell
)" ,
'

172
U.A.C.Lt d.v.Apaw( 1936)3W.A.C.A.114
173
(1802)3EAST38.
174
Hinmanv .Pac.AirLi
nesTr ansp.Corp.,84F.2d755,
757(9thCi
r.1936)(not
ingt
hat"
theadcoel
um
doct r
inedoesnotappl yinCalifor
nia")
175
2Black,LawDi cti
onary,4t
hEd.( 1951),p.453.
176
2Br oom,LegalMaxi ms,8thEd.(1911) ,
p.395.
177
Mani on,Lawoft heAir(1950),p.1;Brown,LegalMaxims,
8thEd.(1882)
,p.395.

60
 178
and"Hewhoownsthel
andownsuptot hesky
". Inshortt
hisisLati
nphr
asemeaning
179
for"
whoev
er'
sist
hesoi
l,
iti
sthei
rsal
lthewaytoHeav enandallthewayt
ohell
"

Generall
y,inmoder nlaw,t hisprinci
plei sstil
laccept edinli
mitedform,andt he
ri
ghtsar edi v
idedi ntoairrightsabov eandsubsur f
acer ightsbelow.Pr opertyti
tle
i
ncludest ot hespacei mmedi atelyabov eandbel owt hegr oundpreventi
ngov erhangi
ng
partsofnei ghbor i
ngbuildi
ngs–butdonothav er i
ghtst ocontrolfl
i
ghtsfarabov et
he
groundori nspace.Howev er,ther i
ghtsofl andowner stot heair
spaceimmedi atelyover
180
theirlandwer eaff i
rmedinEngl andandWal esi nKelsenv.I mper i
alTobaccoCo
wher easi gner ectedonabui ldingthatov erhungt heplainti
ff'
spropert
ycommi ttedt
he
tortoft r
espass,ev enthoughnohar m ornuisancewascausedbyi t.Aninjunctionwas
grantedt othelandownerr equiri
ngt hesignt ober emov ed.

Ther i
ghtoflandownerstopr eventt he'ov er
fly
ing'withoutt heirpermi
ssionoft he
181
l
ar gecr anej i
bsusedi nconstructionhasal sobeenaf f
ir
med. I nLor dBer nstei
nof
182
LeighvSky vi
ews&Gener alLtd t heCour tnot edt hattheadcoel um phrasewas
'
col ourful'
,butsaidthati
twaswel lsettl
edi nt hecommonl aw t hatal andownerhad
ri
ght sint heairi
mmedi at
elyabovet hel and,extendinginpar ti
culart osignsoverhanging
from adj acentproper
ti
es.Ther i
ghtdi dnotext endt hought omor et hanwas' necessary
fort heor di
naryuseandenjoymentoft helandandst ructuresuponi t
'.

n St
I arEner gyWeal d Basin Li
mited and anothervBocar do SA183 the UK
Supr
emeCour t(havi
nghear dargumentthatt
hepr i
nci
plewasnol ongerrelev
anttoland
ownership)heldthatthepr inci
ple".
..st
il
lhasv al
ueinEngli
shlawasencapsul at
ing,i
n
si
mplel anguage,aproposi ti
onoflawwhi chhascommandedgener alacceptance.The
Supr
emeCour tneverthelessupheldtheclai
mant '
sri
ghttoclai
mf ortrespassatdepths
of250 -400 met r
es bel ow the surf
ace,whi l
stacknowledgi
ng thatsubt err
anean
ownershipcouldnotext endindefi
nit
ely.

Thefir staspectt obeconsideredistheex tentoft hef eesimpleowner ’

sright
sin
theai r
spaceabov et heproperty
.Theowner ’
sr ight sextendt osuchahei ghtasi s
reasonablynecessar yf orthe ordinaryuse and enj oymentoft he land.In Baron
184
Bernstein ofLei gh vSky vi
ews and Gener alLt d, Gr i
ffith J st
ated thati twas
necessaryt obalancet heri
ghtsofanownert oenj oyt helandagainstther i
ghtsofthe
generalpublictot akeadv antageofal lt
hat‘sciencenowof fer
sint heuseofai r
space’
.
Thus,t herightsoft heownerwer elimitedtosuchahei ghtasi snecessar yforthe
ordinar
yuseandenj oy mentofthelandandabov et hatheightt hefeesimpleownerhas

178
Zoll
mann, LawoftheAir(1927),
p.6.
179
JacksonMun.AirportAut
h.v .Ev
ans,191So.2d126,128(Miss.1966)
180
[1957]2QB334
181
AnchorBrewhouseDev el
opment sLt
dvBerkeleyHouse(Dockl
andDev el
opment
s)Lt
d[1987]2EGLR
173
182
[1978]QB479
183
[2010]UKSC35
[
1978]QB479,
184

61
nogr
eat
err
ight
sthananyot
hermemberoft
hepubl
i
c.

I
nanut shell,t
herelati
onshipbet weent hetwomaxi mscannotbeov erl
ookedor
undermined;thepur posei stor eal
i
zet henexusi nt ermsoft hef undament al
st hey
ventur
et oprotect.Howev er,t
hegener alr ul
estatedabov ei
sappl i
cablebutcanonl yso
farsimplybecauset heTanzani anssy stem ofl andtenuretendst ost r
etchf ur
therin
ter
msofappl ication.Thus,thegeneralrulecanonl ybeappliedinalimiteddegree.Thus,
whetherduet ot he degr
eeorpur poseofannexat i
on,ordue t ot he presenceof
occupantsont hel and,t
hesanct i
tyofpr opri
etaryri
ght
si sul
timatel
yuphel d.

28.
Theint
imatenat
ureofj
ointt
enancyi
sshownbyt
wopr
inci
palf
eat
ures,
ther
ight
ofsurv
ivor
shi
pandthefouruni
ti
es”DI
SCUSS

SeeQuest
ionNO8

29.
Lapse of t
ime bar
s t
he l
egal owner f
rom chal
lengi
ng t
he
occupat
ion/
possessi
onoft
heAdv
ersePossessor
.Butt
hel
aw doesnotgr
ant
t
it
let
othet
respasser
.Di
scuss
Thequest
ion i
sal
laboutl
i
mit
ati
ont
orecov
eryi
mmov
abl
epr
oper
tywher
ethe
adv
ersepossessorcanacqui
ret
hesai
dpl
otandt
obecomet
heowneroft
hepl
ot.Thus,
t
hef
ort
hcomi
ngdi
scussi
onwi
l
lfocusondi
scussi
ngt
heabov
est
atementt
hatl
apseof
t
imebar
sthel
egalownerf
rom chal
l
engi
ngt
heoccupat
ion/
possessi
onoft
heAdv
erse
Possessor
.Butt
hel
awdoesnotgr
antt
it
let
othet
respasser
.

Bef
oreexpl
ainl
i
mit
ati
onofl
egalowner
,letusseewhoi
sanadv
ersepossessi
on?I
n
185
hecaseofCor
t eavsAppuhamy adv
ersepossessi
onwasr
efer
redast
hepossessi
on
whi
chi
sinconsi
stentwi
tht
het
it
leoft
het
rueowner
.

I
tmustbenot
edt
hatt
imebegi
nst
orunagai heownerwhen:(
nstt a)t
heowneri
s
di
sposedbyanadv
ersepossessor
,and(
b)whenownerdi
scont
inueshi
spossessi
on
andpossessi
oni
stakenov
erbyanadv
ersepossessor
.Fr
om t
hemoment
,youbecome
awar
eti
mebegi
nst
orun.Theel
ementofpossessi
onofowner
shi
pisessent
ialand
adv
ersepossessormusthav
eli
ter
all
ydr
ivenawayt
hepossessor
.

n Lwei
I ki ema186 i
za vs Ndy twas st
ated t
hatwher
e a per
son car
ri
ed out
i
mpr
ovement
stot
hel
andaf
terhebecameawar
ethatpr
oceedi
ngshav
ebeeni
nst
it
uted

185
(
1912)AC230
186
(
1971)HCD326

62
t
odi
sput
ethet
it
let
othel
andt
henhecar
ri
esoutsuchi
mpr
ovement
sathi
sownr
isk
and hemustbedeemed t
o bepr
epar
ed t
otaket
heconsequencesf
oll
owi
ng t
he
187
di
sput
e.

188
nDukeofLeedsv
I sAmher
st l
ordCot
tenham sai
dthati
fapar
tyhav
ingar
ight
st
andbyandseesanot
herdeal
i
ngwi
tht
hepr
oper
tyi
namanneri
nconsi
stentwi
tht
hat
r
ightand makesno obj
ect
ion whi
l
ethe acti
sin pr
ogr
ess he cannotaf
ter
war
ds
compl
ain;
thati
sthepr
opersenseoft
hewor
dacqui
escence.

nRai
I nsvsBy
ton189 i
twaspr
ovi
dedt
hatanel
ementofnew possessi
onmustbe
est
abl
i
shedsi
ncet
hiscr
eat
esr
ightofact
ionf
ort
heowner
.Ev
enwher
eanownerhas
l
eftt
hel
anddor
mantwi
tht
hei
ntent
ion/
planst
ousei
tint
hef
utur
ehecannotar
guet
hat
f
utur
epl
ansconst
it
utepossessi
on.

I
n shor
t,t
he deci
si he case ofBucki
on oft nghamshi
r an190 was
e cc vs Mor
consi
der
edt
obenecessar
yforadv
ersepossessort
oshow (
i)suf
fi
cientdegr
eeof
possessi
onandt yani
hathehasnecessar muspossi
dendi
.Adv
ersepossessi
onr
efer
s
t
oexcl
usi
vecont
rolt
hatexcl
udest
heowner
.Consequent
ly,asf
orsui
tsorpr
oceedi
ngs
f
ort
her
ecov
eryofl
andbyt
heGov
ernmentt
heycannotbebar
redbyl
i
mit
ati
onof
191
t
ime.

sKuma192 i
nKumav
I twasst
atedt
hatadv
ersepossesorcanacqui
ret
it
lebecause
t
heownerf
ail
stov
indi
cat
ethecl
aim wi
thi
ntheper
iodspeci
fi
edbyst
atut
e.Hewi
l
lbe
bar
redbyst
atut
esi
nTanzani
afr
om t
hedaywhent
her
ightofact
ionaccr
ued.Ther
efor
e,
i
nanact
ionf
orl
andt
hecent
ralconcept
ioni
sthequest
ionofr
unni
ngoft
ime.Sect
ion4
oft
heLawofLi
mit
ati
onActpr
ovi
dest
hatt
heper
iodofl
i
mit
ati
onpr
escr
ibedbyt
heAct
i
n r
elat
ion t
o any pr
oceedi
ng shal
l subj
ect t
o t
he pr
ovi
sion of t
his Act
her
einaf
ter
..
.commencef
rom t
hedat
eonwhi
cht
her
ightofact
ionf
orsuchact
ion
ar
ouse.

187
(1971)HCD326
188
41ER886at888.
189
(1880)14ChD537
190
(1890)
191
Secti
on38Cap89
192
Ci
tedi
nJamesR.
W andFi
mboG.
M p534
63
 nAhmedAbdul
I kar
im andAnot
hervsMi
nist
erf nes193 t
orLandsandMi hecase
t
ell
show t
heLi
mit
ati
onActappl
i
esi
nTanzani
aandt
hatt
her
ightofact
ion/r
ightt
o
br
ingt
hesui
t/
proceedi
ngi
nlaw.Ar
ightofact
ioni
sal
egalr
ightt
omai
ntai
nanact
ion
f
rom at
ransact
ion/
stat
eoff
act
sbasedt
her
eon.Causeofact
ioni
sthet
otal
i
tyof
194
oper
ati
vef
act
sgi
vi
ngr
iset
oar
ightofact
ion.

I
nmat
ter
srel
atedt
olandaper
sonwhowr
ongf
uldi
sposesof
fhi
slandhasar
ightof
act
iont
orecov
er.i
.eaper
sonwhol
osthi
sri
ghtofent
ryi
nthel
andhadnot
hingl
eft
exceptr
ightofact
ion(
consi
derchosei
nact
ionandchosei
npossessi
on)
.Aspr
ovi
ded
undersect
ion39oft
heLaw ofLi
mit
ati
onAct
,upont
heexpi
rat
ionoft
heper
iodof
l
i
mit
ati
onpr
escr
ibedf
orasui
tforpossessi
onofanypr
oper
ty,t
her
ightbecomes
195
ext
ingui
shed.

Basi
ngont
heabov
eexpl
anat
ion,onewi
l
lagr
eewemet
hatl
apseoft
imebar
sthe
l
egalownerf
rom chal
l
engi
ngt
heoccupat
ion/
possessi
onoft
heAdv
ersePossessor
.
Thel
awdoesnotgr
antt
it
let
othet
respasser
.Itj
ustbart
hel
egal
owneronl
apseoft
ime.
196
Howev
er,
inl
andr
ightofpr
escr
ipt
ionconf
erst
it
let
othel
onguser
. Undersect
ions18,
nosui
tagai
nstaper
soni
nwhom pr
oper
tyhasbecomev
est
edi
ntr
ustf
oranyspeci
fi
c
pur
pose,
shoul
dbebar
redbyanyper
iodofl
i
mit
ati
on.

30.
“Qui
cqui
dpl
ant
atursol
o,sol
ocedi
t”DI
SCUSS
Thel
awoff
ixt
uresi
sfoundedont m‘
hemaxi qui
cqui
dpl
ant
atursol
osol
ocedi
t’
,
i
.e.what
everi
sat
tachedt
othel
andbecomesapar
tther
eof
.Thus,
chat
tel
sthatar
eso
af
fi
xedt
othel
andast
obecomeapar
tofi
t,l
osesi
tschar
act
eraschat
telandpasses
wi
tht
heowner
shi
poft
hel
and. Thus,i
tcoul
dbegl
eanedt
hatchat
tel
sar
eofa
t
empor
arynat
ure,
whi
l
efi
xtur
esr
emai
nper
manent
.Itwi
thi
nthi
sint
roduct
ionIi
ntendi
n
t
hisquest
iont
odi
scussont
hemaxi
m‘qui
cqui
dpl
ant
atursol
osol
ocedi
t’
.

Accor
dingt
osect
ion2ofLandActdef
inel
andasi
ncl
udest
hesur
faceoft
he
ear
thand t
heear
thbel
ow t
hesur
faceand al
lsubst
ancesot
hert
hanmi
ner
alsor

193
(1958)EA436
194
Secti
on3(2)oft
heLawofLi
mit
ati
onAct
195
Seeexcept
ionsundersect
ion38andsect
ion44
196
SeeJamesandFi
mbochapt
er25andChapt
er5i
nGoo

64
pet
rol
eum f
ormi
ngpar
toforbel
ow t
hesur
face,t
hingsnat
ural
l
ygr
owi
ngont
hel
and,
bui
l
dingsandot
herst
ruct
uresper
manent
lyaf
fi
xedt
oorunderl
andandl
andcov
eredby
wat
er.Al
so,l
andasi
ntheLaw ofPr
oper
tyAct1925,s.205(
1)(
ix)asi
ncl
udi
ng‘
the
sur
face,bui
l
dingsorpar
tsofbui
l
dings’andwhat
everi
sat
tachedt
othel
andbecomes
par
toft
hel
andunderanot
herLat
inmaxi
m,qui
cqui
dpl
ant
atursol
o,sol
ocedi
t.

Thi
srai
se,
inpr
act
ice,
ani
mpor
tantpr
obl
em r
elat
ingt
oowner
shi
poft
hosei
tems
whi
ch,
butf
ort
hef
actt
hatt
heyar
eat
tachedt
othel
and,
woul
dconst
it
utechat
tel
s.The
di
sti
nct
ionneedst
obedr
awnbet
weent
hosei
temswhi
char
efixt
ures,andt
her
efor
e
par
toft
her
eal
ty,andt
hosewhi
char
enot
,andt
her
efor
eremai
nper
sonal
i
ty.Ther
ear
e
t
wot
est
sfordet
ermi
ningwhet
heranobj
ecti
safixt
ureorachat
tel
.

Thefir
stt
estr
elat
est
othedegr
eeofannexat
ion.I
ftheobj
ecti
sannexedt
othe
l
andt
heni
tis,
pri
maf
aci
e,afixt
ure.So,
inHol
landvHodgson197,
spi
nni
ngl
oomsbol
ted
t
othefloorofaf
act
orywer
eat
tachedot
hert
hanbyt
hei
rownwei
ghtandwer
efix
tur
es.
n Hul
I mevBr
igham198,howev
er,heav
ypr
int
ingpr
esseswhi
chst
oodont
hefloor
wi
thoutanyat
tachmentot
hert
hant
hef
orceofgr
avi
ty,
wer
echat
tel
s.

I seaYacht&BoatCov.Pope199,
nChel ahouseboat
whi
chwasmoor
edt
othebank
andwhi
chmov
edupanddownwi
tht
het
ide,washel
dtobeachat
tel
.Thepar
amount
t
est
,howev
er,wasf
oreshadowedbyBl
ackbur nHol
nJi landvHodgsonandr
elat
est
o
t
hepur
poseofannexat
ion.Undert
hist
est
,thequest
iont
obeaskedi
swhet
hert
he
chat
telhasbeenaf
fixedt
othel
andf
ort
hebet
terenj
oymentoft
heobj
ectasachat
tel
,
orf
ort
hemor
econv
eni
entuseoft
hel
and.Thi
sleadst
other
esul
tthatt
hesameobj
ect
mayconst
it
uteafixt
urei
nonecase,butachat
teli
nanot
her
.Forexampl nLei
e,i ghv
200 201
Tay
lor ,t
apest
ri
esnai
l
edt
oawal
lwer
ehel
dnott
obefixt
ur nReWhal
es,buti ey ,
si
mil
arobj
ect
swer
ehel
dtobefixt
uresbecauset
heobj
ectoft
hei
rannexat
ionwast
o
enhancet
her
oom.Lor
dHal
sbur nLei
yLCi ghvTay
lorconfir
medt
hatt
hekeyt
estwas
t
hepur
poseofannexat
ion,
andt
hiswasconfir nHampvBy
medi grave202wher
egar
den
or
nament
sthatf
ormedpar
tofal
andscapedi
spl
aywer
ehel
dtobefixt
uresdespi
tet
he

197
(1872)LR7CP328
198
[1943]KB152
199
[2000]1WLR1941
200
[1902]AC157
201
[1908]1Ch615
202
(1982)266EG720

65
f
actt
heyr
est
edont
hegr
oundsi
mpl
ybyt
hei
rownwei
ght
.InEl
it
est
oneLt
dvMor
rs203,
i
t
heHouseofLor
dshel
dthatwhati
sofpr
imar
yimpor
tancei
sthei
ntent
ioni
nvol
ved.I
t
wasi
ndi
cat
ed t
hatt
hisi
san obj
ect
ivet
estt
o det
ermi
newhet
hert
heobj
ectwas
i
ntendedf
ort
heuseorenj
oymentoft
hel
and,orf
ort
hemor
econv
eni
entuseoft
he
obj
ecti
tsel
f.

Mor
eov
er,i
nthecaseofBuckl
andv.But
ter
fi
eld,av
erandaat
tachedt
oahouse
woul
dbeconsi
der
edaf
ixt
ure. Howev
er,asnot n H.
edi E.Di
bbl
ev.Moor
e,i
fthe
super
str
uct
urecanber
emov
edwi
thoutl
osi
ngi
tsi
dent
it
yiti
sli
kel
ytor
etai
nit
schat
tel
char
act
erandnotr
ankasaf
ixt
ure.

Woodi nMi
ngCJi tchel
lv.Cowi
er edonTur
el
i nerv.Camer
on t
ouphol
dthe
deci
sionoft
het
ri
alcour
tthatt
hehousewasaf
ixt
ureandnotachat
tel
.Butt
hedegr
ee
ofannexat
ionoft
her
ail
wayl
i
nesi
nTur
nerv
.Camer
on bear
sno anal
ogyt
othe
const
ruct
ionofchat
telhousesgener
all
y.Thi
scompar
isoni
sfar
-f
etched.Ther
efor
e,
Woodi
ngCJ’
sdeci
sionshoul
dnotbeaccept
edashav
ingest
abl
i
shedt
hatachat
tel
housei
saf
ixt
ure.Theanal nBi
ogyi ll
ingv.Pi
ll
,whi
chwasal
soci
tedanddi
scussedi
n
Mi
tchel
l’
sCase,i
scl
osert
oachat
telhouset
hant
her
ail
wayl
i
nesi
nTur
ner
’sCase.To
r
emov
ether
ail
waysl
eeper
sinTur
ner
’sCasewoul
dhav
eresul
tedi
nsubst
ant
ial
damage
t
othel
and. Howev
er nBi
,i ll
ingv.Pi
ll
,thehut
swer
eer
ect
edt
opr
ovi
det
empor
ary
sl
eepi
ngaccommodat
ionf
ort
hear
myper
sonnel
,andcoul
dremov
ewi
thoutcausi
ng
anydamaget
othef
reehol
d.Woodi
ngCJ’
shol
dingaf
terheanal
yzedTur
ner
’sCasei
s
opent
odoubt
,fori
tcanbear
guedt
hati
fat
enanter
ect
sast
ruct
ureont
hel
andof
anot
her
,hedoessonotf
ort
heenj
oymentoft
hel
andofwhi
chhei
sat
enant
,butf
ort
he
accommodat
iont
hechat
tel
prov
ides.

