As demolitions loom, residents ponder what the future holds

Dar es Salaam. Residents owning buildings and other structures on Morogoro Road between Kimara Stop Over and Kibamba in Dar es Salaam are living in fear after the Tanzania National Roads Agency (Tanroads) announced demolitions to pave the way for the construction of a six-lane highway.

The government plans to expand Morogoro Road into a six-lane dual carriageway from the Ubungo intersection in the city to Chalinze Town in Coast Region.

Among notable facilities earmarked for demolition is Neema Health Centre located at Kimara Stop Over.

Part of another hospital in Mbezi kwa Musuguri is also to be demolished as are seven filling stations located between Kimara Suka and Kibamba.

More than 700 residential buildings and business premises used by small and medium entrepreneurs have already been earmarked for demolition.

A survey by The Citizen has established that there is palpable uncertainty as it was not clear when the demolitions would take place, and some owners had already started to demolish their structures.

Structures lined up for demolition include buildings and facilities worth billions of shillings. This means that their owners are staring at financial ruin in the face after the government maintained that there would be no compensation because the structures were erected in the road reserve.

Also facing an uncertain future are dozens of flourishing businesses and scores of people they employ.

The owner of Neema Health Centre, Dr Godson Koka, told The Citizen that the Sh2 billion dispensary was built between 1992 and 2004, adding that the government notice was issued at a time he was struggling to repay a $50,000 (Sh110 million) loan he secured ten years ago from a relative.

The maternal health specialist said he had already repaid $30,000, and expected to clear the remaining $20,000 this year if things had gone according to plan.

“Now that the building has been earmarked for demolition, the future is truly bleak. The average number of patients visiting the hospital daily has plunged to three from 35 a few months ago. In fact, there is no business to speak of here,” he said.

A composed Dr Koka said his request for an extension of the deadline to move out, submitted on May 3, was turned down by the authorities, with Tanroads insisting in its letter dated May 10, 2017 that individuals and institutions were prohibited by law from building residential and business structures in road reserves.

He added that on June 7 he wrote to Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) informing the tax officer in Kimara that he had decided to close his business until further notice.

“Although 20 of my employees, including three doctors, two medical assistant, ten nurses and several office attendants, stand to lose their jobs, I have no other option...there is nothing I can do.”

Dr Koka pleaded with the government to consider compensating those who would be affected, saying many of them had lived and worked in the area for many years and had been paying property tax and other dues.

Asked why he looked calm, unlike other owners whose structures had been earmarked for demolition, Dr Koka smiled and said, “I’m 65 years old...this has happened, and I must accept it if I’m to continue living. I’m supposed to accept the situation without panicking, otherwise I will succumb to hypertension and that will be the end of the story.

“Money and property are obtained through many years of struggles and hard work, but they can disappear overnight. That is the bitter truth. People need to understand that and be patient.”

The secretary of residents whose houses are to be demolished, Mr Abubakar Rajabu, said he was representing 546 people who were disputing the claim that their structures were in the road reserve.

He said while the government says that the Roads Act Number 13 of 2007 provided for 400 feet, or 120 metres, from the centre of the road to be reserved on either side, the residents argued that there was no road in the world with such a vast reserve.

Mr Rajabu said they believed that the 120 metres were supposed to cover both sides of the road, or 60 metres on either side.

He added that there was another group of 198 people who had been seeking justice after the 2007 Roads Act superseded previous laws enacted in 1967, 1959, 1954, 1942 and 1932.

“There is a court order to the effect that all houses and buildings that are to be demolished be identified first. Meanwhile, the status quo will remain as the exercise is carried out and pending determination of a matter we have filed in court,” Mr Rajabu said.

He added nobody was against the government’s development plans, but people’s basic rights should be safeguarded.

Affected people had unsuccessfully sought audience with President John Magufuli through former Kibamba District Commissioner Humphrey Polepole, who is now the CCM Ideology and Publicity Secretary, Mr Rajabu said, adding that he hoped the Head of State would come to the residents’ rescue.

Mr Frank Lema, owner of a CamelOil filling station in Mbezi, said the exercise targeted seven petrol stations worth an estimated Sh6.3 billion to Sh7 billion if the value of each facility was assumed to be between Sh900 million to Sh1 billion.

He said most of the stations hosted tenants operating other businesses, including ATMs, gyms and car servicing and washing facilities, which would have to relocate.

“The 30-day notice given to us to move out is too short, given the kind of business we are in. Unlike ordinary shops, investing in filling stations requires painstaking research and exhaustive consultations with the authorities, not to mention substantial sums in capital,” Mr Lema said, adding that at least 210 people employed at the seven stations would lose their jobs.

Mr Ibrahim Rumeme of Cris Sports Barber Shop in Kimara Suka said he was finding it difficult to find the right place to relocate his business.

“There are a number of alternative places, but the landlords are demanding anywhere between Sh150,000 and Sh200,000 per room per month instead of the Sh100,000 I have been paying at my current location. To make matters worse, these expensive shops are in a quiet area where there are virtually no customers,” said Mr Rumeme, who has employed six people.

Mother-of-one Asha Abeid said she was looking for a job elsewhere after the salon she had worked at for several years was earmarked for demolition.

“Customers have dried up and morale among workers is at rock-bottom since a big ‘X’ was painted outside the salon...it’s time to move on,” she said.

Religious buildings have not been spared either. Structures that are required to be torn down include the Anglican Church building and an old building at the Roman Catholic Church in Mbezi Louis.

A priest at the Mavurunza Anglican Church, Amos Nene, said the church would relocate to a four-acre site one-and-a-half kilometres from its current location, and an estimated Sh700 million was needed for the construction of a new prayer house.

“We have to put up a temporary building because the amount required to complete the project is substantial. However, we are waiting for a response from the authorities on our request for more time to relocate,” he said.

Mr Basil Herri of Kibamba, whose two houses are to be pulled down, said his parents had lived in the area since 1976 during the days of communal villages, adding that they had nowhere else to go.

He appealed to the government to compensate all those who would be affected to enable them to rebuild their lives.

The Citizen visited Bochi Hospital at Mbezi kwa Musuguri and confirmed that part of the building is to be demolished.

However, a positive side to the demolitions is that the hospital, which also serves National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) members, will be more accessible and will directly overlook the proposed super highway.

Tanroads regional manager Julius Ndyamukama asked people whose structures had been earmarked for demolition to vacate the area immediately, saying the agency was finalising preparations to evict those who would defy the directive.

“Consultations with other government agencies, including police, are being finalised. Demolition of the remaining buildings will take place any time,” he said.

Mr Ndyamukama said the government in 1997 won a case filed by residents who were opposing the expansion of the Dar es Salaam-Mlandizi highway, adding that the judgment still stood

“We don’t expect any compensation claims from individuals or institutions. However, if these come forward, the authorities will handle them accordingly. As for religious buildings, requests for more time will be considered only after it will be confirmed that efforts are being made to actually relocate.”