Govt collects 12bn/- in land rent after exemption

THE government has collected a significant amount of nearly 12bn/- from land rent within five months following President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s directive to exempt accumulated interests on defaulters.

According to Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Land, Housing and Human Settlement Development, Dr Allan Kijazi in the fiscal year 2022, the land rent defaulters were given relief to pay the principal amount.

The exemption was for the period of six months from July 2022 to 31, December 2022.

“Since the amnesty of the unpaid accumulated interest was granted, 2,819 land rent defaulters have come forward to ask for amnesty and meet the exemption criteria…and a total of 11.99bn/- has been collected after the exemption,” Dr Kijazi stated this in Dar es Salaam, yesterday when briefing reporters on  the progress of the payment of unpaid land rent.

During this period, a total of 6.9bn/- of unpaid accumulated interest was exempted.

In the line, Dr Kijazi implored all land rent defaulters across the country to use the remaining grace period before 31 December 2022 to benefit from the President’s exemption by paying their principal amount.

“After the issued grace period elapses, the Ministry will start taking legal measures including revocation of  land ownership (title deeds)   in accordance with Article 45 of the Land Law (Cap 113) and open litigation proceedings before auctioning the property in order to cover the relevant taxes,” he added.

For those whose plots have been surveyed but are yet to process ownership (title deeds) within the agreed timeframe of 90 days, they risk their land being placed on sell again to other people as the law stipulates, Dr Kijazi underscored.

“About 1, 457, 809 of plots have been surveyed but occupiers are yet to process legal ownership so that they can legally own them. If these people had shown up the government would have collected approximately 145.78bn/-,” he said.

“I have directed all land offices countrywide to provide services until 11.00 pm during these remaining days, including tomorrow (Saturday) so as to fast-tract the payment,” he said.

“I would like to inform the public that the ministry is well organised to serve them in order to benefit from the  accumulated land rent interests relief as directed by the Head of the State,” he insisted.

In a related development, Dr Kijazi said “In accordance with Article 33 of the Land Law (Cap 113), the land rent, as other sources of government income, has a significant contribution to the national development as it enables the government to finance various socio-economic projects.