Thecompar
isonofachat
telhousewi
tht
hebar
ninWansbr
oughv.Mat
oni
sapt
.
Thus,wer
eitnotf
ort
hepecul
i
arf
act
sofMi
tchel
l’
sCase,Woodi
ngCJcoul
dnothav
e
deci
dedt
hatt
hehousewasaf
ixt
ure.Thehousewasconst
ruct
edi
nsuchawayt
hati
t
coul
dnotber
emov
edwi
thoutbei
ngdi
sint
egr
ated.Thi
saf
for
dsasol
i
dgr
oundonwhi
ch
Mi
tchel
l’
sCasecanbedi
sti
ngui
shed.

Thesecondt
esti
sthepur
poseofannexat
ion.Thedet
ermi
nat
ionoft
hest
atusof
an i
tem i
s not concl
usi
vel
y det
ermi
ned by t
he degr
ee of annexat
ion.I
fthe
203
[
1997]1WLR687

66
ci
rcumst
ancesshow t
hatt
heobj
ectwasi
ntendedt
ofor
m par
toft
hel
andscapi
ngor
ar
chi
tect
uraldesi
gnoft
hepr
emi
sesandi
srest
ingbyt
hei
rownwei
ght
,thent
heycanbe
r
egar
dedasf
ixt
ures.I
temsat
tachedt
othel
andf
ort
hepur
poseofenj
oymentar
e
r
egar
dedaschat
tel
s.Tosuppor
ttheabov
epoi
nts,
int
hecaseofHol
l .Hodgson204
andv
t
hecour
tappl
i
edt
hepr
inci
pleofqui
cqui
dpl
ant
atursol
o,sol
ocedi
ttodet
ermi
ne
whet
hert
he400l
oomsi
nst
all
edi
nthemi
l
lwaspar
toft
hel
and.I
twashel
dt ,t
hat he
mannerwhi
cht
hel
oomswher
eaf
fi
xedt
othel
andwasnoti
ntendedt
hati
tbecamepar
t
oft
hel
and.
205
Moreover,
inElwisv.Maw wher ethefar
merhadbui ltathisowncostofshade
f
oranimals,
carpent
ersshadeandf uelhouseandthetenantremov edbeforetheendof
t
helease.Thecourtwashel dthatthef ar
mercouldnotr emov echattel
sevenifthey
wer
efixedtohishol
df orhi
ssol
epur poseofimprovi
nghisagricul
tural
operati
on.

Innutshel
l
,oneshouldnot ethatther
ear
etwotestst
odeterminewhetheran
i
tem hasbecomepar toft
hefreehol
d:(I
)themet
hodanddegr
eeofannexat
ion;and(
II
)
t
heobjectandpurposeoftheannexat
ion.

31.
Whatisy ourview wi
thregar
dtot he cour
t’
s deci
sion i
n bot
h cases of
DESCEBDANTSOFSHEI KMBARUKBINRASHI Dv.MINISTERFORLANDSAND
MINERALRESOURCES[1960]E.
A348andMTOROBI NMWAMBAv .ATTORNEY
GENERAL[1953]
2TLR327C.A

Thequest
ioni
sal
laboutgi
vi
ngmyv
iewsconcer
ningt
hecour
t’
sdeci
sioni
nbot
h
Descendant
s ofShei
kh Mbar
uk bi
n Rashi
d vs Mi
nist
erf
orLands and Mi
ner
al
ces206andMt
Resour or nMwambav.A.G207
oBi

Thef
act
si hecaseofDescendant
nt sofShei
khMbar
ukbi
nRashi
dvsMi
nist
erf
or
LandsandMi
ner ces208 wast
alResour hatt
heappel
l
ant
swer
eAr
abI
mmi
grant
s.They
hadset
tl
edonal
andatUkongawi
thoutdocument
sandhadnev
erbeenr
equi
redt
o
pr
oducedocument
soft
it
lebyany
bodysi
nce1896.Lat
eron,t
heywer
erequi
redt
o
v
acat
eandt
hei
rlandacqui
red.Ther
elev
antaut
hor
it
iesr
equi
redt
hem t
ost
atet
he

204
U.A.C.Ltd.v.Apaw(1936)3W.A.C.A.114
205
(1802)3EAST38.
206
(1960)E.A348,JamesR.W andFi
mboG.M( 1973)at389.
207
[1953]TLR327
208
(1960)E.A348,JamesR.W andFi
mboG.M( 1973)at389.

67
nat
ureoft
hei
rint
erest
sont
hel
and.Thecour dt
thel hatt
het
it
leofanat
ivecommuni
ty
wasr
ecogni
zedasar
ightofoccupancybutt
heappel
l
antbei
nganAr
abcoul
dnothav
e
adeemedr
ightofoccupancyundert
heLandOr
dinance(
1923)
.Thei
roccupat
ionwas
onl
yper
missi
veandnotowner
shi
p.Thecompensat
ionwast
obebasedont
hei
rri
ghtas
l
i
censeesandnotot
her
wise.

Readi
ngbet
weent
hel
i
nesi
nthecaseofMt
or nMwambav.A.G209,t
oBi hiswasan
appealf
rom t
heHi
ghcour
tofTangany
ikasi
tt
ingi
nappel
l
atej
uri
sdi
cti
onwhi
chal
l
owed
anappealbyt
heat
tor
neygener
aloft
het
err
it
oryf
rom t
hedeci
sionoft
her
egi
sterof
t
h
t
it
leswhoon9 Apr
il1949,act
ingundert
hepr
ovi
sionoft
hel
andr
egi
str
yor
dinance
al
l
owedt
heappl
i
cat
ionoft
heappel
l
antf
orf
ir
str
egi
str
ati
onofapar
celofl
andsi
tuat
ed
i
nUpangaar
eaofDaressal
aam.Fur
theri
twashel
dthat
;Wher
eapar
ti
cul
art
ri
behasa
di
ff
erentl
aw andcust
om f
rom t
heper
missi
veoccupat
ionalr
ightgener
all
yrecogni
zed
bynat
ivet
ri
besi
neastAf
ri
ca,r
ecogni
zi
ngani
ndi
vi
dual
’
sri
ghtofowner
shi
pequi
val
ent
off
reehol
dtenur
easknownt
oEngl
i
shl
awt
heonusofpr
oofi
supont
heper
sonwhoso
al
l
eges.

Themaj
ori
ssuei
nthi
sappealwaswhet
herornott
heWashomv
itr
iber
ecogni
zedt
he
r
ightofani
ndi
vi
dualt
oownl
and.Thedeci
sionoft
hehi
ghcour
tofTangany
ikawas
consol
i
dat
ed

-
Sincet
heappel
l
anthasnodocumentoft
it
leatal
l
,hedi
dnothav
epr
ovabl
eti
tl
eto
owner
shi
pwhi
chwoul
dhav
ebeenaccept
edbyt
heGer
manadmi
nist
rat
ion.Themost
t
hathewoul
dhav
epr
ovedunderGer
manl
awi
sther
ightofusuf
ructi
nrespectoft
he
l
andwhi
chheorhi
spr
edecessorhadoccupi
edf
oratl
eastt
woy
ear
s.

-Hi
spossessi
onunderadv
ersepossessi
oncoul
dnotst
andbecausei
tiscl
eart
hat
suchpossessi
onhasbeent
wicei
nter
rupt
eddur
ingt
he1914-
18warandt
he1939-
45
war
.

Thecour
thel
dthat
,int
eral
i
atheWashomv
ilaworcust
om l
awdi
dnotknowi
ndi
vi
dual
owner
shi
ptol
andexcepti
ndi
vi
dual
’
susuf
ruct
uar
yri
ght
sandt
hatwher
elandwashel
d
byanat
ivet
hei
nfer
encewast
hatt
hepossessi
onwasper
missi
veandnotadver
se.
Thus t
he appealwas di
smi
ssed and t
her
efor
e Mt
oro Bi
nMwamba coul
d notbe

209
[
1953]TLR327

68
r
egi
ster
edast
hef
ir
stowneroft
hatpar
cel
ofl
and.

Myv
iewconcer
ningt
heabov
edeci
sioni
sthat
,si
ncehi
stor
ical
l
ylandhasbeenanar
ena
ofst
ruggl
esbet
weencont
ent
ingf
orces210.Pr
iort
ocol
oni
zat
ionl
andwashel
dunder
cust
omar
yregi
meandi
tbel
ongedt
othewhol
esoci
etyei
theracl
an,
fami
l
yort
ri
be.The
emphasi
swaspl
acedont
her
ightt
ouseandenj
oyt
hef
rui
tsoft
hel
and;t
her
ewasno
conceptofi
ndi
vi
dualowner
shi
pandcommodi
sat
i and211 asev
onofl idencedi
nabov
e
212
t amouscasesofMuhenaBi
wof nSai
dv.Regi
str
arofTi
tt
les andMt
oroBi
nMwamba
v G213 whi
.A. chst
atedt
hatcust
omar
ylawdoesnotknowi
ndi
vi
dualowner
shi
pofl
and,
whati
trecogni
zesi
nani
ndi
vi
duali
sonl
yusuf
ruct
uar
yri
ght
swasr
ightaccor
dingt
othe
l
aw whi
chwasr
egul
ati
ngl
andmat
teratt
hatt
imebutnowaday
sthi
ngschangesbot
h
gr
ant
ed r
ightofoccupancyand cust
omar
yri
ghtofoccupancyar
ethesameas
st
ipul
atedi
nthecaseofMet
thusel
ahPaulNy
agwaswav
sChr
ist
opherMbot
eNy
irabu214,
wher
etheCour
tofAppealhadt
hef
oll
owi
ngt
osayt
hat
…undert
heLandOr
dinance
t
her
ewer
etwosy
stem r
ight
sofoccupancy
.Onei
scr
eat
edbyadi
rectgr
antofpubl
i
c
l
andbyt
hePr
esi
denti
nter
msofsect
ion6ofCap113,
theot
heronei
sthatofaper
son
hol
dingl
andi
naccor
dancewi
thnat
ivel
aw andcust
om…r
ightofahol
derofar
ightof
occupancybyv
irt
ueofnat
ivel
awandcust
om wasnotext
ingui
shed.

32.
Expl
aintheext
entt
owhichcust
omar
ylaw i
sappl
icabl
einl
andmat
ter
sunder
theVi
ll
ageLandAct1999
215 216
In 1999,Tanzani a enacted t
he Vi
llage Land Act and the Land Act which
recognizecustomar ytenureandempowerv i
l
lagegov ernment stomanageVi l
lageLand.
Thesel awsar eamar keddepartur
efrom theLandOr dinanceof1923, yetmanyv i
ll
agers
andcommuni t
iesstil
ldonothav esecurit
yint heircust omar yland.Thelawshav enot
beenef fect
ivelyimplementedandenforced,leavingsomecommuni tyadvocat estocall
forreform.I tiswi thi
nt hisbackgr
oundIi ntendt oexpl ainont heext entt owhi ch
customar yl
awi sappli
cableinl
andmatterundert hev il
lageLandAct1999217.

210
Fimbo, M.G.(2004)
,LandLawReformsinTanzani
a,p.2.
211
Jesse, J.
M andChalamboJ.(2009)
,Backgr
oundtotheLandLawi
nTanzani
a,p.15.
212
[1948]16EACA339
213
[1953]TLR327
214
(1985)TLR103
215
Cap114RE2002
216
Cap113RE2002
217
Cap114RE2002

69
 Fr ankl yspeaki ngIcansayt hatt heVi l
lageLandActr ecogni zesexi sti
ngr ight sas
‘
cust omar yright s’.I nmanyAf ricanst atest hiswoul dnotbepr obl emat icasbydef aul tor
other wi se,cust omar ynor ms cont inue up unt ilt ot he pr esentt o shape bot ht he
char act erofmaj or i
tyl andr i
ght sandhowt heyar eadmi nister ed.Onl ytosomeex t enti s
thist ruei nTanzani a.
Si ncet he1970sv il
l
age- maki ngi niti
ativeswhati scust omar yhasbeenov er laidi n
ruralar easbycommuni tybaseddeci si onmaki ngandadmi nist r
at i
onofl andr ight s, with
vil
lagegov ernment snotnecessar ilymaki ngdeci si onsont hebasi sofcust om.I nmany
cases, theyhav er espondedt odi rect i
v esf rom ei thercent ral orl ocal districtGov ernment .
Oftent hesedi r ect i
v esandt heirowni ndependentdeci sionshav ehadmuchi ncommon
witht radi ti
onalpr act ice.Al though st ri
ct l
y speaki ng ‘ cust omar y pr actice’may be
i
nt erpr et edaspr ev ailingnor ms, ithasof teni mpl iedhi stor ical precedent .
Todi rectmoder ncommuni ti
est oadmi nist er /managel andr ight saccor di ngt o
cust omar ylawcoul dt hrowsomecommuni ti
esi nt oconf usi on:Thel awdoesnotdef ine
‘
cust omar ylaw’i tsel fbey ondr eferr i
nguser st ot heI nterpr etat i
onofLawsandGener al
ClausesAct1972.Thatl awdescr ibescust omar yl awt omean‘ anyr uleorbodyorr ules
wher eby r ight s and dut i
es ar e acqui red ori mposed,est ablished by usage i na
Tangany ikaAf ricancommuni tyandaccept edbysuchcommuni tyashav ingthef or ceof
l
aw’ [s.3] .
Sect ion20( 2)oft heVi ll
ageLandActdoespr ov i
det hat‘ anyr uleofcust omar yl awshal l
hav er egar dt ot hecust oms,t radi tionsandpr act icesoft hecommuni ty’butonl yt ot he
extentt hatt heyconf orm wi t
ht heNat ionalLandPol i
cy1995andsol ongast hey ’donot
deny women,chi ldr en orper sons wi th di sabi l
iti
es l awf ulaccess t o owner shi p,
occupat ionanduseofl ands’ .
Sect i
on20al sosay sthatcust omar yl awt hatwasappl icabl epr iort ovillagi sat ion
i
nt he1970s( Oper at i
onVi ji
ji)wi llappl y[ s.20( 4) ]
.Ther ei spl ent yofscopef ora
disgr unt l
edsect ori nt hev il
laget ousecust omar ypr act icet odi ctat eal andcl aim,
agai nstt hemor egener alormor emoder ndeci sion-maki ngoft hecommuni tyasa
whol e.Such cases hav e already ar isen,of ten wher e an i ndi vi
dualhas used hi s
cont inuedr esi dencewi thinv i
llagecommonl andsuchasf or ests,asar ighthehol dsby
cust om.
Ther i
ght sofwoment o, acqui re, hold, use, anddealwi thlandt ot hesameext ent
andsubj ectt ot hesamer estri
ct ionsasar i
ghtofanymani sexpl icitlyr ecogni zedi nt he
218
l
aw .AVi llageCounci lmaynotadoptadv er sedi scrimi nat or ypr acticesorat titudes
219
towar dswomen, whohav eappl iedf oracust omar yr ightofoccupancy .Inthisr espect ,
theTanzani anl egi slat ioni sper hapst hemostpr ogr essi vei nt heEastAf ricaregi on.

Tosayi nshott heVillageLandAct ,whichbecameef fect i

vewi t
ht heenact mentof
the Village Land Regul ations of 2001,pr ovi
des the l egalf ramewor kf or the
admi ni
st r
ati
onofVi ll
ageLand.TheVi l
l
ageLandActpr ovi
dest hata“ cust omaryr i
ghtof
occupancyi si n everyr espectofequalst atus and effectt o a gr anted ri
ghtof
occupancy .”The “ dual
istic”st atut
ory-
customar ycharacterofl and rightst hathas
prevail
ed since the col onialer a,howev er,remains.Gov ernmentof fici
als do not
recognizecust omarylandr ightsasequal tostatut
oryri
ghts,andt heydonotr espectthe
l
egalaut hori
tiesofv i
ll
agegov ernmentov erVill
ageLand.Thus,Tanzani a’sVill
ageLand

218
Seesecti
on3(2)intheLAandVLA
219
sect
ion23(2)(c)(i
andii
)oftheVLA

70
Acthast hepot enti
altopr ovidevi
ll
agerswithsecuri
tyint hei
rcustomaryland,butthe
l
aw hasy ettobeef fecti
velyimplemented.Moreover,theActcontainssomewor r
ying
pr
ovisions,incl
udingt hoset hatempowert hegovernmentt otr
ansferVil
l
ageLandt o
GeneralLandwi thoutseekingandobt ai
ningvi
ll
agegov ernmentapproval
.

33.
“….acont r
actf
ordi spositi
onofl and,whi chotherwiseisproperbutf orthelack
ofrequir
edconsenti sinoperati
ve, t
hati s, unenf
orceabl
et otheext entthatsuch
enforcementispr ejudi
cialtot hei nterest sofpar amountl andlord.Howev er
,
wher esuchenforcementi snotpr ejudicial,apartthathasper formedhi sorher
partoft hebargainingmaybeassi stedbyt hecourtt oenf orcethecont ract
againstthedef
aultingpart…’’Di
scusst hispassagewi thregardt oacont ractfor
exchangeoflandhel dundert hegrant edr ightofoccupancy.

Thequest ion i
sallaboutdi scussion t
heconceptofconsentofa cont r
actof
di
sposit
ionoflandinTanzania.Thus,thefort
hcomi ngdiscussi
onwillbaseonwhether
l
ackofr equi
redconsentisinoperati
ve,thatis,unenfor
ceabletotheext entt
hatsuch
enf
orcementisprej
udi
cialt
ot heint
erestsofparamountlandlordornot.

General
l
y,therearethreeleadi
ngdecisi
onsoftheCourtofAppealont hi
ssubject
.
Thefir
stonebei ngChandrakantPunambhaiPat
el(asthel
egalpersonalrepresent
ati
ve
30
ofVinubhaiBhulabhaiPat
el )v
.FrankLi
onelMareal
leandanother wher
et heCourtof
Appealheldthatt hewr i
ttenagreementinquesti
onwasv oidforl ackofappr oval
.
Mustafa,J.
A.stated,

“I
twi l
lbeseenatoncet hatitwasanagr eementfort hedi sposi
ti
onofan
i
nterest-
inlandwhi chneededconsentf rom Dir
ect
orofLandDev elopment
Servi
ces.Therewasnoconsent .
..Weareofthev i
ewt hattheagreementis
voidandsi ncet het r
ialJudgehasbasedhi sdecisionent ir
elyonav oid
agreement,hisjudgementi sv i
ti
atedasitisbasedonaf undamentalfl
aw.
Wewi llhavetoseti taside,unl
essthejudge'
sdecisioncanbeaf fi
rmedon
othergrounds”.

Int hecaseofAbual yAl ibhaiAzi zivs.Bhat i

aBr other sLi mitedcase220 involv eda
conf l
i
ctofl aws,Regul ati
on3( 1)oft hel and Regul at ionof1948 whi chr equired a
dispositionoft her i
ghtofoccupancyt obei nwr i
tingandbeappr ov edbyt heconsentof
thegov ernor,otherwiseshal lnotbeoper ati
ve( i
noper ative),whi l
esection2( 2)oft he
LawofCont ractOr di
nanceCap. 433wast ot heef fectthatt hedisposit
ionoragr eement
shallnotbev oi
df ornon-compl iancewi t
ht herequi rement spr ovidedbyanyot herl aw.
Thecour tofAppealaf tergoi ngt hroughanumberofpr ecedent swhichhaddi f
ferent
positi
onsonsuchaconf l
i
ctitcamei ntoconcl usiont hat :Thedi spositi
on,thoughpr oper
willbe i noperati
ve and hence unenf orceable due t ol ack ofconsentand ot her
requirement s,tot heextentt hatsuchenf orcementi spr ejudicialtotheint er
estsoft he
paramountl andlord.Itwentf urtherhol ding that ,wher esuchcont r
acti snott hus
prejudicial,apartywhohasper f
ormedhi sorherpar toft hebar gainmaybeassi stedby
thecour tt oenforcethecont ractagai nstthedefaul ti
ngpar ty .

220
Mi
scel
l
aneousAppeal
no.1of1999TLRpg288

71
 Ther equi
rementofgovernmentapprovalt
owardsdispositi
onsbysalei
sstil
l
appl
icable underthe Land ActCap 113 as persection 36(2)and 37(
1)and i
ts
Regulati
ons,Land(Di
sposit
ionofRi
ghtofOccupancy)Regul
ations,
GNno.74of2001.

