Sections of Samora Avenue (left) and Mansfield (right), Mkwepu
(background) and Bridge (foreground) streets, where several old
buildings were demolished last week to pave the way for new development.
PHOTO | SILVAN KIWALE
By Lucas Liganga, The Citizen Chief Reporter
(email the author)
Posted Monday, August 19 2013 at 08:43
Posted Monday, August 19 2013 at 08:43
In Summary
Iconic landmarks such as the Askari Monument, Old
Post Office and Karimjee Hall are no longer protected against demolition
after the government revoked the Antiquities Declaration of
Conservation Areas Notice No. 2006.
Dar es Salaam. Historical and cultural buildings
and monuments in Dar es Salaam can be demolished to pave the way for
new development following the revocation of the government notice
protecting them, The Citizen can reveal.
Iconic landmarks such as the Askari Monument, Old
Post Office and Karimjee Hall are no longer protected against demolition
after the government revoked the Antiquities Declaration of
Conservation Areas Notice No. 2006.
The revocation comes in the backdrop of a
demolition spree in which a number of historical buildings in the
central business district have been bulldozed in recent years.
Structures that have been razed to the ground
include MC George Building at the junction of Samora Avenue and Mkwepu
Street, which was demolished in 2008.
The building was put up in 1901, and originally housed a police officers’ mess during German colonial rule.
It later served as the Tanzania head office of a
German pharmaceutical company before housing the legendary Salamander
Restaurant.
On February 20, 2007, the then Minister for
Natural Resources and Tourism, Prof Jumanne Maghembe, revoked the
Antiquities Declaration of Conservation Areas Notice No. 2006, opening
the door to the demolition of historical buildings and monuments.
Asked to explain the revocation when reached for comment yesterday, Prof Maghembe said it was a “collective” decision.
“It was a government decision, not my personal
decision. I signed the notice because I was in the (Natural Resources
and Tourism) docket at that time...it was purely a government decision,”
he said.
Prof Maghembe said the government decided to
revoke the protection of historical buildings and monuments to pave the
way for the construction of high-rise structures that would help to
boost economic growth.
“As you are aware, we are transforming from a poor
country into a middle income nation, and this cannot be realised by
keeping old buildings intact,” said Prof Maghembe, who is now the
minister for Water.
The demolished buildings would be replaced by
high-rise buildings that would speed up economic growth through the
provision of various services, he said.
Mr John Kimaro, the Assistant Director for Conservation and
Technology in the Antiquities Division of the Ministry of Natural
Resources and Tourism, said political will to protect historical
monuments was lacking.
“A country with no history does not deserve to be
called a country. If we lose the history of Dar es Salaam future
generations will point accusing fingers at us,” he told The Citizen last
week.
He wondered why the Salamander building was
hastily demolished in 2008 and yet no development had taken place at the
site five years later.
Investigations by The Citizen have established
that a building on Samora Avenue that housed the Dar es Salaam office of
Angola’s first president, Agostinho Neto, during the southern African
country’s independence struggle has also been earmarked for demolition.
Tanzania Publishing House was formerly a meeting
point for southern African liberation leaders such as Neto and
Mozambique’s Samora Machel.
Mr Kimaro said the demolition of historical
buildings was likely to continue unabated since it “involves a great
deal of dirty money”.
He said the Antiquities Act No. 10 of 1964 and
Amendment Act No. 22 of 1979 both provided for the preservation and
protection of sites and objects of national, archaeological, historical
and cultural interest.
According to the 1964 law, a building, site or
structure is declared a conservation area when it is a valuable national
heritage, contains a homogeneous group of monuments, or has valuable
national heritage for its historical, architectural, social or cultural
value.
Mr Donatius Kamamba, the Director of Antiquities
in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, says transformation of
Tanzania’s economy was threatening heritage sites.
“As Tanzania creates a free market economy, the
underlying value of heritage sites is endangered. The survival of our
historical buildings and structures is a concern to all of us in
Tanzania,” he says in a 48-page booklet titled Guidelines for the
Conservation of Historical Buildings and Structures in Tanzania.
He says the buildings and structures are not only
important as sources of inspiration, symbol and wonder, but also as an
integral part of Tanzania’s cultural heritage.
Source: The citizen
Source: The citizen
