It is now in the public domain that the land lease agreement and performance contract signed between the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) and Mlimani Holdings Limited is vague and stinking.
UDSM management admitted yesterday before the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that the contract needs to be reviewed. In the same vein, PAC said it will summon UDSM officials who in 2004 signed that contract to appear before the Committee to give convincing reasons as to why they signed it.
Although neither did the university’s administration nor the parliamentarians reveal the names of the administrators who put pen to paper back then fourteen years ago, documents obtained by the ‘Daily News’ revealed that the contract was signed by the then UDSM Vice-Chancellor (VC), Prof Mathew Luhanga and the then Chief Administrative Officer, Prof John Mshana.
Yesterday, the UDSM management led by the Acting Chairman of the University’s Council, Prof Nicholaus Kuhanga and the VC Prof William Anangisye, was subjected to a comprehensive grilling by PAC for the better part of the day, to give responses on various issues in regard to that contract.
Members of Parliament (MPs) were unhappy with the contract that is benefiting an investor who has the lion’s share, while the university remains with only a few dollars from the gross rent contrary to the contract.
The presentation from the university’s management revealed that the investor was disbursing to the university only 10 per cent of the net income instead of disbursing 10 per cent of the gross income as enshrined in the contract.
Again, according to the Director of Planning Development and Investment at UDSM, Dr Pancras Bujulu, Mlimani Holdings Limited was yet to clear an outstanding debt it owes the university amounting to 304,103.46 US dollars (over 69bn/-) contrary to the contract. The amount is lesser than what the university is supposed to receive if the contract is anything to go by.
The PAC Chairperson, Naghenjwa Kaboyoka directed afresh verification of the funds that are supposed to be disbursed to the university and that the Controller and Auditor General (CAG) should verify the outstanding debt, which should be cleared by the investor before the end of June, 2018.
The Parliamentary Committee also expressed its dismay over the implementation of the 50-year land lease and performance contract especially on the building of a three star 10-storey hotel with 100 rooms, that according to the contract, should be accomplished before December, 2019.
“After visiting the site, we believe that an investor cannot put up that hotel within a year, considering the fact that the hotel should include a botanical garden,’’ observed Ms Kaboyoka. Initially, the investor had submitted a letter to the university’s management detailing that the company could not afford to put up the hotel because of several debts from the various loans acquired from different financial institutions.
But, the university’s authorities stood to its guns that the implementation of the contract remains intact. In a bizarre turn of events, Magomeni MP, Jamal Kassim revealed that in the contract, the investor stated that he would begin with a total capital of 75 US dollars (about 170,000/-), something that raised eyebrows on how he could be able to obtaining the bank collateral to execute the contract.
“This company produced fake documents because you cannot begin with a capital of 75 dollars, while at the same time remitting dividend amounting to 3.8 million US dollars to shareholders,’’ he said, as he received mammoth support from other lawmakers This investor can be termed as a ‘thief’ in a simple language, because this contract is intolerable,’’ said Special Seats MP, Khadija Nassir Ali.
Among other issues, the contract wants the investor to put up a shopping mall, 50 apartments, a conference hall, six renting offices, a three-star hotel and a botanical garden, according to Dr Bujulu.
Prof David Mfinanga and the University’s VC said the varsity was not satisfied with the contract and that they were negotiating outside the court with the investor to review the contract.
They were seconded by UDSM Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academics), Prof Bonaventure Rutinwa who prior to his promotion was the head of the legal department of the university management.
According to Prof Rutinwa, in May, last year, the university wrote to the investor expressing dismay on various issues in the contract.
“The management sees a lot of weaknesses in the contract and we are applying various measures to solve the matter outside the court to avoid unnecessary costs,’’ he added.
Daily News
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