Inspi t
eoft hedev el
opmentsinLandlawof1999, thecaseofAbual yAl i
bhaiAzizi
221
vs.Bhat i
aBr othersLimitedMiscell
aneousAppealno.1of1999 ( herei
nr eferr
edt oas
Abualy’
scase)r etai
nsi tsrel
evancyt othecur r
entl egalpositi
on,especi all
yont he
requir
ementofcommi ssioner’
sapprovalfordispositi
onsbywayofsal e.Themaj or
reasonbei ngthati ti
sfrom thi
scase,thecourtdir
ectedast owhatmaybeconst ruedto
mean“ shallnotbeoper ati
ve”or“shal
lbei noper
ati
v e”(ascurrentconst ructi
oni nthe
222
LandAct ) ,
whi chisposedast heconsequenceoffai l
uretoadheret othi
sr equirement.

I
nitsadjudicati
on,thecourtmadei tsfocusonwhet herlackofadher enceofthe
requi
rementofobt ainingapprov
alrenderstheent i
retyofthecont ractv oidandatwhat
pointandi nconsi derati
onofwhosei nterestint hi
st ri
parti
tetr ansaction( super
ior
l
andlord,leasorandl essee)inthesaleofl andcont ract
,suchdi spositionl acki
ngthe
approvalofthecommi ssi
onermaybeenf orceable.

Intheli
ghtoftheabov eitwashel dt hat:“….t
hecor oll
aryofwhatwehav estated
i
st hatacontractf
ort hedispositi
onofl and, which ot herwiseisproperbutforthelack
oft herequi
redconsent ,i
si noperat
ive,t hatis,unenf or
ceablet otheext entt
hatsuch
enforcementisprejudici
altot heinterestoft hepar amountl andl
ord.Howev er
,wher e
suchi snotthusprejudici
al,apar t
ywhohasper f
ormedhi sorherpar tofthebargain
maybeassi stedbythecour ttoenforcet hecont ractagainstthedefault
ingpart
y.

So,apar t
ywhodef ault
stosubmi tawr itt
encont
ractforconsentorref
usalby
speci
alauthori
tymaybecompel l
edt odosoi ftheot
herpart
yhasper for
medhisorher
partofthebargain.Ofcour se,wheresuchconsentissoughtandr ef
used,t
hecontr
act
becomeswhol lyunenforceable,t
houghv al
id,andanyexpensesincurr
edbytheparti
es
mayber ecoveredbylegalact i
on,i
fnecessary.
”

Wit
hr ecentposit
ion,undertheLandAct,section36(1)makesi tmandator
yt o
complywi t
hsect ions36,37,38,39and40i ndisposi
ti
onsofr i
ghtofoccupancy,
contr
aryto,t hedisposi
tionwillbeconsider
edv oid.Howev er
,thissecti
onismor e
generalasitpr ovidesont heimpactoff ail
ureto complyt othesectionsint hei
r
toget
hernessandnott heconsequenceofeach,hencedoesnotdirectl
ysui
ttheconcern
athand.

On the otherhand,wher et heCommi ssionerbelievest her

ei sl i
kelinessof
dispositi
ont otakeplacewi thouthim bei
ngnoti
fiedisempower edbyt helawt oi nf
orm
theconcer nedpar ti
esaboutt her equi
rementofseekingappr ovalandt hattheyshould
notpr oceedunl essthi
sr equir
ementi smet,aspersect i
on38( 2)ofCap113.I ncaseof
adi sposit
ionpr oceededwi thoutobtaini
ngtheappr ovalofthecommi ssioner,thelaw
termsi tas“inoperat
ive”accordingtosecti
on37(5)ofCap113.

I
tisatt
hisj
unct
ure Abual
y’
scase becomesr
elev
ant
,whatdoes “
shal
lbe

221
TLRpage288-305
222
Ref
ertosect
ion37(5)

72
i
noperati
ve”mean?Doest hefail
uretocompl ywiththisr
equir
ementdistortthewholeof
thecontract
,toget
herwithr i
ghtsofpar t
iesattachedandi nci
dentalthereto?Secti
on
37(6)oftheLandActi st
ot heeffectthat
,therequirementofapprovaltoadi sposi
ti
on
shallnotdisaff
ecttheapplicant
’sr i
ghttohi sproperty,i
nval
idateotherdi sposi
ti
on
procedur
esorrenderthewholeproceduredisquali
fi
ed.

I
nt hesamel ine,wewoul dwi sht or efersect
ion2( 2)oft heLaw ofCont ract
223
Act whi chbasicall
yst atesthat:“Notwithst
andingthepr ovisi
onsofpar agraphs(g)or
(j
)ofsubsect ion(1)oft hissection,wher eanywr it
tenlawi nf orcei
nTanzani aont he
dateonwhi chthisActcomesi ntooper ati
onpr ovi
dest hatanagr eement( howsoev er
descri
bed) ,ofthekindspeci fi
edt herei
n,shal lnotbeenf orceablebyact i
onunl essor
unti
lcertainrequir
ement stherei
nspeci fiedar ecompliedwi thorcer t
ainconsentar e
obtai
ned,nosuchagr eementshal lbev oidbyr easononl yt
hati tisnotenforceableby
acti
onundert hepr ovi
sionoft helawf orwantofcompl i
ancewi thanysuchr equirement
oroftheobt ai
ningofanysuchconsent .
”

Thesect
ionaboveisofnotiont
hat,
thecont
ractf
ordi
sposi
ti
onofl
andcannotbe
voi
d byonlylackofcommi ssi
oner’
sapproval
,in ot
herwordssuch agr
eementis
enf
orceabl
easpersect
ion2(1)(g)ofCap345.

Ont hatbasis,thisconf l
i
ctofl awsat tr
actscourts’attentionandAbualy’scasei n
parti
cular
.Int ry
ingt odef i
net heasser ti
on“ shallbeinoperat i
v e”thecourtwasoft he
opini
ont hat,itdoesnotent ailinvali
dit
y,butatl eastthecont ractinquesti
onisv alid,
excepti n ci
rcumst anceswher ei tispr ejudi
cialtot hei nterestsoft hepar amount
l
andlord,henceconsi deri
ngt henat ureoflandowner shi
psy stem (ri
ghtofoccupancy )
appli
cablei nTanzani a,wher ethepr esidentist hechieflandownerent r
ustedbyt he
publc224andt
i hecommonl awpr inci
pleofsanct i
tyofcontract ,
whi chhasitsappli
cation
225
i
nTanzani abyv ir
tueofsect i
on2( 2)oftheJudi catur
eandAppl icati
onofLawsAct .

Twoessent
ial
test
swer
eputi
ntopl
ace

1)Wher elackofapprovalorconsentisprejudicialtothei nterest

softheparamount
l
andlord, i
nsuchscenariothesalecontractt houghv alid,isunenf
orceableonthe
groundofpublicint
erest.
2)Wher el ackofappr ovalisnotpr ejudicialt othe int erestofthe paramount
Landlord,insuchscenar i
ot hecourtwoul di nter
v eneandenf orceacont r
act
againstt hedefaul
ti
ng party.Ifsuchappr ov alissoughtand i sr ef
used,the
contractbecomeswhol lyunenfor
ceablet houghv ali
d, andanyexpensesi ncur
red
bythepar ti
esmayber ecoveredbylegalact i
oni fnecessar y.

Asshownabov e,thesetwoposi ti
onsaresti
l
lrel
evanttot
hecur rentlegalf
rame
workindisposi
ti
onbysal e,becausetheLandAct1999hasnotdirectlydefi
nedwhat
meanstobei noperat
ive,astheeffectoff
ail
uretoobtai
ntheappr
ov al.So,thet
ugis
onl
ytackl
edbythiscase.

223
Cap345Revi
sededi
ti
on2002
224
Sect
ion4oft
heLandAct
,Cap113
225
Cap358

73
 Di
sposit
ionsbywayofsal ethathavenotbeenr egister
edintheLandRegister
,and
areot herwi
ser equir
edtoberegist
ered.Secti
on62( 2)oft heLandAct1999,requir
es
that,inst
rumentsef f
ecti
nganydi
spositi
ontober egi
steredinaccordancewi
ththelaws
relati
ng tor egi
strat
ion ofi
nst
ruments affect
ing t
he land inrespectofwhi ch t
he
dispositi
onhasbeenmade.

Andf orthi
spur pose,theconcernedl aw istheLandRegi strati
onActCap334
underwhi chsecti
on41asamendedbysect ion21oft heMor tgageFi nancing(special
provi
sions)Act,2008requiresalllanddisposit
ionstober egi
steredt other egi
str
ar,by
theapplicantsubmitt
ingal lrel
evantdocument saccompani edbyt hepr escri
bedfee.
Furt
her,afterbei
ngregister
edadi sposit
ionshallbeeffectualtocr eate,t
ransfer
,varyor
exti
nguishanyest ateori nterestjustaf ew toment i
onont her equir
ementoft he
provi
sion.Assuch,subsection4ofsect i
on62oft he

LandActof1999i stotheeff
ectthat,t
heprovi
sionofsecti
on62shallnotappl
y
t
ooraf
fecttheoperat
ionofanycontr
actforadisposi
ti
onundertheAct(
whichincl
udes
t
hel
andsaleagreementorcontr
act)
.

Uptothisjuncture,itisev i
dentthatther eisaconf li
ctbet weent hepr ovi
sionsof
sect i
ons62(2),62( 4)oft heLandActandsect i
on41oft heLandRegi str
ati
onAct
Cap. 334asamendedbyt heMor t
gageFi nancing( specialpr ovisions)Actof2008.I tis
sobecausesect i
on62( 2)oft heLandActr equi resr egistrati
onofdi spositi
onsoft he
ri
ghtofoccupancy ,includingt hesaleofl andandf ailuret odosot hedispositi
on
becomes i noperative,wi th section 41 ofCap. 334 especi ally subsecti
on 3 such
dispositi
onbecomesi neffectual
.Theconf l
ictbecomesmor econcent r
atedundert he
prov i
sionsofsect i
on62( 4)oft heLandActwhi chpr ovidest hatt hesectionshallnot
appl ytooraffecttheoper ati
onofanycont ractf oradi sposi ti
onundert heLandAct .
Thati stosay,accordingt oi t
,evenifthereisnor egistrationoft hedispositi
onbyaway
ofsal e,thedisposi t
ionmadewi l
loperate. Andher ei swher et hecour tneedst o
i
nt erveneandresolvet heconf li
ctandhencet her elevancyoft hecaseofAbual yAlibhai
Azi zvs.Bhat
iaBrot hersLt d226comesi nt
opl ay227

Thereforeinouropi ni
on,basedi nthecaseofAbual yAl ibhaiAzizi’
scasei s
rel
ev anttot heconf l
i
ctbet weensect i
ons62( 2)and62(4)oft
heLandAct ,togetherwith
section41oft heLandRegi str
ati
onActCap. 334andweconcurt ot hesameopi nionthat,
i
ft hereisfai l
uretoregi st
eradi sposi t
ionoflandbyawayofsal eandt heenforcement
theretoisnotpr ej
udicialtot heinterestsoft heparamountlandlor d(thepresidenton
behal fofthepubl ic),thent hecont ractofsaleshouldbeoper ati
v eandef f
ectualand
undersuchsi tuati
ont hepar tywhohasper formedhisorherpar toft hebargainhas t o
beassi stedbyt hecour ttoenf or
cet hecontractagai
nstthedefault
ingpar ty
.

Andf i
nall
y ,secti
on2(2)oftheLaw ofContr
actActCap345shouldcomeinto
playt
oenforcet hecont r
actofsal
easitprohi
bit
sotherpr
erequi
sit
econdi
ti
onsputby
anyotherlaw forenf or
ceabi
li
tyofsuchanagreementafterthedatewhi
chCap345
cameintooperation.

226
(
2001)1EA10(CAT)
227
(2001)1EA10(
CAT)

74
 228
Byv i
rtueofsection41oft heLandRegi strat
ionAct i
tisar equi
rementallt
he
di
sposit
ionst oberegister
edandf ail
uretoregistermakest hedi spositi
onin-
eff
ectual
andcanext i
nguishtheinteresti
nLand.Beforet heenactmentoft heLandActi n1999
al
lregi
strat
ionsweregov ernedbytheLandRegist r
ati
onActonl y.
229
Howev er,theposi ti
onchangedsoonaf t
ertheenactmentoftheLandAct i
n
230
1999,sect ion 62(2) made the r
equir
ementofr egi
strat
ion mandator
y onl
yf or
disposit
ionbywayofsal eunderthegrant
edRightofOccupancywhichisgover
nedby
theLandAct .Thatis,af t
er1999boththeLandActandt heLandRegist
rati
onActCap
334ar ereferr
edinmat ter
sofLandRegistr
ati
on.

Bef
ore1999t herequi
rementf orapprovalwasmandator
y,Regul
ati
ons3( 1)of
LandRegul
ati
onsof1960al ldisposit
ionsrequir
edregi
str
ati
onofRightofoccupancy
andthatadisposit
ionofar ightofoccupancyshallnotbeoperati
veunlessitisin
wri
ti
ngandapprovedbytheGov ernor
.

Butaft
ertheenactmentoft heLandActin1999t heposit
ionchangedabitt
his
ti
medi sposi
ti
onrequi
rednotifi
cati
onandnotapprovalexceptf
orsomef ewcategor
ies
whichstil
lrequi
reapprov
alasbyv ir
tueofRegul
ati
on3( 1)ofGNno.74of2001and
231
secti
on37(1)oftheLandAct .

Thatmeansthepositi
onhasnotchangedmuchwi t
hdisposi
ti
onsbywayofsale,
i
tsrequirementi
salmostt hesamebef oretheenact
mentoft heLandActandaf t
er
enactmentoftheLandAct,andsoi nourposi
t i
onweconsi
dertheAbual
y’
scasebeing
rel
evantevenwit
hthecurr
entposit
ionoflandlaw.

34.
Discusst
het
wot
ypesofmor
tgagespr
ovi
dedbyt
heLandAct
,1999?

Whenoneper sonl endsmoneyt oanot herhemaybecont enttomaket heloan

withoutsecur
ityorhemaydemandsomesecur i
tyforthepaymentofthemoney .Buti
f
asecur i
tyofadequat ev al
ueisgi v
enf ortheloan,thelenderi
spr ot
ect
edev enifthe
borrowerbecomesi nsolventbecauset helenderhasacl ai
mt ot
hesecuri
tywhichtakes
precedence overthe cl ai
ms ofot hercr edit
ors.Hence mor t
gage.Basing int hi
s
backgroundIintendinthispapertodi scusst hetwot y
pesofmor t
gageprovi
dedbyt he
LandActof1999asf oll
ow;

Fi
rst,i
sLegalMor tgages:Alegalmor t
gageoccurswhent heownergi veslegalt i
tl
e
ofpropert
ytoacr edi
tortosecurepay mentoftheowner'
sdebt .Inat y
picalmor t
gage,
oncet hedebtorpay soffthedebt,legalt
itl
etothepropert
ywi llrev
erttot heoriginal
owner.Inotherwor ds,alegalmortgageisthemostsecur eandcompr ehensivef orm
ofsecur i
tyi nt
erest.Ittransf
ersl egaltit
let othe Mortgagee and pr eventst he
mor t
gagorfrom deali
ngwi t
hthemor t
gagedassetwhil
eiti
ssubj ecttothemor tgage.
228
Cap334
229
Cap113
230
Ibi
d
231
Ibi
d

75
 I
not herwor ds,al egalmor tgageisexact lywhatitsoundsl i
ke- -it
'sasecur it
y
i
nstr
umentt hatmeet sal lofy ourstate'
slaws.Legalmor tgageshav
eal loftheirblanks
f
il
led i
n wi t
h cor r
ectinf ormation and ar esigned i
nt her i
ghtplaces.They '
real so
r
ecordedaccor dingtot hel awsandr egulati
onsofthecount yinwhichthepr opertyis
l
ocated.Legalmor t
gagesar ebi ndi
ngdocument sthat
,wi t
houtadoubt ,l
ocky ouinto
makingy ourloanpay ment sorfacingforeclosur
e.

Sect
ion113( 5)( b)oft heLandAct ,1999menti
onsdocument swhi
chcoul dbe
deposit
edt ocreat
eal i
enbydeposi tofdocument.I
tmentions:(i)acert
if
icateofa
grant
edr i
ghtofoccupancy ;(i
i)acerti
fi
cat
eofacust omar
yr i
ghtofoccupancy ;(
ii
i)a
documentofal ease;(iv)anyotherdocumentwhichmaybeagr eeduponevidenci
nga
ri
ghttoani nt
erestinland;or(v)anyotherdocument
swhichmaybeagr eedupon,t o
secureanypayments.

Itisnotclearfrom thewor dingofsect i

on113( 5)( b)whetheranakeddepositof
documentwoul dsuf f
icetoconv eyt helegaltit
leorthedeposi thastobeaccompanied
bySecond,isEquitableMor tgages:Bydef i
nit
ionandmeani ng,anequit
ablemor t
gage
i
nwhi chthelenderi ssecuredbyt akingpossessionofal ltheorigi
nalt
it
ledocuments
ofthepropertythatser vesassecur ityforthemor tgage.Itgivesthemortgageethe
ri
ghttoforecl
oseont heproperty,sellit
,orappointar ecei
verincaseofnonpayment.

Anequitabl
emor t
gageasdescr i
bedbyBuckl eyLJinSwi ssBankCor porationv
Ll
oy dsBankLtd232 “
iscreatedwhent hel egalownerofthepropertyconstit
uti
ngt he
securi
tyenter
sintosomei nstrumentordoessomeactwhi ch,thoughinsuffi
cientt o
conferalegalestateort i
tleinthesubjectmat t
eruponthemor tgagee,nevertheless
demonstrat
esabi ndingintenti
ontocreateasecur i
tyi
nfavourofthemor tgagee,ori n
otherwordsevi
dencesacont r
acttodoso”.

Anequi tablemor tgagemayar i

sewher et heownerofal egalestateinlandexecut es
ani nfor malori mper fectchargeov ertheest at
eorwher et hechargeef ail
st ocompl y
wit
ht her equir
ement spr ovi
dedbyl aw.36I fsuchacont ractt omor t
gagei senforceable
233
i
twi llber egardedasamor t
gagei nequi t
y. Suchachar geoperatesinequi t
yupont he
234
consci enceoft hemor tgagor. I
nsuchci rcumstance,i
ft hemor tgagei senforceable
equityl ooksont hatasdonewhi choughtt obedoneandi naccor dancewi t
ht herulesin
Wal shvLonsdal e235 t
reatsthet ransacti
onasav ali
dequi tabl
emor t
gageoft helegal
236
estate.

232
[
1982]AC584at594
233
InSwi ssBankCor por
ationvLl oydsBankLt dat595, Buckl
eyL. J.st atedthat“acont racttomor tgage
proper ty,
realorpersonal ,wil
l,normal l
yatleast
,bespeci fi
cal
lyenf orceable,foramer eclai
m ofdamages
orr epaymenti sobv iousl
ylessv aluablethanasecur i
tyinthedebt or’sinsolvency.Ifitisspecifi
cally
enf orceable,t
heobl igati
ont oconf erthepropri
etar
yinterestwillgiverisetoanequi t
ablechar geupont he
subj ectmat t
erbywayofmor t
gage. ”AlsoinUnitedBankofKuwai tvSahi bandOt hers[ 1997]Ch107at
120, Chadwi ckJ.stat ed“anequi t
abl emortgageorchar gemayal soar iseoutofspeci fi
callyenforceable
cont racttocreateasecur ity”.
234
Wi ndell
avHughes( 1999)9BPR17141at17143quot edinG&Gp.599.
235
[1882]Ch.D9at15.
236
Par kervHousef ield39ER1004; SwissBankCor porati
onvLl oy dsBankLt dat595D- F.Thei ncompl ete
instrumenti sregardedi ncour tofequi t
yasev i
denceofanagr eementt ocreateamor tgage.SeeMest aer
vGi ll
esppie[1803-13]Al lERRep594at595F- GperLor dEldonL

76
 Equit
ablemortgagescanbecr eatedinsomeot her,morearcanel
egalsituat
ions.For
i
nstance,ift
helendermakesy ougiveitanact ualdeedthati
tholdsinescrowsot hatit
cantakey ourpropertywit
houtforeclosure,acour twouldprobabl
yrolli
tbackt oan
equit
ablemor t
gage.Vendorandv endeeliens,whi
char esometi
mesusedi ncont r
actfor
deedtransact
ions,canal
soturnintoequitablemortgages.

Anequit
abl
emor t
gagemayar i
seeit
herbecausethemor t
gageehasnotexecutedan
i
nstr
umentwhichissuf fi
cientt
otransf
erthelegalest
ate,orbecausethemort
gaged
237
pr
opert
yisequit
able, orbecauset heparti
eshav edecidedtocreat
eanequi t
abl
e
mort
gage.

