THE government has promised to make a follow up on the payment of compensation to 2,179 residents of Songea Municipality, whose area is set for Special Economic Zone (SEZ).
Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa told the
residents yesterday during the rally at Mwengemshindo Ward that the
fifth phase government will make sure the residents are paid their
compensation. The compensation which is supposed to be paid by three
investors who have emerged to invest in the said area is worth 3.2bn/-.
According to Premier Majaliwa, the fifth
phase government is aware of their challenges and that it is working
hard to resolve them. He said the former Songea Urban MP (CCM), the late
Leonidas Gama, had already informed his office on the matter.
“When the late Gama came from India, he
visited me in my office and registered two concerns, one was the
compensation for Mwengemshindo residents and the second was the
construction of Songea urban bus station,” he said.
The Premier added: “Today I have visited
you purposely to assure you that the fifth phase government is aware of
your problems and it is working tirelessly to resolve them. I have
passed through the area which is set for SEZ and I have been shown the
drawings of the area.”
According to the Premier, the area has
been allocated by the municipal council for construction of industries
and that so far three investors have shown interest. “There will be a
maize processing industry which will also produce cattle and poultry
feeds,” he said.
The Premier added that the second
industry will be processing coffee while the third will be for seed oil
extraction. He added that the railway from Mtwara to Mbamba Bay is
expected to pass through the area. On the delay of compensation, Premier
Majaliwa said the investors are responsible for paying the compensation
for the areas they will acquire for businesses. He said so far only one
investor has paid the compensation.
However, the Premier admitted that there
were some shortfalls in the payment processes. “The payment followed
alphabetical orders instead of paying people whose areas have been
acquired. Therefore, some people in the project area haven’t been paid
and the construction cannot start until they are out of the area,” he
explained.
The assessment was conducted for at
least 2,179 people and 3.3bn/- was supposed to be paid. In June, 2015
the government paid 1,179 residents a total of 1.9bn/-. The area under
discussion is 5,000 acres and it was taken by EPZA in collaboration with
the Regional Administration since 2007.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister has
ordered Songea Municipal Council Land Officer, Mr Kundael Ndemfoo to
make a follow up on Ms Monica Miti and her children who claim that their
house was grabbed by former municipal council lawyer.
The Premier reacted after reading a
poster raised by Ms Miti during the meeting at Mwengemshindo. When given
an opportunity to explain, Ms Miti who mentioned the former municipal
council legal officer by one name as Mwakasungura, said he forged house
title deeds and moved her out of the house along with her children.
When asked on the whereabouts of the
legal officer, the municipal council director, Ms Tina Sekambo said the
officer has been transferred to Ukerewe District, Mwanza Region. He
ordered the officials in the region to make a close follow up on the
matter and give him the report as soon as possible. He also instructed
Ms Miti and her children to meet him in Songea on January 3, 2018.
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