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Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)



Tanzania: Firms Lose Hunting Blocks Allocation Review Case
By Faustine Kapama, 9 August 2013





THE High Court has dismissed with costs an application lodged by two companies engaged in wildlife conservation and tour operations in the country seeking to challenge a decision by the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism over the allocation of hunting blocks.

In the decision sought to be challenged, the minister had refused to allocate the two applicants, Tanzania Game Trackers Safari Limited and Wengert Windrose Safaris (Tanzania) Limited, some hunting blocks because of what was said to be stiff competition.

The minister's decision prompted the two firms to file the application before the court seeking leave to apply for prerogative orders of mandamus to compel the minister to perform his ministerial duties by considering and determining the application for review over his decision.

But in her ruling, High Court Judge Zainabu Mruke said, "It is my firm opinion that the application for leave to apply for prerogative order of mandamus does not raise any arguable prima facie case for the intended substantive application."

The judge noted that the end result of the application for administrative review in the event that it was successful was to allocate the applicants with the sought hunting blocks. The refusal to allocate the same to the applicants, she said, had the effect of determining the application for administrative review.

"The contention that the refusal was not supported by reasons, if at all, was correct. It would have not assisted the applicants either because whether a decision is reasoned or not would be dealt with in an application for prerogative orders of certiorari, not mandamus," she ruled.

Orders of certiorari are supervisory writs serving to keep all inferior jurisdictions within the bounds of their authority, whereas mandamus is an order from a court to a government official to properly fulfill their official duties or correct an abuse of discretion.

According to the judge, the order of mandamus would be consequential upon the granting of an order of certiorari, for once the unreasoned decision is quashed, the status quo is automatically maintained and hence the minister remains duty-bound to entertain the application and make a reasoned decision.

"Once the (minister) made a decision in respect of the application of administrative review it was factus officio (re-opening of a matter) to further determine the issue unless there was a provision (in law) conferring authority to (him) to review his own decision, which is not the case," she said.

Apart from the minister, other respondents in the matter were Game Frontiers Limited, Rungwa Game Safari, Green Millers Limited, all dealing in hunting, and the Attorney General (AG). Advocate Gasper Nyika, for the applicants, has already lodged a notice of appeal to oppose the High Court's ruling.

It was alleged that the applicants submitted their application for administrative review to the minister on September 2011. The hearing of the application was conducted by several joint meetings involving the applicants, Green Millers Limited and the AG.

On July 5, last year, the applicants received a letter from the minister to the effect that "it was not possible to allocate hunting blocks to them due to stiff competition." In their response, the applicants requested the minister to further hear and determine the administrative review.