Anequi t
ablemor tgagecanbecr eatedbyadef ectivelegalmor tgage.Adef ect
ive
l
egalmor tgageist reatedasanagr eementt ogr antalegalmor tgage, andifenforceable
creat
esanequi tablemor t
gage.Thel awr equiresthatthemor tgagemustbei nwr it
ing
238
andregistered. Fur thermor e,i
tisrequiredt hattheconsentoft heCommi ssi
onerf or
239
Landsast ot het r
ansf eroftheest at
emustbesoughtandobt ained. Onceanyoft he
condit
ions precedenti nt ransferoft he legalest ate ori nteresti s unf
ulfi
l
led,t he
240
tr
ansactionifenforceabl eresult
sinanequi tablemor t
gage.
241
nGuar
I antyDi scountCovCr editFinanceLt
d, i
twasheldthatt
hecourtwi
l
ltreat
anineff
ectivelegalmor t
gageascr eati
nganequitablemor t
gage.Theappl
i
cablemaxim
i
s“ equit
yr egardsasdonet hatwhi choughttobedone” .Thi
shasbeent heguiding
posit
ionregardingthecreati
onofanequi tabl
emor tgage.

Anotherform ofmortgagecapabl eofbeingcreat

edundert heLandAct,1999isan
i
nformalmor t
gage.Section113 ( 5)(a)pr ovi
desthatnothing inthissecti
onshal
l
operatetopreventaborrowerfrom of f
eringandalenderfr
om acceptingawr i
tt
enand
witnessedundert
aking,
theclearintenti
onofwhi chi
stocharget hebor
rower’
slandwi
th
therepaymentofmoneyormoney ’
swor thobtai
nedfr
om thelender.

Tosayi nshort,anequi tabl

emor t
gagei nwhichthelenderissecur
edbyt aki
ng
possessi
onofal lt
heoriginalti
tl
edocumentsofthepropert
ythatser
vesassecuri
tyfor
themor t
gage.Howev er
,anequi tabl
emor t
gagewil
lbesubordinat
etothepri
ori
tygiv
en
toalegalmortgageandt hereli
esthedi
ffer
encebet
weent hetwo.

35.
In allland cont
racts,ther
ei s need f ordocument at
ion and sometimes
regist
rat
ionoftheinter
estoverthel andmustbehi ghlyconsidered.Wi
ththe
aids ofstatut
ory prov
isi
on explain br
iefl
yt he proceduralrequir
ementsin
respecttother
egist
rati
onoftheinterest
sov ertheeasement .

237
James, p.310.
238
Sees.41( 1)(b)
,(2)ofCap.334.
239
Forthediscussi
onont hecurr
entposi
ti
onr
egardi
ngt
her
equi
rementoft
heconsentoft
he
Commi ssi
onerforLands,
240
Equityt
reatsasdonewhi choughtt
obedone.
241
[1963]EA345

77
 Thequest
ioni
sallaboutexpl aintheprocedureforregi
strat
ionoftheinter
estsover
theeasement.Bydefi
nit
iont het erm Easement scompr i
secer tai
nright
swhi chone
l
andownermayenjoyoverthel andofhi sneighbour
.Ther i
ghtamount stoaninter
estin
l
andal l
owi
nganownerofgi v
enpi eceoflandt ouseorrestr
icttheuseofanotherpiece
oflandownedbyanot
herowneri nsomespeci fi
cway .
Onecansayalso,wit
heasementtheval
ueofthelandcanbei
ncr
eased,i
naccessi
ble
l
andcanbeaccessi bleandwherethereisnowat eronecanbr
ingwatertotheland.
242
Section66andsecti
ons143upt o158oft heLandAct dealswitheasementsand
analogousr
ight
s.
243
Int
hecaseofHewl i
nsv sShippam easementwasdef inedasapr i
vil
egethatone
nei
ghbourhasofanot heri nwri
tingorbyprescr
ipt
ion.Accor
dingtosecti
on31(2)ofthe
244
LawofLimitat
ionAct easementincl
udes(a)theaccessanduseofl i
ghtorairtoand
fr
om anybuil
dingenj
oy edwi ththebuil
dingasaneasement( b)anywayorwatercourse
ortheuseofanywaterenj oyedasaneasement .
Thelandthatbenef i
tsfr
om/ bytheeasementi scall
edt hedomi nantl andandthe
ownerofthatl
andi sthedominantownerandt hel andthatisaffectedbyt heeasement
245
i
scall
edtheservi
entl andandtheownerofthatlandt heservi
entowner . Aneasement
canhavethefoll
owi ngimpactsont heser
vientland:-(i)conferrighttodosomet hi
ng
over
,underorupont heservi
entland,(
ii
)conferrighttorestr
ictcertai
nact sf r
om bei
ng
doneonservi
entland.
General
l
y,thedomi nantownerisent i
tl
edtoobjecttot heuseroft helandbythe
servi
entownerwhichinterf
ereswit
hhisenjoymentofri
ghtsintheland.Butsuchr
ighti
s
notarightt
orestr
ictabsolutel
ytheuserofanyareabytheservientownerbutonl
ysuch
userwhichsubst
antial
lyint
erfer
eswiththeexer
ciseofhi
srights.

246
Asamat terofregist
rat
ion,undersecti
on37 ofLimitat
ionAct prov
idest
he
pr
ovi
sionf
orr
egist
rat
ionofti
tl
etolandoreasementacqui
redundert
hisAct .

Thelaw providesthatwher eaper sonclaimst ohav ebecomeent i

tledbyadv erse
possessi
ont oanyl andhel dunderar ightofoccupancyorf oranyot herestateor
i
nterest
,hemayappl ytot heHi ghCour tforanor dert hatheber egisteredundert he
rel
evantlawast hehol deroft her i
ghtofoccupancyorsuchot herestateori nterest,as
thecasemaybe,i npl aceoft hepersont henr egister
edassuchhol der,andt heHi gh
Courtmay ,uponbeingsat i
sfi
edt hattheapplicanthasbecomesoent i
tledt osuchl and,
makeanor dert
hatheber egisteredaccordingly,ormaymakesuchot heror derast he
247
HighCour tmaydeem f it
.

242
Cap113RE2002
243
5B&C229
244
Cap89RE2002
245
Sect
ion145(1)and(
2)oftheLandAct
246
Cap89RE2002
247
Sect
ion37(
1)ofLimi
tati
onActCap89RE2002

78
 Thelawal sodecl ar
est hatwhereanor derhasbeenmadeundersubsect i
on( 1)
248
theRegistr
arshal ltakesuchst epsasmaybenecessar yt ogi
v eeffectt ot
heor der .
Wher eaper sonhasacqui redaneasementundert heprovi
sionsoft hisAct ,hemay
applytotheHi ghCour tforanor dervest
ingtheeasementi nhim,anduponsuchor der
beingmadehemaypr esentthesamet ot heRegistr
arforregi
strati
onint heregist
erof
249
thelandaff
ected, andtheRegi st
rarshal
lregi
sterthesameaccor dingl
y .

Not
withst
andingtheprovi
sionsofthisActorofanyot herwr i
tt
enl aw,noestateor
i
nterestinanylandoreasementshallvesti nanypersonbyadv ersepossessionorby
vi
rtueofprescr
ipti
onunlessanorderi
nr espectofsuchestateorint
erest,orasthecase
250
maybe, easement,hasbeenmadeundersubsect ion(1)orsubsecti
on(3).

Toconcl
udetheabov eexpl
ain,i
tist ruethatinalll
andcont r
acts,t
her
eisneedf or
documentat
ionandsomet i
mesregistrati
onoft heint
erestoverthelandmustbehi ghly
consi
dered.Witht he ai
ds of statutory provi
sion expl
ain brief
lythe procedural
requi
rement
sinrespectt
otheregist
rationoftheinter
estsovertheeasement.

36.
General
ly
,anadmini
str
ationofri
ghtofoccupancydoesnotrequir
etheconsent
ofthecommissi
onerauthori
zedoff
iceri
nst
eaditrequi
resnot
if
icati
on.Di
scuss

Seequest
ionNo.33

37.
Fail
uretoprovegoodt itl
etotheirl
ands,bybothMulbadawVi
ll
ageCounci
land
othersinthecaseofNAFCOv .MULBADAW VI LLAGECOUNSILANDOTHERS,
Cour tofAppealofTanzani a Dares Salaam Civi
lAppealNo.3 of1985
(unrepor
ted) and Ny agwaswa N. P int he case of METHUSSELLAH P.
NYAGWASWAv .CRI
STOPHERMBOTENYI RABUC.CNo.14/1985madethem
tolosethei
rlandsandt hosecases.Di
scuss

I
nthi
squestion,Iam goingtodiscussont heposit
ionoftwocasetoseewhether
fai
lur
etoprovegoodt it
letotheirl
ands,bybot hMulbadawVill
ageCounci
landothersin
thecaseofNAFCOv .MULBADAW VI LLAGECOUNSI LANDOTHERS, CourtofAppealof
TanzaniaDaresSalaam Civi
lAppealNo.3of1985( unreport
ed)andNyagwaswaN. Pin
thecaseofMETHUSSELLAHP.NYAGWASWAv .CRI
STOPHERMBOTENYI RABUC. CNo.
14/1985madet hem tolosetheirl
andsandt hosecases.

248
Sect
ion37(
2)i
bid
249
Sect
ion37(
3)i
bid
250
Sect
ion37(
4)i
bid

79
 Thefactofthesecasear easfoll
ows;tostartwi
thNafcov.Mul badaw Vil
lage
CounsilandOthers,therespondentsfi
ledasuiti
nt heHighCourtagai
nstt heappell
ant
clai
ming generaland speci aldamages f ortrespass by t
he appellantov ert he
respondent
'slandsanddest ructi
onoft hei
rcropsandhut s.
 TheHi ghCour tgav e
j
udgmenti nfavouroftherespondents.

Onappealt heappel lantsarguedt hatt her espondent shadnotest ablishedt hat

theyoccupi edthel andsei therundercust omar yorbygr antundert heVi l
lagesand
UjamaaVi llagesAct ,1975. Ther espondentVi l
l
ageCounci lt
houghdul yregist eredand
i
ncor porat
ed coul d notshow t hatt he land was al l
ocated toi tby t he Di stri
ct
Dev el
opmentCounci lasr equiredbydirecti
on5oft heDi recti
onsundert heVi l
lagesand
UjamaaVi llagesAct, 1975. Asf ort
heindi vi
dualv il
lagers,thesefai
ledtopr ov et hatthey
wer enativeswi thi
nt hemeani ngofthel aw. Mor eov er
,mostoft hecl aimantv i
ll
agers
didnott estifyincour tbeli
evingaf ewsel ectedv ill
agerscoul drepresentt hem.  Itwas
arguedt hatt heclaimsofeachv i
ll
agerwer edi stinctandhadt obet est i
fi
edbyt he
vil
lagerconcer ned.

Infav ourofthevil
l
agersitwasarguedthat,iftheyhadnor i
ghttopossesst he
l
and,they,atleast,wer
elicenseesoftheappel
lantsandt hattheappel
lant
'sacti
onof
dest
royi
ngt herespondents'
proper
tyamountedtotrespass.Thecourtwasheldthat
:

i
) Noneoft hev i
ll
ager swhohadt esti
fiedcouldbesai dt ohav ehel dl andon
customaryt enure,asnonehadest abli
shed,orev enav err
edthathewasa
nati
ve;
i
i
) TheMul badaw Vi l
lageCounci ldidnotownanyl andbecauset her ewasno
evi
denceofanyal l
ocat i
onofl andt oitbytheDi str
ictDev elopmentCounci l;
 
i
i
i) Thef actt hatt hev il
lagecounci lsucceeded t hepr eviousuni ncorporated
vi
ll
ageini t
sadmi nistr
ativ
ef unctionov eraspeci fiedareaconf ersnot i
tl
eof
anytypeoversuchl andont hev i
llagecouncil;
 
i
v) Sincet hev il
lagerswer ecul t
ivati
ng and pl anti
ng wi t
h per mission oft he
appell
ant'
slandt heywer einpossessi onlawfully
,asl i
censees, t
heycancl ai
m
damagesi nt r
espassf orthedest ructi
onoft heirpropertybyt heappel l
ant.

Appeal
all
owed.
 

I
nthecaseofMet thusel
ahPaulNy agwaswav sChr istopherMboteNy i
rabu251the
factwast hat;t
heappellanthadpur chasedanunsur veyedpi eceoflandhel dunder
customaryl aw.Thesalewasappr ovedbyt heCCM chai rmanandwar dsecr etary.The
peaceincludedthelandunderdi spute.Subsequentlyther espondentobtainedar i
ghtof
occupancyov erthedisputedland. Bef oret herespondentcoul dbuildt hereont he
appell
antst ar
tedtobuil
doni tisclai
mi ngthathewast her i
ghtfulowneroft heland.He
prayedforani nj
uncti
ontor est
raintheappel l
antfr
om ent eringorremainingont hesaid
plotandfordamages.

TheHighCourtgav
ejudgmentinfav
ouroft
herespondentwi
thcost
s.I
tfound
t
hatt
her espondentwasthelegalowneroft
hedisput
edPl otandthatt
her
ightof

251
(
1985)TLR103

80
occupancyissued tother espondentwasobt ained l
egall
yand withoutf r
aud.The
appel
lanthadt r
espassedont herespondent '
spl otandt hattheri
ghtofoccupancy
i
ssuedt otherespondentexti
nguishedallpriorrightsandinter
estsoft heappel
lantin
thesaidplot
.Itawardeddamagest ot
her espondenti nthesum ofShs.287,200/=.The
appel
lantappeal
ed.

TheCour tofAppealhadt hef oll

owingt osayt hat…undert heLandOr di nance
therewer etwosy stem r ightsofoccupancy .Onei scr eatedbyadi rectgr antofpubl i
c
l
andbyt hePr esidenti ntermsofsect i
on6ofCap113, theotheronei sthatofaper son
holdingl andi naccor dancewi t
hnat ivelawandcust om. …ri
ghtofahol derofar ightof
occupancybyv irt
ueofnat iv
el aw andcust om wasnotext i
ngui shedandhet her eby
becomi nga" squat ter"onanar eabei ngdecl ar
edapl anningar ea.…theappel lant'
s
i
nt erestint hel andwhi chder i
vedf rom nativelaw andcust om,wasnotcompul soril
y
registerable,andbyv irt
ueofsect ion33( 1)(b)ofCap334t her ightoft her espondent
vis-a-vi
st heappel lantwasnoti ndefeasibleanduni mpeachabl eint heci rcumst ances…
ri
ght stol and hel dinar egisteredv i
ll
agecoul donlybet r
ansferredwi t
ht heappr ov alof
theVi ll
ageCounci l..
.t hesalet otheappel lant,f
orlackofappr ov al,wasv oidandofno
effect.Theappel l
anthadnotacqui r
edanyr ightortitl
et oanyl and.Ther ewast husno
ri
ghtt obeext i
ngui shed.

Frankl
yspeaking,the l
and tenure sy
stem ofTanzani
a has passed through
diff
erenthist
ori
calmil
estoneswhichformt hebasi
sfort
heanalysi
softhel andtenure
regimeingeneralandtenurer
elat
ionsforl
andownersandusersi
npart
icularint
hepast
eightdecades.

Thehi st
orydat esbackt o1923whent heBr it
ishcoloniall
egi
slati
veassembl y
enactedt heLandOr dinancecap113t ogui deandr egulat
elanduseandowner shipin
Tangany ikawhichwast hei
rpr otect
oratecol ony. Pr i
ortot hisl
aw,al lthelandi n
Tanzani awasownedundercust omaryt enuregov ernedbycl anandtr i
baltr
aditi
ons.
Ideal
l
y ,elder
sofr especti
v eclansandt ri
beswer ebestowedwi thpowerst odetermine
l
andal locati
onsandr esol
v econfli
ctswhenev ertheyarose.

Whent he1923l andlawcamei ntofor

ce,itideal
lyi
mposedr adicalchangeson
the l
and owner shi
p and use pat
ternthatexisted pri
orto coloni
alism.The nobl e
arr
angementi nt helocall
andadmi ni
str
ati
onsy stemswer edisrupt
edandt radi
ti
onal
i
nstit
uti
onsreplacedwi t
hcoloni
almachiner
ythathadl it
tl
eregardont heright
st oland
ofthecoloni
alsubjects.

Inordertoreinfor
ceadmini
strat
ivedeci
sions,anewform ofownershi
pt hrough
grantedright
sofoccupancywasi nt
roduced.Alt
houghthedeemedr i
ghtsofoccupancy
thatthenat i
vesenjoyedwerenotdissol
vedbyt hi
slaw,theact
ualpract
icereveledbig
diff
erencesinreal
izati
onofthet
woset sofoccupancyri
ghts.

Deemedr
ight
swereconsi
der
edtohav
elowval
ueandunenforceabl
eunli
kethe
gr
ant
edr i
ght
swhichonecoul
dprovebyj
ustashow oft
it
ledeedorcerti
fi
cat
e.Thus

81
between1920’sand1960’ swhenTanzaniagotheri ndependence,thenativeswho
ownedl andcust
omari
lyexperi
encedlossoft
heirl
andstothecolonialst
ateinfavorof
i
ntroducti
on ofcommer cialf
arm estat
es.Thosewhosel and wasal i
enated were
for
cedt obecomecasuallabor
ersi
ntheestat
es.

Thi
si sill
ustratedintheofMTOROBI NMWAMBAv .THEATTORNEYGENERAL252
wher et hi
swasan appealf rom theHi gh cour tofTangany i
kasi t
ting i n appel late
j
urisdicti
onwhi chal lowedanappealbyt heat torneygener alofthet erritoryf rom t he
t
h
decisionoft her egisteroftitl
eswhoon9 Apr il1949, acti
ngundert hepr ov i
sionoft he
l
andr egistryor dinanceallowedt heapplicati
onoft heappel l
antforfir
str egi str
at i
onofa
parcelofl andsi tuatedinUpangaar eaofDaressal aam.Fur theritwashel di nteral i
a
that;Wher eapar ticul
art r
ibehasadi ff
erentl aw andcust om f r
om t heper mi ssive
occupat i
onalr i
ghtgener all
yr ecogni
zedbynat i
v etri
besi neastAf ri
ca,r ecogni zingan
i
ndividual’
sr ightofowner shipequi val
entoff r
eehol dt enureasknownt oEngl ishl aw
theonusofpr oofisupont heper sonwhosoal l
eges.

I
mper ialGermandecr
ee1895paragraph3promul gatedt
hatcl
aimstoownershi
p
oflandbyi ndivi
dualswer
enottobeadmi t
tedunl
esspr ovedbydocumentaryev
idence.
Themaj orissuei nthi
sappealwaswhetherornottheWashomv itr
iber
ecogni
zedthe
ri
ghtofani ndivi
dualtoownland.Thedecisi
onoft hehi ghcour
tofTanganyi
kawas
consol
idated.

Si
ncet heappel
l
anthasnodocumentoft it
leatall
,hedi
dnothav eprovabl
eti
tl
e
t
oownershi
pwhichwouldhav ebeenacceptedbytheGermanadmi ni
str
ati
on.Themost
t
hathewouldhaveprovedunderGermanl awist heri
ghtofusufr
uctinrespectoft
he
l
andwhi
chheorhispredecessorhadoccupiedforatl
easttwoyear
s.

I
nanutshel l
,itistruet
hatfai
luretoprovegoodt i
tl
et otheirlands,byboth
Mul badawVi ll
ageCouncilandot
hersinthecaseofNaf cov.MulbadawVi l
lageCounsi
l
andOt hers,CourtofAppealofTanzaniaDaresSal aam Civi
lAppealNo.3of1985
(unreported)and Ny agwaswa N.Pint he case ofMet hussell
ah P.Ny agwaswa v.
253
CristopherMbot eNyi
rabu madet hem tolosethei
rlandsandt hosecases.

