Q&A – 14 March 2011
Halving of rights, doubling of responsibilities
I was a very happy single man until I was forced into getting married five years ago. With my wife in the picture my rights have been halved and responsibilities doubled. There is no peace of mind at home. My wife complains about me whenever she sees me- I just can’t seem to find the right formula to keep my family happy. What should I do?
PL, Dar
Your question has many limbs to it some of which we are not qualified to answer. There is no magic formula that we can think of that will please your wife. Problems between man and wife have existed since the time of Adam and Eve, and will likely continue to exist. If the marriage is so hopeless you have a remedy of separating and allowing time to reconcile, or proceed to file a petition for divorce. Life does go on even after a divorce so you should keep that option on the drawing table. However you might want to meet a marriage counselor before taking any further action.
Right of occupancy expiring
I have a right of occupancy commonly known as a title deed for a plot in Dar es Salaam. The title deed is expiring mid-2011 and my lawyers opine that it might be hard to get it renewed as I have not complied with the terms and conditions of the title deed. I fail to understand why I cannot build a school in a residential area whereas I have paid for the plot. Why should the government interfere with what I can and cannot do on land that I own. What should I do?
KP, Dar
We wish to answer your question in two parts. First is the illegal usage of the land under the title. As per the land laws of Tanzania, you cannot change the usage under the title without making an application to the Minister. Change of usage may be accommodated but you must apply for such a change otherwise you will be in breach of conditions of the title, as you presently are. We advise you to make an application for change of use immediately justifying your position. There are chances that your application will be successful as you are running an educational institution.
Your comments on why the government controls usage of area- please be informed that this is essential otherwise there would be no land planning whatsoever. This is practice throughout the world and not only in Tanzania and hence there is no peculiarity here.
We now address the issue of renewal of the term of right of occupancy. The Land Act states that where a right of occupancy comes to an end through affliction of time, the person or organisation occupying the land under that right of occupancy shall, if he has complied with the terms and conditions of that right of occupancy in a satisfactory manner and it is practical so to do, be offered a renewal of that right of occupancy on any terms and conditions which the commissioner may determine before that right of occupancy is offered to any other person or organization. Hence the right of occupancy is renewable subject to not being in breach.
We suggest that you remedy the breach by applying for change of use before you apply for extension of the right of occupancy, which has not yet expired. However should the change of use application take long you may find yourself in a situation where the change of use has not been completed and the right of occupancy has expired. We suggest you see your legal advisors for further guidance.
Contempt of Court
I was summoned as a witness in a case whereby it was quite apparent that the Judge was siding with the plaintiff’s lawyer when I was being questioned. I was very uncomfortable and it reached a stage where I could not handle it anymore and was a little aggressive in Court. The Judge held me in contempt of Court and has set a date to sentence me. Is this normal?
JL, Moshi
Contempt of Court is defined as disobedience of a Court order or process, such as a breach of injunction. For example if an injunction is served on a defendant with a penal notice attached, breach of the injunction can result in the defendant being imprisoned. Other contempt of Court examples are when one deliberately interferes with the outcome of legal proceedings, uses threatening language or creates a disturbance in Court and unreasonably attacks the integrity of the justice system. We have also heard stories of people being sentenced to jail because their phone rings in Court!
The general notion is that Judges should use this discretion very sparingly. In your case we are unsure as to how aggressive your behavior was in Court. You must be warned that contempt of Court can lead to a custodial sentence of upto six months. We suggest you contact your lawyer for further guidance.
Plea of guilty
I was arrested for an offence in which the public prosecutor and magistrate informally told me to plea guilty and that would be the end of the matter as I would be fined. It seemed like a reasonable quick fix arrangement and I did exactly as was instructed. To my utmost surprise I was passed a sentence of one month in jail. Can the magistrate and prosecutor misguide me like that?
KO, Songea
We begin by saying that neither the prosecutor nor magistrate is allowed to guide you in such matters. They do not act for you and hence this guidance was inappropriate and perhaps even illegal. Unfortunately you have not told us what the offence was but many offences have the option of a fine and/or custodial sentence and the general rule is that a fine should be imposed first. By the time we have answered this question (because of the backlog we have) you should be out of jail. We do sympathize with you but wish to reiterate the importance of proper legal representation when in Court.