38.
Landwi
thoutunexhaust
edi
mpr
ovementhasnov
aluei
nTanzani
a.Di
scuss

Governmentorgov er
nmentalagencymayacqui r
el andofani ndi
vidualownerfor
somepubl i
cpur pose.I
nthesecases,t
heownerisentit
ledforcompensationofproper
ty
andlossesincurredorevenoflostpr
ofi
t.Thus,
basingont hi
sintr
oduct
ionIam goingin
thi
spapertodi scussthestat
ementthatlandwit
houtunexhaustedimprovementhasno
val
ueinTanzani a.
I
tshoul
dbenot
edt
hat
,thel
andpol
i
cyof1995andt
heLandActof1999asper

252
(1953)20E.
A.C.
A108
253
C.CNo.14/1985

82
secti
on3( f)provi
dethatani nt
eresti nl
andhasv alueandsuchv alueshouldbetaken
i
ntoconsi derat
ioninanytransacti
onaf f
ecti
ngthati nter
est
.Howev er
,Secti
on20(3)of
theLandActpr ovi
dedthatlandwhi chwasacquiredbef or
et heenactmentoftheact
shallbe deemed t o have no value;thismeantt hatsale ofsuch land woul
d be
i
mpossi bl
easi twasf ur
therpr ovidedforundersect i
on37(8)thatnosal eofland
withoutunexhaustedi
mprov ementswoul dbeapprov ed.
I
notherwords,thismeantt hatbarel andhadnov alueandcoul dnotbedi sposed,as
attemptingtodosowoul dinviterevocat i
ontotheowner shiptothepot enti
alsell
er,f
or
fai
luretodev el
op.Theef f
ect sofsuchapr ovi
sionwer efarreachi
ngasi tdidnotonly
denyowner soflandt herighttodi sposei tbutalsodeni edthem recognizingitasa
property.Hencebarelandcoul dneit
herbeusedasat radeitem norcol
lateralandthose
whohadnocapaci tytodev el
opt heirlandhadnot hingtodowi thitbutwai tforthei
r
ri
ght sofoccupancytober evoked.
InTanzania,thebasi
sofcompensati
onisonthebil
lofri
ghtsfr
om theConstit
uti
on
oftheUnitedRepubli
cofTanzaniaCAP2of12977asamendedt i
met ot i
me…Under
Art
icl
e24oft heConsti
tuti
onofTanzani
astat
edt hat
,anypersonisent i
tl
edtoown
pr
opertyandal sofai
randadequat
ecompensati
onshouldbepaidf ortheviol
ati
onof
pr
opertyri
ght.Howeverevenbef
orethebil
l
sofri
ghtsintheconst
it
utioncompensati
on
wasstil
lpayabl
e.
Landvaluemeanst hev alueofpieceofproperty,
includingbotht hev
alueoft hel and
i
tselfaswel lasanyi mpr ovement sthathavebeenmadet oit.Landvaluesincreases
whendemandf orlandexceedst hesupplyav ai
labl
ef orland,ori fpart
icul
arpi eceof
l
andhasi nt
rinsi
cv aluegr eaterthanneighbori
ngar eas( e.g.oilcanbef oundont he
l
and) .Ownersofland, uselandv al
uetodeterminehowmucht ochargeotherpartiesfor
i
tsuse.
Landval
ueinTanzaniahasbeendivi
dedintotwodiffer
entcompensat
iontrends,
t
hataret
heol
dtrendofcompensat
ionandthenew/cur
renttr
endofcompensat
ion,
1.Theol
dtr
endofcompensat
ion

The oldt r
end ofcompensat ion was bef or
e 1999 up to 1999 undert hi
st r
end
compensationwasf orunexhaustedimprovementwhi chwerefoundonthelandandnot
foranyt
hingelse.(Per
manenti mpr ovementontheland).Thi
swasbecauseatt hatt
ime
l
and(soi
l)r egarded has no v alue…and land i
s publ i
c and occupi
ers have onl
y
usufr
uctuar
yr i
ghts.
Accordingtothepay mentofunexhaust edimprov ementswasshapedbyNy er
ere
doctri
neoflandv alue.Ny er
eredoct r
ineofl andval
uei tgenerall
ybasedf r
om thel abour
theorybyJohnLockeonwhi chJohnLockement ionedi nhistheorythat,“whatsoever
thenher emov esoutoft hestateofnat ure….Hehasmi xedhislabourwith,andjoinedit
withsomet hingthathi sownandt herebymakesi thi spropert
y”thatmeans,each
personownhi sownbodyandt helabourt hathi
sbodyper f
ormsshouldbeequi valence
ofthepropertyowned.I fthatindi
vidualaddst hel
abourt oapi eceofpropertythatpiece
ofpropertybecomeshi sper sonalproperty.
Ny
erer
edoct
ri
neofl
andv
aluest
atet
hat
,landi
saf
reegi
ftf
rom God.Onwhi
chi
tmeans

83
thatlandis givenfreetoallli
vi
ngthingstheref
orei
tcannotbecompar edasanyother
commodi t
yt hatcr eated by man,as such l and cannot
,underany gr ounds be
transfor
medi ntoani tem f
orsaleinthemar ket
.Thebasisforhispositi
oni
shisbeli
ef
thatland,airandwat erarethegiftfrom Godt ohi
sl i
vi
ngcreation.Humansdonot
createoraddt oland,theyarebor
ntof i
nditther
eanddietoleav
ei tther
e.
Onhi sdoct r
inehest atesinteral iathat,“whenIusemyener gyandt alenttocleara
pieceofgr oundf ormyusei tiscleart hatIam t ry
ingt otr
ansf ormt hisbasicgiftfrom
Godsot hati tcansat isfyahumanneed.I ti9strue,howev er,thatthi
sl andisnotmi ne
butt heef fort
smadebymei nclearingt hatlandenabl emet ol ayclai
m ofowner ship
overt heclearedpi eceofgr ound.Buti tnotr eall
ythel anditselfthatbelongst omebut
onlyt heclearedgr oundwhi chwi l
lremainmi neasl ongasIcont i
nuetowor koni t
.By
cl
ear ingthatgr oundIhav eact uall
yaddedt oitsvalueandhav eenabledi ttobeusedt o
satisfyahumanneed.Whoev erthent akest hi
spieceofl and( ground)mustpaymef or
addi ngvaluet oitthr
oughcl ear ingitbymyownl abour”.
Asfarasny erer
edoct r
ineisconcernedmeanscompensat i
onshouldnotbeonlypai d
onunexhaustedimpr ov
ementsalonebutal soencapsulat
esinst
anceswherethevicti
m
haswast edhislabourinworki
ngt heland.Theref
ore,evenifapersondoesnotmake
unexhaustedi
mpr ovementsoverthelandheshouldbecompensat edonthelabourthat
hehaswor konthatland.
Nyer
ere doct
ri
ne ofland val
ue has been appli
ed in di
ff
erentcases concer
ned
compensat
ionundertheoldt r
end suchas,caseofLal at
aMsangawal eV.Henry
Mwalmu254,caseofNt
i i
yahel
aBonekaV.Kiji
jichaujamaaMutala255,
caseofAt
tor
ney
Gener
alV.LohayAkonaayandJosephLohay[
1995]TLR80.

2.Newt
rend(
cur
rentt
rend)f
rom 1999

Thenew t rendofcompensationstatedfr
om 1999t ocurrenttime….Thishappened
fol
l
owingt helandpoli
cyof1995whichcomeupwi tht
henewi deaaboutthelandv alue.
TheShivj
iCommi ssi
onof1994inrel
ati
ontolandmanagementandadmi ssi
onofl andin
Tanzani
aonwhi chthecommissiondealwit
hmatterrel
ati
ngt otheissueofl andv al
ue
andtheissueoflandcompensationt
hustheycomeupwi ththeNewl andpolicyof1995.

Thelandpol i
cyof1995suggest edt heareasinwhichcompensationshoul
dpay abl
e,as
perparagraph4.2ofthepol i
cyt hatcompensat i
onshouldbaseon,Marketval
ueoft he
real propert
y(l
and); Di
sturbance al l
owances; Tr anspor
t al
lowances; Profi
ts of
cult
ivat
ions;Costofacqui
ring,forgetti
nganot herl
and;andanyothercost
,expendit
ure
i
ncurredforcarry
ingdevel
opmentoft hatland.

Aftertheenact mentofl andAct1999andt hev i

l
lagel andAct1999t henew t r
endof
compensat ionst art
edt obeusedaspr ovi
dedunderSect i
on3( 1)(g)oft heLandAct
1999256 pr
ov i
det hat,paymentoffullf
airandpr omptcompensat ionandal sopr
ovided
thear eas/
itemsi nwhichcompensat i
onmustbepay ablethatar e,themar ketvalue,
distur
banceal l
owance,t ranspor
tall
owances,costofacqui r
ingland,int erestatmar ket
ratewi l
lbechar gedandanyot hercost.Otherprovisi
onsar eSect ion4( 3),Secti
on19
254
[1979]LRTNo.
3
255
(1988)TLR156
256
CAP113[ RE2002]

84
andSect
ion20(
3)oft
heLandAct
.

also,theVill
ageLandActof1999CAP114[ RE2002]undersect
ion3(
1)(
g)mentionthat
theinterestinlandhasv alueandunderPar agr
aph(h)ofthesameSecti
onprovidefor
thepr omptandf ai
rcompensat i
onforanyonewhosecust omaryuseoflandhasbeen
i
nt er
feredbyt hestateundertheActortheLandAcquisi
ti
onAct.

Fol
lowingtheenact
mentoft
heLandAct
,twor
egul
ati
onwer
epubl
i
shedt
osuppor
tthe
Actthatar
e,

1.Land(
compensat
ionCl
aims)Regul
ati
on,
2001G.
Nno.
790f2001

2.Land(assessmentofv
alueofl
andcompensat
ion)Regul
ati
ons,2001G.
N78of
2001.

Themai nreferencecaseundert hi
strendist hecaseofAtt
orneyGener alV.Si si
Enterprises257.Alsoint heAttorneyGeneralvLohayAkonaayandJosephLohay 258
t
he
courtsai dt hat" Wear ealsooft hef i
rmv iew thatwherether
ear enounexhaust ed
i
mpr ov ement s,butsomeef forthasbeenputi nt
ot hel
andbytheoccupier
,thatoccupi er
i
sent i
tled to pr ot
ection underAr t
icl
e24( 2)and f ai
rcompensation i
spay ablef or
depri
v ationofpr operty
.

TheCour t'
sruli
ng stat
esthatcompensat
ion i
sonlypayabl
ewhen t her
ear
e
unexhaustedimprovementsand/
orsomeoneisoccupyingt
helandandhadputsome
eff
ort--perhapscl
eari
ngiti
ntoafar
m;ther
emustbev al
ueaddedtot
heland.

Inonedeci sion,NationalAgr i
cult
ur alandFoodCor por at
ion( NAFCO)ver sus
MulbadawVi ll
ageCounci land66Vi l
lagers,thecour tsrul edt hatVill
ageCounci l
shol d
l
andandcoul dallocatelandwi t
hinitsgeogr aphicaljurisdiction"providedi tdoesso
bona f i
de and pay s pr ompt and adequat e compensat i
on f or unexhaust ed
i
mpr ovements,
"whi chmi ghtexcl
udepast oral
istsorf orager sf rom anycompensat ion.
Therefor
e,vi
l
lageshav ether i
ghttoallocateland, despiter ightsheldbyor di
narypeopl e
i
fitdoessoi n`goodf ait
h'andpay scompensat ion;butcompensat i
onwi llonlybepai d
for"
improvements"t otheland(e.g.buil
dings,plowedf i
elds) ,notforthel anditsel
f.The
keyissueisi
fapast ureisan` i
mprovement ;'i
fnot ,pastoralistsreceivenot hi
ng!

Tosayi
nshor
titi
sdebatabl
e,al
thoughonecansayt
hati
tist
ruel
andwi
thout
unexhaust
edi
mpr
ovementhasnoval
ueinTanzani
a.
39.
TheLandAct1999seemsinawayt ofol
lowt hepol
icyar
ti
clesi
ntheNat
ional
LandPol
icyont
hemarket
abil
it
yofl
and.Discusswit
hexamples.

InJune1995,Tanzaniarecei
vedherlong-
awai
tednewNat i
onalLandPoli
cy.The
i
mport
antpolicydocumentpassedthroughparl
i
amentvir
tual
l
yunnot i
cedinthemi dst
oft
hepr e-
electi
on fer
vourofther un-
up tothecountr
y’shist
ori
c1995 mul t
iparty

257
[
2006]TLR9.
258
1995TLR80(CA)

85
electi
ons.Itiswit
hinint
roduct
ionIi
ntendinthispapertodi
scusswit
hexampl
est he
statementsaysthatLandAct 1999seemsi nawaytof ol
l
owthepol
ici
esar
ti
cul
atedin
theNat i
onalLandPoli
cyonthemarket
abil
it
yofland.

Itisnotedthat
,t helandpol i
cyof1995andt heLandActof1999aspersect ion
3(f
)pr ov i
dethatani nteresti nlandhasv al
ueandsuchv al
ueshoul dbet akeninto
considerati
oni nanytransactionaf f
ect
ingt hatint
erest
.However,Secti
on20( 3)ofthe
LandActpr ovi
dedthatl andwhi chwasacqui redbeforetheenact
mentoft heactshall
bedeemedt ohav enov alue;
t hi
smeantt hatsaleofsuchlandwouldbeimpossi bl
easit
wasf urtherprovi
dedforundersect i
on37( 8)thatnosaleoflandwithoutunexhausted
i
mpr ovement swouldbeappr oved.

Inotherwor ds,t
hismeantthatbarelandhadnovalueandcouldnotbedi sposed,
asat t
empt i
ngtodosowoul dinvi
terevocati
ontotheownershiptothepot enti
alsell
er,
forfai
luretodevelop.Theef f
ectsofsuchapr ov
isi
onwerefarreachi
ngasi tdidnotonl y
denyowner soflandt herighttodisposeitbutalsodeniedthem recognizingitasa
property.Hencebar elandcouldneitherbeusedasabar eland,providet hatland
acquiredbyf or
eignersbeforetheenactmentoft heactshal
lhav enov al
ueexceptf or
unexhaustedimpr ovements.

I
ti sinconceiv
ableast owhyonebar epieceofl andisshouldhav ev alueand
anotherbarepieceofl andbeshor tofit.I
tiswiseandeasyt othinkthattheintenti
onof
thelegisl
atorswast oensur ethepr ot
ecti
onofourv aluabl
eland;howev er
,t het acti
c
employedi sli
kelytocausegr eaterhar m asitwouldincit
eanon- ci
ti
zentopassov erthe
l
andt oanot herpersoni l
legall
yr atherthansur r
enderingittothegov er
nment .Fur t
her
suchapol icyisacont radict
ionoft hepr ovi
sionsoftheconst i
tuti
onasperar t
icl
e13( 1)
whichst i
pulat
ethat,

“
Allpeopl
eareequalbefor
ethelawandareent
it
ledwi
thoutanydi
scr
imi
nat
ion,
t
oprotect
ionandequal
it
ybefor
ethel
aw.”

Theconst
it
uti
onunderArt
icl
e13( 6)proceedst
oel
abor
atewhati
smeantby
di
scr
imi
nat
ionandput
sitv
eryclearthat
,

“…to discr
iminateinvol
ves sat
isf
ying t
he needs,ri
ght
s orrequi
rement
s of
di
ff
erentpersonsont hebasisoftheirnat
ional
it
y,t
ri
beplaceofori
ginpol
it
ical
opi
nion,
color,r
eli
gionorst
ati
oninli
fe.”

Hencewhati spr
ohibi
tedbytheconsti
tut
ionasbei
ngdi scr
imi
nator
yisthevery
samethati
screatedbySecti
on20(3)oft
heLandActasperthe2004amendment sasit
i
scryst
alcl
earthatonepi
eceoflandownedbyaTanzaniancit
izenwouldbeconsi
dered
ashavi
ngvalueandapieceoflandnextt
oitownedbyanon-ci
tizenwoul
dbev al
uel
ess.

Apol
icyt
osecurelandshouldbeonethati
sfairt
oever
yholderofari
ghtof
occupancyr
egar
dlessoft
henational
it
yprov
idedhe/sheownsitl
egall
y.Apol
icyto

86
safeguar
dtheinter
estsofthestat
eandi tsciti
zensinitselfi
sapol i
cywhichisgenerall
y
acceptedanditispracti
cedindif
ferentjuri
sdict
ions,howev ersuchapol i
cyshouldbe
fai
randonet hatmaintai
nsequali
ty.Forinstance,apol i
cywhi chr
ecognizesal
llandas
havingval
ueev enthatownedbyf or ei
gnersbutr estr
icti
ngt hetr
ansferofsuchv alue
beyondtheterr
it
orywouldbeideal
.

I
nanut shell,thismeanst hatwhenev erl
andisdisposedbyanonciti
zenitsv
alue
wouldber etainedi nt hecountrycreatingmor ecapit
al.Asi thasalwaysbeent he
tr
adit
ion of our l egislat
uret o review our laws and amend i ncongruous and
unconsti
tut
ionalpr ovisions,I
tisherebysubmi t
tedthati
tishighti
methatitdeli
ber
ates
onthesaidprov i
sionsandcur ethemi schief
.

40.
Wri
tesshor
tnot
esont
hef
oll
owi
ng

a) Tenur
esecur
it
y

b) Kwami
naKumav
.Kof
iKuma5WAC4,
1938

c) TheUj
amaaVi
ll
age(
Regi
str
ati
on,Desi
gnat
ionandAdmi
nist
rat
ion)Act
1975

a)Tenur
esecur
it
y

Landt enur
ei stherelat
ionship,whet herl
egall
yorcust omaril
ydefi
ned,among
peopl
e,asindivi
dualsorgroups,withr especttoland.(Forconveni
ence,“
land”isused
heretoincl
udeot hernatur
alresourcessuchaswat erandt rees.
)Landt enur
eisan
i
nsti
tut
ion,i
.e.
,rul
esinvent
edbysoci eti
est oregul
atebehaviour
.

Rulesoftenuredefinehow proper
tyri
ghtstolandaret obeallocatedwi t
hin
soci
eti
es.Theydefi
nehowaccessi sgrant
edtori
ght
st ouse,
control
,andtransf
erland,
aswellasassoci at
ed r
esponsibi
li
ti
esand rest
rai
nts.Insimpleterms,land tenure
syst
ems determine who can use whatresour
ces forhow long,and underwhat
condi
ti
ons.

b)Kwami
naKumav
.Kof
iKuma5WAC4,
1938

Thiscasecomefrom ani
deaofacqui
sit
ionbylongpossessi
on.I
twasmuchpart
ofr
ecei
vedlaw toper
mi tapersont
oacquireani nter
estbylongandunint
err
upt
ed

87
possessionanduser ,whichwasnott heconceptofcust
omaryjuri
sprudence,
wherethe
authorsfurthersay ,t :“
hat However,wev ent
uretosuggestthatthecustomarysyst
em
couldnotr ational
lyaccommodat esuchaconceptbecausei twasquitenormalwit
hin
thesystem f orast rangertooccupyandusel andofanotherwithoutanyneedtopay
rentorotherwi seacknowledgethetit
leofthegrant
or”
.

Theaboveposi t
ionistrueev enamongt heSukumaandi ndeedt hroughoutAf ri
ca.
259
ThecaseofKumav .Kuma i ll
ustratesthat,KwaminaKuma, theplaintif
fwont hecase
i
nt hecourtoffi
rstinstanceov erthesui tland,onappealKof iKuma, t
hedef endantwon.
Inconsideri
ngtheappealdeci sion,t hePr i
vyCouncil,obser vedt hat,thef actthatt he
defendantproposedt osellthel andi ndisputeandbei ngobj ectedbyt hepl ai
ntif
f,who
thensued,wher et hedef endantcl aimedt ohav eder i
vedhi stitl
et oaper sonwho
clearedavir
ginforestasaf ollowerbyper missi
onofachi ef.Thepl aintiffall
egedt hat
thechiefthatthedef endantment i
onedandhi sfoll
ower swer epermi ttedbyanot her
chiefwhowast hesuccessort othepl aint
iff
’sancest
resswhowast heowneroft heland
i
ndi sput
eandwhosest oolt
hepl aintif
foccupiedatthedat eofact ion.

Notwithstandi
ng the factthatt
he defendantand his ancest
ors wer
ei n
occupationoft hedisput
edlandformorethansixgener
ati
onsuni
nterr
upted,t
hePri
vy
Councilsaid:

“I
tappearst her
efore,thatamongt henati
ves,occupationofl andisfrequentl
y
al
lowedforthepur poseofcult
ivat
ionbutwi
t houttheownershipofthelandbeing
part
edwith.Theowneroft hel
andbeingwil
lingt oall
owsuchoccupat i
onsol ong
asnoadv erseclai
mi smadebyt heoccupier;theoccupierknowingthathecan
usethel
andasl ongashel i
kesprovi
dedher ecognizest
het i
tl
eoftheowner ”
.

Tosayi nshort,inKwami naKumav .KofiKuma260 i

twasst atedthatadv er
se
possesorcanacqui retitl
ebecauset heownerf ai
lstov i
ndi
catethecl ai
m wi t
hinthe
peri
odspeci f
iedbyst atute.Hewil
lbebar redbystatut
esinTanzaniaf rom thedaywhen
theri
ghtofact ionaccrued.Therefore,inanacti
onforlandthecentralconcept i
onisthe
questi
onofr unningoft ime.Secti
on4oft heLaw ofLi mit
ati
onActpr ov
idesthatthe
peri
odofl imitati
onprescr i
bedbyt heActi nrel
ati
ontoanypr oceedingshal lsubj
ectto
theprov i
sionoft hi
sActher ei
nafter.
..
commencef rom thedateonwhi chther i
ghtof
acti
onf orsuchact i
onar ouse

259
(
1938)
5W.A.C.
A.(
Ghana)
.
260
5WAC4,1938

88
 c) TheUj
amaaVi
ll
age(
Regi
str
ati
on,Desi
gnat
ionandAdmi
nist
rat
ion)Act
1975

TheUjamaaVill
age(
Registr
ati
on,
Designat
ionandAdminist
rat
ion)Act1975isan
Actt
opr ov
idefort
heRegist
rati
onofVill
ages,t
heAdminist
rat
ionofregist
eredvi
ll
ages
anddesi
gnati
onofUjamaaVil
lages.

Vil
l
age set t
lements wer
e gov erned by the Vil
l
ages and Ujamaa Vil
lages
(
Regi
strat
ion,Designat
ionandAdmi ni
strati
on)ActNo.21of1975.Accordi
ngtoFimbo
(
2004)analysesthesit
uati
onfur
therthatthesaidAct
,didnotcont
ainanyprov
isi
onson
l
andtenure.

Theobv iousquesti
onwoul dbet hathow woul dany onemov i
ngi nt
oav il
l
age
acqui
rel andandhowwoul dthesamedi sposeofl andwher evers/heiscomi ngf r
om?In
pract
ice, t
hevil
lagecounci
loftheujamaav i
ll
agegov er nmentwasobl igedto“takesuch
measur esasmaybenecessar ytoacquir erightsofoccupancyi nrespectoflandwithi
n
theli
mi tsofthev il
l
ageandnoot herper sonshoul dhav eanyr i
ght
,tit
leorinteresti
nor
overanyl andwi thi
nsuchli
mi t
s”.Suchpr ovisi
onswer eincludedin‘ Di
rect
ives’made
underActNo.21of1975andpubl ishedi nt heGov ernmentGazet teasG. N.No.168.It
wasintendedt hatanyonel
ivi
nginav il
lagewoul dnotr ecei
vetitl
etoland.

Inotherwords,cust
omarytenurewouldceasetoexi
st.Thewhol
eessenceof
l
andr i
ght
si nv i
l
lagelandsandcorrespondi
ngbenefi
tswoul
dbemeani ngl
ess,t
hus
openi
ngupt ochaosandpoorcust
odyofland.

41.
Discust
hedi
ff
erentmet
hodsofl
andacqui
sit
ioni
nTanzani
a.

Pre-
col
oni
alsoci et
iesinTanzani
aMai nl
andhav ehadway sofacqui ri
ngand
usi
ngl andfordif
ferentusesegagr i
cul
tur
e,huntingandgatheri
ngandgr azing.Land
holdi
ngwasbasedont r
adit
ionall
aw andthecul tur
eofeacht r
ibe.Basingint hi
s
i
ntroducti
onIam goi nginthisquesti
onto discussthediff
erentmet hodsofl and
acquisi
ti
oninTanzania.
I
ndiscussi
ngmethodsofl andacquisit
ion,i
tisnecessarytodraw adi
stincti
on
betweenself-
acqui
redpr
operti
eswhi chref
erst opropert
yobtainedbyamant hrough
hisownef fort
sandCollecti
vepr oper
tymaybef amil
yorcl anpropert
y.Undert hi
s
categor
yofpropert
y,t
hepropri
etar
yunitiswiderasincl
udesotherfamil
ymember s.
Thef
oll
owi
ngar
edi
ff
erentmet
hodsofl
andacqui
sit
ioni
nTanzani
a.
1.Al
locat
ion
Oneoft
heway
sofacqui
ri
ngl
andhasbeent
hroughal
l
ocat
ionbyt
her
elev
antaut
hor
it
y.

89
Thisauthorit
ycoul dbet hechief
,vil
lagerheadmanorchai rperson.Inmostcases,such
all
ocati
onwasaccompani edbysomer estrict
ionswhichhadt obeobserv edbyt he
261
occupier
.InMt ongoriNy amaganivsRi chi i
twasheldthatl ocalel
dershadt hepower
andrighttoallocatev acantorabandonedl andbutnotoccupi edlandunlesstherewasa
rul
elimit
ingthear eaoflandaper soncoul dpossess.Suchel dershadnopowerorr i
ght
toall
ocatesomeonesl andt oanotheront heassumpt i
ont hatt heformerhadt oomuch
l
andwhi lethelatterhadnone.
2.Cleari
ngaVi rgi
nFor est
Cl
ear
ingofv acantareashasal sobeendeemedt obethebestwayofasser ting
ownershipi
nl and.Theonewhowasf i
rsttoclearandsettl
eont hel andwasgi ven
pri
orit
yindetermini
nginstancesofownwer shi
p.Essent
ial
l
ytheclearingofv i
rgi
nforest
wasacr uci
alwayofacqui ri
ngsomef orm ofpermanentri
ghtsoverl and.Evengrants
weredependentont heculti
vationofper manentcropsortheconstructionofstr
uctures
wit
hahi ghdegr eeofatt
achmentt othesoi lbef
orepermanentri
ghtscoul devolv
e.The
buyingandsell
ingoflandisar ecentdev el
opment .
262
InSi l
angaKi menangav s.Mev ongorimosoni i
twasst atedt hatunderl ocal
customar ylawlandbel ongedtot hefi
rst
'personwho,act ual
lyclearedi tunl
esshehad
abandonedhi sri
ghtstheretocompl et
ely
.InIshakuv s.Hadeja263 accor
i dingtoIslamic
Law,ifaper sonbroughtintocultiv
ati
onanyuncul t
ivatedland,thatpl acebelongedt o
him andev enanEmi rcouldnottakeitfr
om him.InthecaseofMar iam binChaulembo
264
vs.Hami siWaziri i
nvolvi
ng Rufij
ilaw t
hepl ai
ntiffclai
med t hedi sputed l
and by
i
nher i
tance.
3.Pur chase
265
Undercust omar ylawl andcouldalsobeacqui r
edt hroughpurchase. I
nanycase
wheretherewasanal legat
ionthataclai
mantorhi spr edecessorinti
tl
ehadacqui red
per
manentr i
ghtsinl andbypur chaseorgiftther
emi ghtbeapr el
i
minar yissueast o
whethercustomar ylandt enureofdiesit
usrecognizedt hebuy i
ngandsel l
ingorother
di
spositi
onofl andatt heall
egeddate.Thisnecessi
tyforhistori
caldatacannotbeov er
-
emphasised,foranact ioncanalwaysbedismissedwi t
houtmuchadowhenonecl ai
ms,
266
ashisrootoftitl
e,asal eorgif
tatatimewhent hoseinstit
uti
onswer eunknown.
Bart
holemew Ndy anabov s.Bi.Petroni
daNdy amukama267 SEATON.
J.Theappel l
ant
Barthol
emewsol dapl otoflandon18Mar ch1967t otherespondentBi.Petr
onidafor
Shs.600.Theyexecut edawr itt
endocument ,
Exhi
bitB,att
esti
ngthesaleandst at
ingthe
dimensionsofthel andt obe40x60paces.Subsequent l
y,whenBi .Petroni
dabegan
cult
ivat
ingtheshamba, shewasi nformedbyBar t
holemew'scaretaker
,Phil
iber
t,t
hatthe
dimensionsofthelandar e40x60f eetandheprohibit
edherfrom cult
ivat
inginexcess
ther
eof.

261
(1973)JamesRW &Fi
mboGM at564
262
JamesR.W andFimboG.
M at299.
263
I
bidat300.
264
I
bidat301
265
Landdenot
est
heimprov
ements;land(
thesoi
l)i
sownedbyt
hest
ateandcannotbet
hesubj
ectof
sal
e.I
mprov
ement
sincl
udet
hecl
earingoft
hesoil
.
266
JamesR.
W andFi
mboG.
M Cust
omar
yLandLawofTanzani
a:ASour
ceBook(
1973)at302
267
(
1968)HCD339,
seeJamesR.
W andFi
mboG.
M at305

90
 TheCour tagreeswiththejudgmentoft helowercourts.Bart
holemew andBi.
Petronidawer eobv i ynotadi
ousl dem astothet hi
ngbought;shethoughtshewas
purchasingashambameasur i
ng60x40paceswhi l
ehehadnosuchshambat osel
l
andi ntendedtodisposeofaplotofl andmeasuri
ngonly60f t
.s40f t
.Theappealis
accordinglydi
smissed.Imakenoor derast
ocosts,si
ncenei
therpar
tyappearedbef
ore
268
me.
4.Gi ft
Customar ylawrecognizesgranti
ngofl andasagi f
tsubjectt
ocertai
nformali
ti
esas
thecasemi ghtbe.I
nthecaseofHer bertRugi zi
bwas/ oRuhoranavs.Mushumbusis/ o
Mav esionHay alaw,theappellantclai
medt her et
urnofapi eceoflandgivenbyhi s
fatherar ound1906t oanancest orofthei nfantdefendant.TheAppell
antal
legedthat
thegi ftwasnotanout ri
ghtgif
tbutonl yofl i
mitedinter
estinthelandandt her
efore
recov erabl
e.Theev i
dence, whi
chwasaccept edbyt heCourt,off
ormali
ti
esnecessaryto
passabsol uteti
tl
ebygi f
tweresetouti nthejudgment
5. compul
sor
ylandacqui
sit
ion
Compul sor yacquisit
ion ofl and invol
v es expropr
iat
ion ofpr i
vater i
ghtsi nt he
propert
y;i
ti sar estr
aintont herightofpr i
vateowner stobeablet odisposeoffproper t
y
accordi
ngt ot hei
rwish.I nTanzani a,wehav et heLandAcqui si
tionActof1967CAP
118[RE 2002]whi ch prov i
des fort he compul soryacquisi
tion ofl ands forpubl i
c
purposesandi nconnect ionwi t
hhousi ngschemes.TheLaw ofLandAcqui si
ti
oni s
i
ntendedt ol egali
zethet akingup,f orpublicpurposes,orforacompany ,oflandwhi ch
i
s pr i
vate pr opert
y ofi ndivi
dualst he owner s and occupiers,and pay equi table
compensat iont her
eforecal cul
atedatmar ketvalueoflandacquired,plusanaddi ti
onal
sum onaccountofcompul sorycharacterofacqui si
ti
on.
Secti
on 3 ofthe land acquisi
ti
on Actempowert he pr
esidentto acqui
reland
compulsory
.
Themai npurposeofcompul soryacquisit
ionbyPresi
dentaccordi
ngtosection3ofthe
LAAi sfort
hePublicinter
est.ThePr esidentmay,subj
ecttothepr ov
isi
onsofthisAct,
acquir
eanyl andforanyest at
eort erm wher esuchlandi srequir
edf oranypubli
c
purpose.
”
To concl
ude,onewoul dagreewithmet
hatabov
edi
scussi
onpor
traydi
ff
erent
met
hodsoflandacqui
sit
ioninTanzani
a.

42.
Wri
teshor
tnot
esont
hef
oll
owi
ng

a) Landt
enur
esecur
it
y

b) Legalpl
ural
ism

c) Ny
erer
eoct
ri
neofl
andt
enur
eval
ue

268
Adopt
edf
rom JamesR.
W andFi
mboG.
M pp305-
306

91
 a)Landt
enur
esecur
it
y

Landt enur
ei stherelat
ionship,whet herl
egall
yorcust omaril
ydefi
ned,among
peopl
e,asindivi
dualsorgroups,withr especttoland.(Forconveni
ence,“
land”isused
heretoincl
udeot hernatur
alresourcessuchaswat erandt rees.
)Landt enur
eisan
i
nsti
tut
ion,i
.e.
,rul
esinvent
edbysoci eti
est oregul
atebehaviour
.

Rulesoftenuredefinehow proper
tyri
ghtstolandaret obeallocatedwi t
hin
soci
eti
es.Theydefi
nehowaccessi sgrant
edtori
ght
st ouse,
control
,andtransf
erland,
aswellasassoci at
ed r
esponsibi
li
ti
esand rest
rai
nts.Insimpleterms,land tenure
syst
ems determine who can use whatresour
ces forhow long,and underwhat
condi
ti
ons.

b) Legalpl
ural
ism

Legalpl ur
alism ist he existence ofmul t
ipl
el egalsystems wit
hin one (human)
populati
onand/ orgeographi carea.Plurall
egalsystemsar epar
ti
cular
lypreval
entin
formercolonies,wherethelawofaf or
mercol oni
alauthor
it
ymayexistalongsi
demor e
tradi
ti
onallegalsyst
ems( cf.customarylaw).

c) Ny
erer
edoct
ri
neofl
andt
enur
eval
ue

Accordingtothepay mentofunexhaust edimprov ementswasshapedbyNy er

ere
doctri
neoflandv alue.Ny er
eredoct r
ineofl andval
uei tgenerall
ybasedf r
om thel abour
theorybyJohnLockeonwhi chJohnLockement ionedi nhistheorythat,“whatsoever
thenher emov esoutoft hestateofnat ure….Hehasmi xedhislabourwith,andjoinedit
withsomet hingthathi sownandt herebymakesi thi spropert
y”thatmeans,each
personownhi sownbodyandt helabourt hathi
sbodyper f
ormsshouldbeequi valence
ofthepropertyowned.I fthatindi
vidualaddst hel
abourt oapi eceofpropertythatpiece
ofpropertybecomeshi sper sonalproperty.
Ny erer edoct
ri
neofl andv al
uestatet hat,l
andi saf r
eegiftfr
om God.Onwhi chitmeans
thatl andisgivenf r
eet oallli
vi
ngt hingst hereforei
tcannotbecompar edasanyot her
commodi t
yt hatcr eated by man,as such l and cannot,underany gr ounds be
transf ormedintoani tem forsal
eint hemar ket.Thebasi sforhispositi
oni
shi sbeli
ef
thatl and,airandwat erarethegi ftf r
om Godt ohisli
vingcreation.Humansdonot
createoraddt oland,theyarebornt of i
nditthereanddiet oleav
ei tther
e.
Onhi sdoctri
nehest atesinteraliathat whenIusemyener
,“ gyandt alenttocleara
pi
eceofgr oundf ormyusei tiscl
earthatIam t ry
ingt otr
ansformt hisbasicgiftfrom
Godsot hatitcansatisfyahumanneed.I ti9strue,however,thatthi
sl andisnotmi ne
buttheef f
ort
smadebymei ncl
earingthatlandenabl emet ol ayclai
m ofowner ship
overtheclearedpieceofground.Buti tnotreall
ythel andi
tselfthatbelongst omebut
onlytheclear
edgr oundwhi chwi l
lremainmi neasl ongasIcont i
nuetowor koni t
.By
cl
earingthatgroundIhav eactuall
yaddedt oitsvalueandhav eenabledi ttobeusedt o

92
sati
sfyahumanneed.Whoeverthent
akest
hispi
eceofland(
ground)mustpaymef
or
addingval
uet
oitt
hroughcl
eari
ngitbymyownlabour
”.
Asfarasny erer
edoct r
ineisconcernedmeanscompensat i
onshouldnotbeonlypai d
onunexhaustedimpr ov
ementsalonebutal soencapsulat
esinst
anceswherethevicti
m
haswast edhislabourinworki
ngt heland.Theref
ore,evenifapersondoesnotmake
unexhaustedi
mpr ovementsoverthelandheshouldbecompensat edonthelabourthat
hehaswor konthatland.
Nyer
ere doctri
ne ofl
and val
ue has been appli
ed in di
ff
erentcases concerned
compensationundert
heoldt r
end suchas,caseofLal at
aMsangawal eV.Henry
269 270
Mwali
mu ,caseofNt i
yahel
aBonekaV.Kiji
jichaujamaaMutala , caseofAt
tor
ney
Gener
alV.LohayAkonaayandJosephLohay[
1995]TLR80.

43.
Wri
teshor
tnot
esont
hef
oll
owi
ng

a) Admi
nist
rat
ionofest
ate

b) Thedoct
ri
neofpar
tper
for
mance

a)Admi
nist
rat
ionofest
ate

Admini
strat
ionofEstatesLawandLegalDef i
niti
on.Admi ni
str
ati
onofestatesr
efer
sto
managementandset tl
ementofest at
esofani ntest
ate.Int
est
ateisapersonwhodies
wit
houtalegalwil
l.Admini
str
ationofestat
esisusuallydoneundercour
tsuperv
isi
onby
appoi
nti
ngaper sondulyqual
if
iedandlegal
lyappoint
ed. .
.

b) Thedoct
ri
neofpar
tper
for
mance

Evenwhent her
ei sanoralagreementthatisotherwisegover
nedbytheStat
uteof
Frauds,thedoctr
ineofpartper
formancetreatspart
ialper
for
manceinrel
i
anceonthe
oralagreementandacceptanceofsuchper formanceasev i
denceofanenfor
ceabl
e
contract
.

269
[
1979]LRTNo.
3
270
(
1988)TLR156

93
 44.
Discusst heori
ginanddevel
opmentoftheNy
erere’
sdoctr
ineofl
andvalueas
arti
culatedbyther el
evantl
awsfrom t
imetotime.Isthedoctr
inest
il
lval
id
undert hecur
rentlaw?

Seequest
ionNo38

45.
Exami
net
heconceptof“
abandonmentofl
and”i
nthecont
extofTanzani
a

I
nthi
squest
ion,
Iam goi
ngt
ogi
vet
heconceptofabandonment
.Thus,
thef
ort
hcomi
ng
expl
anat
ionwi
l
lbaseongi
vet
heconceptofabandonmentbygi
vi
ngsomehi
stor
ical
dev
elopmentt
othemeani
ngoft
heconcept
.Ital
sohar
moni
zest
heposi
ti
onundert
he
l
andAct
srel
ati
ngt
oabandonment
.Undercust
omar
ylawt
heconceptofabandonment
hasbeenoneofmi
xedv
iews.

Bydef
ini
ti
on,
Abandonmentwasdef
inedi
nthecaseofAl
imohammedAdamj
iVs.
aGudka271 bySi
Punj rBar
clayNi
hil
l(P)t
omeant
hecesserofoccupat
ionwi
thout
272
ani
musr
ever
tendi
. UnderCust
omar
yLaw,t
her
ehav
ebeencasest
hathav
erul
edout
273
t
hatt
heconceptdoesnotexi
st,andt
hoset
hatf
avourt
heconcept .Exampl
e;i
nthe
274
caseofKi
menangaVs.Mevongor
iMosoni t
heCour
trul
edont
heexi
stenceoft
he
275
conceptofabandonmentbuti
nthe case ofNgut
su Mwaj
air
a Vs.Saf
ari ,t
he
assessor
ssai
dtheconceptwasnoti
nexi
stence,“
…theowneroft
hel
andcanal
way
s
cl
aimi
tbackagai
nnomat
terhowl
onghehasbeenaway
”.

Asi
thasal
readybeenexpl
ainedabov
e,abandonmenti
nvol
vest
wo(
2)di
sti
nct
el
ement
s;ment
alel
ementandphy
sicalel
ement
.Ment
alconsi
stsoft
hei
ntent
iont
o
abandonal
lri
ght
sint
hel
andwhi
l
ephy
sicalconsi
stsoft
heext
ernalf
actofl
eav
ingt
he
276
l
and. Bot
hel
ement
sshoul
dbet
her
etoconst
rueabandonment
,onecanl
eav
ethe
l
andbutshe/
hecoul
dbehav
ingani
ntent
iont
oret
urn,exampl
e,byf
requent
lyv
isi
ti
ng
271
(1953)20EACA78, JamesR.W andFi
mboG.M at572
272
Asi thasbeenstat
edabov et
hatAnimusrever
tendii
saLat
inphr
asewhichmeansi
ntent
iontoretur
n
273
Dr.Tenga,W.RandMr .Si
stMramba.Manual onLandl
awandConveyanci
ngi
nTanzani
a.(2008)p.
149
274
1962, JamesR.W andFimboG.M pp.299-300
275
Ibi
dpp.568-569
276
Dr.Tenga,W.RandMr .Si
stMramba.ManualonLandlawandConvey
ancingi
nTanzani
a.(2008)p.
154

94
t
hear
ea/pl
otofl
andorbypl
aci
ngacar
e-t
akeroft
hel
and.

Wher
e a per
son has r
emai
ned outofpossessi
on ofl
and f
orsuch an
unr
easonabl
elengt
hoft
imewhatr
aisesapr
esumpt
ionofabandonment
,theonusi
son
hi
mtoest
abl
i
shanani
musr
ever
tendi(
int
ent
iont
oret
urn)
;thi
sisaCommon-
Law
Pr
inci
ple,t
hat
,whoev
erasser
tssomet
hingmustpr
ove,t
hat
,thebur
denofpr
ovi
ngt
hat
t
hingasser
tedbyhi
mli
esonhi
m.

I
thast
obenot
edt
hat
,abandonmentdoesnotpasst
it
lebutdest
royt
it
le,t
hati
s,t
he
or
igi
nalgr
ant
or’
sti
tl
ecanber
evi
veduponf
ulf
il
lmentofsomecondi
ti
ons.Howev
er,i
n
Rashi
dbi
nAl
iVs.Bakar
ibi anda277 i
nKay twashel
dthat
,occupat
ionandcul
ti
vat
ionof
l
andgi
vest
heoccupi
err
ight
stant
amountt
othoseofanowner
.

Wi
tht
heenact
mentoft
heLandAct
s,t
heposi
ti
onofabandonmenthasbeen
set
tl
edandi
tisnow mor
ecer
tai
n.Undert
heLandAct
,44l
andhel
dforar
ightof
occupancyshal
lbet
akent
ohav
ebeenabandonedwher
eoneormor
eoft
hef
oll
owi
ng
f
act
orsappear
,that
;

i
) t
heoccupi
erowesanyr
ent
,taxesorduesi
nrespectoft
hel
andandhas
cont
inuedt
oowesuchr
ent
,taxesorduesoranypor
ti
onoft
hem f
ornot
l
esst
hanf
ivey
ear
sfr
om t
hedat
eonwhi
chanyr
ent
,taxesorduesorany
por
ti
ont
her
eoff
ir
stf
ell
tobepai
d;

i
i
) t
heoccupi
erhasl
eftt
hecount
rywi
thoutmaki
nganyar
rangementf
orany
per
sont
ober
esponsi
blef
ort
hel
andandf
orensur
ingt
hatt
hecondi
ti
ons
subj
ectt
owhi
cht
her
ightofoccupancywasgr
ant
edar
ecompl
i
edwi
th
and t
hatoccupi
erhas notgi
ven any appr
opr
iat
e not
if
icat
ion t
othe
Commi
ssi
oner
;

i
i
i) anybui
l
dingont
hel
andhasf
ail
edi
ntoast
ateofsuchdi
srepai
rthati
thas
becomeadangert
otheheal
thandsaf
etyofanyper
sonoccupy
ingt
hat
bui
l
dingf
oranyl
awf
ulpur
poseoranei
ghbourt
otheoccupi
er;

i
v) per
sonswi
thnoappar
entl
awf
ult
it
lesot
odoar
eoccupy
ingorusi
ngt
he
l
andoranybui
l
dingsont
hel
andandoneormor
eoft
hoseper
sonsora

277
(
1941)Gov
ernor
’sAppeal
no.31

95
 per
sonf
rom acommuni
tywhi
chcont
ainsoneormor
esuchper
sonshav
e
sooccupi
edorusedt
hel
andoranybui
l
dingont
hel
andf
oraper
iodofnot
l
ess t
han t
wo y
ear
simmedi
atel
y pr
ecedi
ng t
he dat
e on whi
ch i
n
accor
dancewi
tht
hissect
ion,t
heCommi
ssi
onerpubl
i
shesanot
iceof
abandonmenti
ntheGazet
te;

v
) becauseoft
henegl
ectoft
hel
and,
thel
andi
s–

a.nol
ongercapabl
e,wi
thoutsi
gni
fi
cantexpendi
tur
eandr
emedi
al
wor
k,ofbei
ngusedf
orpr
oduct
ivepur
poses;
or

b. suf
fer
ingser
iousenv
ironment
aldamage.

278
Undert
heVi
l
lageLandAct
, l
andhel
dforacust
omar
yri
ghtofoccupancyshal
lbe
t
akent
obeabandonedwher
eoneormor
eoft
hef
oll
owi
ngf
act
orsappear
,that
;

i
. Theoccupi
erhasnotoccupi
edorusedt
hel
andf
oranypur
posef
orwhi
ch
l
andmayl
awf
ull
ybeoccupi
edandused,i
ncl
udi
ngal
l
owi
ngl
andt
oli
efal
l
ow,
i
nthev
il
lagef
ornotl
esst
hanf
ivey
ear
s;

i
i
. t
heoccupi
er,ot
hert
hanav
il
lagerwhosepr
inci
palmeansofl
i
vel
i
hoodi
s
agr
icul
tur
alorpast
oral
,owesanyr
ent
,taxesorduesonori
nrespectoft
he
l
andandhascont
inuedt
o owet
hatr
ent
,taxesorduesoranypor
ti
onofi
tfor
notl
esst
hant
woy
ear
sfr
om t
hedat
eonwhi
cht
hatr
ent
,taxesorduesorany
por
ti
onofi
tfi
rstf
ell
tobepai
d;

i
i
i. t
heoccupi
erhasl
eftt
hecount
rywi
thoutmaki
nganyar
rangementf
orany
per
sont
ober
esponsi
blef
ort
hel
andandf
orensur
ingt
hatt
hecondi
ti
ons
subj
ectt
owhi
cht
hecust
omar
yri
ghtofoccupancywasgr
ant
edar
ecompl
i
ed
wi
thandhasnotgi
venanyappr
opr
iat
enot
if
icat
iont
othev
il
lagecounci
l
.

279
Topr
omot
ejust
ice,t
heVi
l
lageLandAct hasspeci
fi
cal
l
ypr
ovi
dedt
hat
,in
det
ermi
ningwhet
herl
andhasbeenabandonedi
nter
msofi
temsiandi
iabov
e,r
egar
d
shal
lbet
o;Thesef
act
orsar
efoundundersect
ion51(
1)oft
heLandAct
.45Under
sect
ion51(
2)oft
hesameAct
,wher
eitappear
stot
heCommi
ssi
oner
46t
hatanyl
and

278
Chapt
er114[
R.E2002
279
I
bid

96
hasbeenabandoned,hei
srequi
redt
opubl
i
shi
ntheGazet
teandi
nanewspaper
ci
rcul
ati
ngi
nthear
eawher
ethel
andi
ssi
tuat
eanot
iceofabandonmentwhi
chshal
l
st
atet
hel
ocat
ionoft
hel
and;t
heboundar
iesoft
hel
and;setoutbr
ief
lyt
hegr
oundson
whi
ch t
he Commi
ssi
oneri
ntends t
orel
yin det
ermi
ning t
hatt
he l
and has been
abandoned;st
atet
he t
ime,bei
ng notl
ess t
han si
xtyday
sfr
om t
he dat
e oft
he
publ
i
cat
ionoft
henot
icewi
thi
nwhi
chanyper
soncl
aimi
ngt
ohav
eani
nter
esti
nthel
and
mayshowcausewhyt
hel
andshoul
dnotbedecl
aredt
obeabandoned.

Thef
oregoi
ngdi
scussi
onwasal
laboutt
heconceptandl
egalposi
ti
onont
hedoct
ri
ne
of“
abandonmentofl
and”i
nthecont
extofTanzani
a

46.
The techni
ques t
hatwere adopted by t
he Brit
ish gov
ernmentto excl
ude
cust
omar yl
andtenur
einTanzani
aaresti
llappl
icablet
odate.Di
scuss

Seequest
ionNO12

47.
Disent
angl
ethef
oll
owi
ngt
erms

a) Gr
ant
edr
ightofoccupancyv
sdeemedr
ightofoccupancy

b) Vi
ll
agi
zat
ionv
sAr
ushadecl
arat
ion

c) Easementv
slease

a)Gr
ant
edr
ightofoccupancyv
sdeemedr
ightofoccupancy

GrantedRightofoccupancy
;theri
ghtofoccupancyofl andinTanzaniaincludes
therightofdi sposi
ti
ongrantofr i
ghtofoccupancy,includesr i
ghtofdi sposi
tionas
provi
dedf orundersecti
on22(1)(I
)ofLandAct.Iti
sprovidedt hat(1)agrantedrightof
occupancyshal lbe(I
)capabl
eofbeingsubjectofdi
spositions.LandOccupat i
onunder
theLandAct .

Customaryrightofoccupancymeansr i
ghtofoccupancycr eat
edbymeansof
theissuingofacertif
icateofcustomar yri
ghtofoccupancyundersect i
on27oft heAct
andincludesdeemedr i
ghtofoccupancy ,i
emusthavebeenal l
ocat
edbyVill
ageCounci l
.
Deemedr i
ghtofoccupancyont heotherhandmeanst hetitl
eofaTanzaniancit
izenof
Afri
candescentoracommuni tyofTanzanianciti
zensofAf ri
candescentusi ngor
occupyinglandunderandi naccor dancewi t
hcustomar ylaw.Itcanbeacquiredunder
customar yl
aw thr
oughi nherit
ance,cleari
ngav i
rgi
nf orest,pur
chase.Customaryri
ght
ofoccupancyt her
eforeincludeslandallocat
edbythev i
l
lagecouncilandl
andacqui r
ed

97
undercustomar
ylaw(
e.gt
hroughpur
chase,
clear
ingf
orest
,gi
fti
nher
it
ance)andhel
dby
vi
ll
agers.

Iti si mportanttobebor nei nmi ndthatt hetenur

et hatappliesinv i
ll
agesis
customar yt enure.Sucht enureincludesr i
ghtsall
ocatedbyvil
l
agecounci l
sasi tshal
lbe
dealtint hischapt eranddeemedr ightswhichar enotall
ocatedbyt heVill
ageCouncil
.
Suchr i
ght sar emor ei
nformalandcanbeacqui r
edthroughthemeansst atedabove.A
discussionont heappl icati
onpr ocedurewillthusfocusont heright
sgr ant
edbyt he
Vill
ageCounci last hecustodianofv i
l
lagelandandnotdeemedr ightofoccupancy.One
mayhowev erdecidet oobt ainacer ti
fi
cateofcust omaryri
ghtofoccupancyf orhis
deemedr ight.

Secti
on12oft heVil
l
ageLandActdi v
idesv i
ll
agel
andintothreegroups.The
groupsar e:-communalv i
ll
ageland,occupi edorusedl andandoccupat i
onalland.
Communalv il
l
agel andandoccupationallandmaybemadet hesubj
ectofagr antbya
vi
llagecounci ltotheoccupierofthatlandoraci t
izenwhoisav i
ll
ageroragr oupof
ci
tizenswhoar evil
lagersoranyothercit
izensbymeansofadocumentt obeknownas
acer t
ifi
cateofcust omar
yt i
tl
e.Theoccupat i
onallandmayal sobet hesubj
ectof
derivati
ver i
ghtgrantedbyav i
ll
agecounci l
.Vil
lageLandcanbeoccupi edbyv i
ll
agers
andnon- vill
agers.

b) Vi
ll
agi
zat
ionv
sAr
ushadecl
arat
ion

TheArushadeclar
ati
onwhi chwast hepol i
cymov ementofsocial
ism andsel f-
rel
ianceaimedatamongot her
sr ur
aldev elopment.Landinoccupati
onofpeasant s,
kulaksorsettl
erfarmerswer eexpropri
atedandhandedt oujamaav i
l
lages280.The
processofv i
l
lagi
sati
onwasl egit
imati
zedbyt hepassageoft heVil
l
ageandUj amaa
281
Vil
lages(Regi
str
ati
on,Desi
gnati
onandAdmi nist
rat
ion)Act .
While,Vil
l
agisati
oni nTanzani aleadst othedemar cationofcommunalr ange
l
ands between v i
l
lages which ser i
ousl
y disrupt
ed past orall and use.New vi
llage
boundari
essubdi vi
decust omaryr angelandareasi ntodiscret
eadmi ni
str
ati
veuni
ts.In
doingsot heyoftendenyher dersaccesst oresourcest heyalway sused,hencemobi l
e
282
pastor
allandusehascont i
nued .Oper ati
onVi j
ijiandthecr eationofUjamaavi
llage
hardl
ytooki nt
oaccountt helandr i
ghtsofpastoral
ists.
Morelandsv er
yof t
enbel ongi
ngt ocustomaryherdersinvil
lageswer eali
enat
ed
through governmentallocations j
usti
fi
ed byt he vague cl
ause “publi
ci nter
est”(or
“nati
onalproject
”)argument s.Themor epubl i
cizedlandconfli
ctbetweenoneoft he
l
arge parastatal
,the NationalAgr i
cul
ture and Food Corporati
on (NAFCO)and t he
Barbaigagro-pastor
ali
stsi nt heHanangDi stri
ctofAr ushai sani ll
ust
rati
onoft he

280
Fi
mbo, M.G.(
2004),LandLawRefor
msinTanzani
a,pp.14-1
281
ActNo.21of1975
282
Lane,
C.andMoor ehead,R.(
1994)
,whoshoul
downt herange?
.NewThi
nki
ngonpast
oral
resour
ces
Tenure

98
conf
li
ctov
erl
andbet
weenpar
ast
atal
sandpeasant
/past
oral
communi
tes283.
i

c) Easementv
slease

Aleasei sanagr eementi nwhicht helandl

ordagreest ogiv
et het enantt
he
exclusi
verighttooccupyr ealpropert
y,usuall
yforaspecif
icter
m and,inexchange,t
he
tenantagreest ogi
vet helandlordsomesor tofconsider
ati
on.Aleasetransferstot
he
tenantaleaseholdinterestint herealpropert
yand,unlessotherwi
sepr ovi
dedi nt
he
l
ease, al
easei str
ansferableandirr
evocable.

Whi l
eAneasement ,likeal i
cense,givest hepermissionoft heownert ouseor
preventtheuseoft heowner ’srealproperty
.Howev er,unl
ikeal i
cense,i
ttr
ansf erst
othe
easementhol deran interestint he realpr opert
yt hatencumber st her ecordtit
le.
Easement sar eclassi
fiedasei therappur t
enant( benef
iti
ngandt ransf
erablewi t
ha
specifi
cpieceofr ealproperty)oringr oss(personaltothegr antee)
.Aneasementcan
betransferred.Unl
essot herwisespeci fi
ed,aneasementi spr esumedt obeper manent
andnon- exclusi
ve.
 

48.
“Thel
egalandadmini
strati
vemachi
nerygov
erni
ngl
andt
enur
einTanzani
ahas
it
sgenesi
sinthecol
onialperi
od”
.Di
scuss

Thequest
ioni
sall
aboutdi
scussi
ngt
hestatementtel
l
sthatthelegal
andadminist
rat
ive
machi
nerygov
erni
nglandt
enurei
nTanzani
ahasitsgenesi
sinthecoloni
alper
iod.

Bydefini
ti
onl andt enureisat er
m usedt ocov
ert hewi destr angeofinter
-
rel
ati
onshipbetweenaper sonandl and.Bri
efl
y,iti
sasy stem byl andi sownedor
occupied.Tothelawy er’
sv i
ew,landtenuredenotest
hetype(s)ofinterestinl
andthat
canbehel dinapar t
icularsy stem.Her eyouhav et
oanswersuchquest i
onasfrom
whom doIgetl and,onwhatt erms,whatcanIdoornotdowi thitorwhatar et he
i
ncidentsofsuchinterest
, etc.
Iti
struethatt
helegalandadmini
strat
ivemachi
ner
ygov
erni
ngl
andt
enur
ein
Tanzani
ahasit
sgenesi
sinthecol
oni
alper
iod.
InPr e-
col onialperi
od,thel egalandadmi ni
str
ati
vemachi nerygoverni
ngland
tenureinTanzani aMai nl
andhasi t
sgenesisi ntheCol oni
alperiod. Whileduri
ng
Colonial
ism,t hest atedobject
ivesofColoni
alrul
ersoverlandpoli
cyandt enurewast o
effectat r
ansf ormat i
onoft hecustomarytenureint
otenur ewher
ecol oni
alobject
ives
couldbeachi ev edeasily
.
Bot
ht he German and Briti
sh col
oni
alst at
es i
n Tanganyika encouraged
establi
shmentofplantat
ionagri
cul
tureanddevel
opmentofpeasantagri
cult
ure.Under
thi
sl andpoli
cythestatevest
edexclusi
vepowerstodeci
deonmat ter
sregardingland

283
Shi
vj
i,
I.
G.(
1996)
,Landt
enur
ePr
obl
emsandRef
ormsi
nTanzani
a

99
ownershi
p,landdi
str
ibut
ionandlanduse.Thi
swasmeantt ofaci
li
tateexpl
oit
ati
onof
resour
ces (bot
hland and human labour
).To achi
evethi
s,law was used as an
i
nstrument.The mainf unct
ion oflaw was to cont
roland regul
ate ownershi
p,
dist
ri
buti
onanduseofland.
TheLandr egimesest abli
shedbyt heGer man( 1895to1916)andBr it
ish(1918-
1961)assumedt hattheindigenousoccupant s( Nativ
es)hadno“ ownershipri
ghts’
’over
thei
rland.Thewest ernanthropologicalview wast hatAfri
canlandtenureismucht he
samei nev erypartofthecont i
nent ,i
.e.itiscommunalandani ndiv
idualonlyhas
securi
tyoftenur
ewhi l
sthei susingthel and.“Landisownedbyt hecommuni t
ynev erby
theindi
vidual
’
’andthuslandi sinali
enable.
UndertheGerman,landali
enat
edwast husfaci
l
itat
edbyanImperi
alDecr
eeof
26.11.1895( t
heImperi
alDecreeregar
dingcreat
ionAcquisi
ti
onandConvey
anceof
Crownlands)
.Thisl
awdeclaredt
hat-
“
…al
llandi
nshal
lberegar
dedasunowned.Owner
shi
pofsuchl
andi
s
v
est
edi nt
heEmpir
e’’

Itfol
lowedthatti
tl
estosuchlandweretobeobtai
nedthrought
hegov er
nor
ei
therbya)convey
ancingofowner
shi
porb)byl
easehol
dwi
thopt
iontopur
chase.

Whent heBri
ti
shestabl
i
shedi t
sadmi ni
str
ati
on,i
tenactedsimilarl
aw.TheLand
Tenur eOrdi
nancepassedin1923.( Laterreferr
edasLandOr dinance,1923Cap113)
statedalsothat“
thewholeoflandsoft err
it
orywhetheroccupi
edorunoccupiedonthe
dat eofthecommencementoft hi
sOr dinanceareherebydeclaredtobePublicl
and’
’
(s.2).

TheOr dinanceplaced thecontrolofsuch‘ publ

icland’int hehandsoft he
Gov er
nor.Secti
on6gav epowert otheGovernortomakegr antsofl andonr ight
sof
occupancyf orperi
odnotexceedi ng99y ear
s.Anditwasstatedclearl
yt hat“notit
leto
theoccupat i
onanduseofanysuchl andsshallbev al
i
dwi thouttheconsentoft he
Gov er
nor”.TheGov er
norundert hi
slawcouldgrantl
andtocompani es, set
tl
ersandany
otherlegalori
ndivi
dualpersons.

I
nessence,thel egalregimesgav ethestat eaf r
eehandasandwhennecessar y
to contr
oland ali
enat eindigenous land withoutbei ng encumber ed by any legal
obl
igati
ons.Howev er,byv i
rtueoft heVer sai
llesPeaceTr eat
yof1919t heex isti
ng
German tit
leswerer ecognised.Thepr ovi
so t o sect
ion 2 qual
ifi
ed thesection by
saf
eguardingthevalidit
yoft it
lesandinterest
swhi chwerelawfull
yacquiredbeforethe
commencementoft heOr di
nance( i
.e.before26Januar y1923).

I
nthisr
egard,t
heLandRegi str
yOrdinance1923wasenact ed,inwhi challl
ands
thatwer elawful
l
yacquiredduringtheGermaner awer etober egi
steredandbecome
freeholdtenur
e.Inaddit
ion,secti
on11pr ovi
dedt hatanyper sonwhocl aimst obei n
adv er
sepossessionofpubl i
clandandappl iesforregist
rat
ionast hef i
rstregi
stered
propriet
orther
eofshal
lbeentitl
edtobesor egist
ered.(
Adversepossessi onfor60y ears

100
orbypr
ovi
ng30y
rsadv
ersepossessi
onpr
iort
o26.1.
1923)
.

Therefor
e,itshouldbenot edthattheconver
sionofGermant i
tlest ofreehol
d
wasnotaut omaticbut,i
twast ober egi
ster
edundertheLaw Registr
yOr dinanceasa
requi
rement .Thi
swasdi scussedinA.Gv .Ndugumbi(
1953)21EACA43, wher eitwas
heldt
hatt heeffectofsec.2(1)ofLand(LawofProper
tyandConv eyancing)Ordinance,
1923wast ocov ertthepre-exi
stedti
tl
esofabsolut
eownershipi nt
of eesi mplewi t
h
absol
ut epossession.

UndertheTrusteeshi
pAgreement,(Art8)theBr i
ti
shCol oni
aladmi nist
r at
ionwas
requi
redtobesaf eguardinter
estsofthenativepopulation.TheAr t
iclestatedt hat.“i
n
frami
ngl awsr el
atingtot heholdingortransferofl andandnat uralresour ces,the
administ
eri
ngaut hori
tyshouldtakeintoconsiderati
onnat ur
el awsandcust oms,and
shouldrespectther i
ghtsandsaf eguar
dt heinterest
,bot hpresentandf utureoft he
nati
vepopulati
on’’

Lookingatt heLandOr dinance1923,itwasl egal

lyunclearwhet herint
erestsof
nat
iveswer esaf eguarded.Ther i
ghtofOccupancyf orexample,wasdef i
nedas“ at i
tl
e
totheuseandoccupat ionofl and’
’theomissionofnoti ncludi
ngcust omar yti
tl
et othe
l
andr ai
sedcr it
icismsint heper manentMandatesCommi ssionoft heLeagueofNat i
ons.
Hence, i
n1928t hescopeofappl i
cati
onoftheOr dinancewaswi dened.Thedef i
nit
ionof
R/Owasex pandedt oinclude“theti
tleofanat ur
eoranat i
vecommuni tylawful
lyusing
oroccupy ing land i n accordance with nati
v elaw and cust om’’(Land Ordinance
(Amendment )Ordinance, 1928No7) .Sincethencust omarylandt i
tl
eshav ecomet obe
cal
led“deemedr ightsofoccupancy ”

Theoccupat
ionanduseofl andbycust omaryhol
derswasv ali
dat
edbyt he
col
onialcour
tsbyassumingconsentont hepartoft
heGovernor
.Thecustomaryti
tl
es
werecategor
izedasper
missi
veright
s.(seeMuhenBi nSai
dv.Regist
rarofTi
tl
es[1948]
16EACA399; ,Mtor
oBinMwambav .A.G[1953]TLR327;

Undert heBritishthedeemedr ightwasnotgi v

ensamest atusasgrantedr ightof
284
occupancy .InMuhenabi nSai dvsRegi str
arofTi t
les t heappel l
antappl i
edt ot he
LandRegi strytober egisteredasanowneri nf eesimpl e.Hisappl i
cati
onwasr ejected
onthegr oundsinteral iat hatther
ewasnoev idencet osat i
stifytheregistr
art hathis
occupation was ot hert han t he admi t
ted generalper smissive occupati
on by al l
i
nhabitantsoft het er r
it
ory .Headdedt oprovet hathehadbeeni npossessionoft he
l
andf or30y ear
spr iort othecomi ngoft heGer mansandBr i
tish.Thecour twasoft he
vi
ew thatal thought hepr ov i
sotosect i
on3oft heLandTenur eOr di
nance1923di d
provi
det hatnothingcoul daf f
ectanytitl
eorinterestinlandlawf ull
yacquiredbef orethe
dateofitscommencement ,buttheorigi
naltri
balcust omshadnoconceptofi ndivi
dual
ownershipi nfeesimpl e.

284
(
1948)16EACA79

101
 Againi nMt oroBi nMwambavsA. G285t
heappl i
cantappl
iedforfi
rstregistrat
ion
asabenef icialownerofal andi nf eesi mpleundert heWashomv icustom butwas
refused.Hebr oughtt hemattert ocour t
.Incour t,hearguedthatthewashomv itr
ibe
recognizedindividualownershi
pequi valenttofreehold.I
twasdecidedint
eral i
at hatthe
Washomv il aw orcust om l
aw di d notknow i ndivi
dualownershiptol and except
286
i
ndi vi
dual’
susuf ructuaryri
ght
s andt hatwherel andwasheldbyanat i
vethei nference
wast hatthepossessi onwasper mi ssiv
eandnotadv erse.

Ast hecour tswer eact

ingasi nstrument
soft her ul
li
ngclassandnotjust
ice,
someti
mest heydefeatedgenuineclaimsonmer etechnicalgr
ounds.Int
hecaseof
Descendant s ofSheikh Mbar uk bi
n Rashid vs Mi ni
sterforLands and Mineral
287
Resources t heappellant
swer eAr abI mmigr
ants.Theyhadset t
ledonal andat
Ukongawit houtdocumentsandhadnev erbeenrequi
redtoproducedocument
soft i
tl
e
byanybodysi nce1896.

Theref
ore,under Bri
ti
sh admini
str
ation t
here were pl ant
ation agri
cul
tur
e,
conf
ir
mationofGermanali
enati
onsandestabli
shmentofnewpl antat
ions-expor
tcr
ops.
Alotofst
atuteswer
eenactedinor
dert
oimpl ementt
heirneeds.Amongt hem ar
e-

DuringIndependenceandAf t
er
Atindependence, theLandTenur eOrdinance(1923)andi tscolonialspir
itwasr et
ained.
Thewor dgov ernorwassubst it
utedwitht hewordpr esi
dentwher everitappearedint he
Ordinance.Itwaspossi bleforthepresidenttoacquirelandalthoughnotwi thasi milar
mot i
veasi twasf orthegov er
nor.Al
llandsi nTanzaniaconti
nuedt obepublicland.The
Presidentbecamet hecustodi
anofalllandonbehal fofthecit
izensofTanzani a.

Toconcludet
heabov
ediscussi
ononecanagr
eewithmet
hatthelegaland
administ
rat
ivemachi
ner
ygover
ninglandt
enur
einTanzani
ahasi
tsgenesi
si nthe
col
onialper
iod.

49.
Wri
teshor
tnot
esont
hef
oll
owi
ngmet
hodofl
andacqui
sit
ion
a) Adv
ersepossessi
on
b) Cl
ear
ingav
irgi
nfor
est
c) Pur
chase

a)Adv
ersepossessi
on

285
(1953)2TLR327, JamesR.
W andFimboGM (1973)at8
286
Essenti
all
ythi
smeantt her
ightt
ouseandoccupaylandbutnotowner
shi
p.
287
(1960)E.
A348, JamesR.W andFimboG.
M( 1973)at389.

102
 288
Inl andlawowner shipandpossessi onar edescr i
beddiffer
ently. Thereisapot enti
al
conf li
ctbetweent hetwo.( i)Possessionisapr imafaci
eev i
denceofowner shipthat
givest heholderabet t
err ightagainsteveryoneexceptaper sonwi thabet t
ertit
le/an
oldert i
tl
e/super i
orti
tle.Itmeanst hereareinstanceswher eonemaybeamer epaper
ownerordocumenthol der .Thusifapossesorofl andisoni twrongf ull
y,techni
call
yitis
onlyt hedocumenthol derwhocandi spl
acehi m asat r
espasser .Inot herwords,itis
onlyt hel egalownerwhocandi sposet het r
espasser.Underl imitati
onofact i
ons,
wr ongfulpossessorisknownasAdv ersePossessori .
ehi soccupat i
oni sadverse/
289
agai nstt
hepr operowner.
I
n shor tIcan sayt hatlapseoft imebar sthelegalownerf r
om chal l
enging t
he
occupation/possessi
onoft heAdversePossessor
.Thel aw doesnotgranttit
letothe
tr
espasser .Itjustbarsthelegalowneronl apseoft i
me.Howev er,i
nl andr i
ghtof
290
prescr
iptionconfersti
tl
etothelonguser
.

b)Cl
ear
ingav
irgi
nfor
est
Cl
ear
ingofv acantareashasal sobeendeemedt obethebestwayofasser ting
ownershi
pinl and.Theonewhowasf i
rsttoclearandsettl
eont hel andwasgi ven
pri
ori
tyindetermini
nginstancesofownwer shi
p.Essent
ial
l
ytheclearingofv i
rgi
nforest
wasacr uci
alwayofacqui r
ingsomef orm ofpermanentri
ghtsoverl and.Evengrants
weredependentont heculti
vationofper manentcropsortheconstructionofstr
uctures
wit
hahi ghdegr eeofatt
achmentt othesoi lbef
orepermanentri
ghtscoul devolv
e.The
buyi
ngandsel l
ingoflandisar ecentdev el
opment .
I
tnotedthatapermanentr i
ghttoapl otoflandcouldbeacquir
edbyani ndi
vi
dual
whowasi ndustri
ousandbol denought oclearapi eceofv i
rgi
nf orest.Theactof
clearanceand( insomear eas)cul
tivati
onwer econdit
ionsprecedenttor educi
ngvir
gin
l
andsi ntoowner ship.Whenthesecondi t
ionsweresatisfi
ed,t
heindiv
idualcouldcharge
ar enttoany oneelsewishi
ngt ouset helandandhecoul dalsodisposeofi taccor
ding
tot herel
evantrulesofcustomarytenure.
Tosuppor ttheabov epoint,in RashidibinAl iv.Bakar ibinKay anda291 t he
disputeconcer nedanar eaofl andunderr iceculti
vati
onwhi chformedpar tofal arger
areaov erwhi cht heappel lantexercisedt heright
sofa' Mzengakay a'i
nTabor a.The
Boar dundestoodt hattheterm designatedani ndiv
idualwhobyr easonofthefactheor
hisancestorsf irstclearedandoccupi edlandi napar ti
cularareahad,bycust om and
withtheconsentoft heChief,acqui
redar i
ghttograntorr efuse-
permissi
ont oot hersto
culti
vatei
nt hesamear ea.Wi t
hrespectt osuchpar tsofthear eaaswhereappr opr i
ated
byt heprocessofcul ti
vati
onf orthei ndivi
dualuseofhi mselfandhi sfamily,he-was
regardedasv irtuall
yt heownerofsuchar ea.Thepor ti
onindi sputewaspartoft hear ea
whichhadbeenappr opri
atedbyt heMzengakay aandhadbeencul ti
vat
edbyhi ssi ster
.

288
GooSHSour cebookonLandLaw,Quendi
sh( 1994)p171
289
Ibid
290
SeeJamesandFi mbochapter25andChapter5inGoo
291
(1941)JamesRW &FimboGM at298.

103
Abouteightyear
sbefor
et hedi
sputeoccur
redt
herespondentmar
ri
edt
hatsi
sterand
theappell
antt
henper
mittedhi
mt ooccupyt
hear
ea
292
Moreover n Si
,i l
angaKi menangavs.Mevongor imosoni i
twasst atedthat
underlocalcustomarylaw landbelongedt othefi
rst'personwho,actuallyclear
edi t
293
unless he had abandoned hisri
ghtst heret
o compl et
ely.InIshaku vs.Hadej i
a
accordi
ngt oIsl
amicLaw, i
fapersonbr oughti
ntocult
ivat
ionanyunculti
vatedland,t
hat
pl
acebel ongedtohim andevenanEmi rcouldnott
akei tf
rom hi
m.
294
I
naddi t
ion,t hecaseofMar iam bi nChaul embovs.Hami siWazi ri i nvol
ving
Rufij
il
awt heplaintif
fclaimedthedi sput edl andbyi nheritance.Ther ewer e400coconut
tr
eesont helandandi twasest abl
ishedt hatt hesewer epl antedbyt hedef endantwho
hadbeenont hel andf oralongper i
od,i ncludingaper ioddur i
ngt hel i
feti
meoft he
deceasedowner .Att het imewhent hedef endantt ookpossessi ont herewer eeight
coconuttreesont hel and.Thepl ainti
ffcl aimedt hatt hedef endantwasat respasser
andmustv acatet helandonr eceivingcompensat i
onf ort hei mprov ement swhi chhe
hadef f
ected.Heldundernat iv
el aw andcust om i nt hi
spar toftheTer ri
tory,landcan
onlybeacquiredbyef f
ectiveculti
vation, andcul tiv
at i
ont ot heext entonl yofei ghttrees
cannotbeper mit
t edtoest abl
i
shacl aimt oanar eacont ainingf ourhundr ed.
c)Pur
chase
295
Undercustomar ylaw landcouldal sobeacqui r
edt hroughpur chase. I
nanycase
wheretherewasanal legat
ionthataclai
mantorhi spr edecessorintitlehadacqui red
per
manentr i
ght sinlandbypur chaseorgifttheremi ghtbeapr el
iminaryi ssueast o
whethercustomar yl
andt enureofdiesit
usrecognizedt hebuy i
ngandsel l
i
ngorot her
di
spositi
onofl andattheall
egeddate.Thisnecessit
yforhistori
caldatacannotbeov er
-
emphasised,foranactioncanalwaysbedismissedwi thoutmuchadowhenonecl ai
ms,
296
ashisrootoftitl
e,asaleorgif
tatatimewhent hoseinstit
uti
onswer eunknown.
InthecaseofBar t
hol emewNdy anabovs.Bi .Pet r
onidaNdy amukama297 theappel l
ant
Barthol
emewsol dapl otoflandon18Mar ch1967t other espondentBi.Pet r
oni dafor
Shs.600.Theyexecut edawr itt
endocument ,
Exhi bi
tB, attesti
ngt hesal
eandst atingthe
dimensionsoft hel andt obe40x60paces.Subsequent l
y,whenBi .Petronidabegan
cult
ivat
ingtheshamba, shewasi nformedbyBar t
holemew' scaretaker
,Phil
ibert,thatthe
dimensionsoft helandar e40x60f eetandhepr ohibi
tedherf rom cult
ivat
ingi nexcess
thereof
.Itappearedt hatBar tholemewboughtt hepl otofl andi nquesti
onf orShs.700
from oneSost henesi nDecember1960,ev i
dencedbyawr it
tendocument ,Exhi bi
tA,
which describes the di mensi ons oft he land as 60 f t.x 40 f t.Accor ding to
Barthol
emew' stestimony ,hissonshowedt hel andt oBi .Petronidabutnoti tsbounds.
Theonl ypersonknowi ngt hetrueboundswast hecar etaker,Phili
bert
,andhewasnot
presentatthetime.

292
JamesR.W andFi mboG.M at299.
293
Ibidat300.
294
Ibidat301
295
Landdenot estheimprov
ement s;l
and(t
hesoil
)isownedbythest
ateandcannotbethesubjectofsal
e.
Impr ovementsincludet
hecleari
ngofthesoil
.
296
JamesR. W andFi mboG.M CustomaryLandLawofTanzani
a:ASourceBook(1973)at302
297
(
1968)HCD339,
seeJamesR.
W andFi
mboG.
M at305

104
Thepr i
mar ycour twasoft heopi niont hatBar tholemew del iberatel
ywr ote60x40
'
paces' insteadof' feet'sot hathecoul dobtaint heShs.600andi tordereditsrefundt o
Bi.Pet ronidaint womont hl yi nstalmentsofShs.300.Thedi stri
ctcourtonappeal
upheldt hepr imar ycour tjudgment .TheCour tagr eeswi t
ht hej udgmentoft helower
courts.Bar tholemew andBi .Pet ronidawer eobv i
ousl ynotadi dem ast ot het hing
bought ;shet houghtshewaspur chasi ngashambameasur i
ng60x40paceswhi lehe
hadnosuchshambat osellandi ntendedt odi sposeofapl otoflandmeasur i
ngonl y60
ft.s40f t.Thedi stri
ctmagi stratewhov isit
edt hesi tef oundt hathadt hel andbeeni n
town,hewoul dhav ebel i
evedt hatBi .Petronidahadi nt
endedt obui ldahouset hereon.
Asi twasi nther uralarea,heri ntentiont ocul t
ivatet hereonwasdemonst rated.AsBi .
Petronida'sconsentt othecont ractwasi nducedbyf raud,shewasent it
ledtor epudiate
ondi scov eri
ngt het r
uesi t
uat ion.Theappeali saccor di
nglydismi ssed.Imakenoor der
298
astocost s,si
ncenei therpar tyappear edbefor eme.

50.“Customarytenuresecuri
tyhasnotbeenenhancedbyLandAct,1999orthe
Vil
lageLandAct1999;suchoccupi
ersar
easinsecur
etodayast
heywereunder
col
oniall
egisl
ati
on”.Di
scuss

The quest
ion i
s al
laboutdiscussi
on on quotati
on that“Cust
omarytenure
securi
tyhasnotbeenenhancedbyLandAct ,1999ortheVi l
lageLandAct1999;such
occupi
ersareasinsecuret
odayast
heywer eundercol
oniall
egisl
ati
on”
.
Franklyspeaki ng,historical
ly,oneshoul dnot et hatlandhasbeenanar enaof
299
str
ugglesbet ween cont enting forces .Pr i
ort o colonization land washel d under
customar yregimeandi tbelongedt ot hewhol esociet
yei theracl an,familyortr
ibe.The
emphasiswaspl acedont her i
ghtt ouseandenj oyt hef ruit
soft heland;ther
ewasno
conceptofi ndivi
dual owner shipandcommodi sat
ionofl and300.Thisisevidencedbyt wo
301
famouscasesofMuhenaBi nSaidv .Regist
rarofTittl
es andMt oroBinMwambav .A.
G302whichst atedt hatcustomar yl
awdoesnotknowi ndividualowner shipofland,what
i
trecognizesi nani ndivi
dual isonlyusuf r
uctuaryri
ghts.
Landdisputesexist
edbet weeni ndivi
dualsoronesocietywithanot
hersoci
ety
fi
ght
ingforapieceofland.Exampl eofthesedi sputesi
sshowninthecaseofAbdal
lah
Chapil
av.Mwi nyi
goha&ot hers303.Al
sodisput esregar
dingi
nher
it
anceli
keinthecase
304
ofMariam Bi
nChaulembov .Hami sWaziri .
Duri
ngcoloni
alperi
odlanddisput
escanbeelaborat
edintotwophases;Ger
man
phase and Bri
tish phase.Inthese phases l
and di
sputes emerged bet
ween the
col
onizers(Ger
manandBr i
tai
n)andnati
vesofTanzani
aduet oali
enati
onoflanddone

298
Adoptedf r
om JamesR. W andFi
mboG. M pp305-306
299
Fimbo, M. G.(2004),
LandLawRef or
msi nTanzania,p.2.
300
Jesse, J.M andChalamboJ.(2009),BackgroundtotheLandLawinTanzani
a,p.15.
301
[1948]16EACA339
302
[1953]TLR327
303
[1965]L. C.C.
AD/ 30/65(
unrepor
ted)(report
edinFimbo,G.M.(
2006)
,TheLandLawofTanzania;A
CaseBook)
304
James, R.W.andFimbo,G.M.(1973),CustomaryLandLawofTanzania:
ASour ceBook,
p.299.

105
byt hesecoloni
zersGermanl andregimeest abl
ished( 1895t o1916)assumedt hat
i
ndigenousoccupants(nat
ives)hadnoowner shi
pr i
ghtsov ert
heirl
and.Thepassageof
theImperialDecreeby26.11.1895f aci
l
itatedandl egalizedlandali
enati
onbecauseit
gaveowner shi
poflandtothecol oni
algov ernmentwhi chcoulddoany t
hingt
ot hatl
and
i
ncludingali
enati
onfort
hepur poseofplant ati
onagricult
ure.
Thei
rlandsweresubjecttoexpr
opr
iat
ionf
orf reeholdspur
posel
yf ortheSet
tl
ers.The
Decr
eedeclar
edthat:“Alll
andinGermanEastAf r
icashal
lberegardedasunowned.
305
Ownershi
pofsuchlandisrest
edint
heEmpire ” .
TheBr it
ishcol onialstatei
nTanganyikat ookpoweraf terFi
rstWorldWarand
306
enactedsimilarlaws .TheLandTenur eOrdinancewaspassedi n1923(l
aterref
err
ed
asLandOr dinance, 1923)st atedt
hat
:“Thewhol elandsofterr
it
orywhetheroccupi
edor
unoccupiedont hedat eoft hecommencementoft hisor
dinanceisherebydeclar
edto
307
bethepublicland” .
I
nessencethelegalr
egi
megavethest
ateafr
eehandasandwhennecessar
yto
contr
oland al i
enat
es indi
genous l
and wi
thoutbei
ng encumber
ed by any l
egal
obli
gatons308
i
Afterindependence,t hegov ernmentwentonusi ngthesamel andl awsinland
administr
ationbyr et
ainingt hel egalher
it
ageleftbytheBri
ti
shrule309.Accor
dingto
310
KennedyG. ,dur i
ngpost -
independenceperi
odtherewasonl
yoneat temptt or
egulat
e
pastorall
andundercust omar yl
awunt i
l1999whentheLandandVi
llageLandact swere
enacted.
Tosum uponecansayt hatTanzani aenact
edl egi
slati
onofl andtenurewhi ch
i
ntendst oext i
nguishal
lcustomar ytenurethatexi
stedbef or
eill
egali
zat
ion.Thei dea
behindtheextincti
onofcustomarytenurewi l
lpr
omoteagr i
cult
ureproduct
ionwithinthe
311
country
. Forexampl ei n 1992 Tanzania enact
ed land Tenuret o exti
nguish al
l
consti
tutionexist
ingbef
orethevil
lagevil
lagi
zati
on.

305
Sect i
on1ofI mperi
alDecree,
1895
306
JesseJ. M andChal amboJ.(2009),Backgr
oundtotheLandLawi
nTanzani
a.
307
Sect i
on2ofActNo.3of1923, Cap.113.
308
Ibidi,
309
Kennedy ,
G.( 2008)
,TheImpactofTanzania’
sNewLandLawsontheCustomaryLandRi
ght
sof
Past orali
sts,p.105
310
Kennedy ,
G.( 2008)
,TheImpactofTanzania’
sNewLandLawsontheCustomaryLandRi
ght
sof
Past orali
sts,p.105
311
Seet hecaseofA. Gvs.LohayAkonay(1995)TLR80)

106
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107