By Alusine Sesay
President Julius Maada Bio should curtail the excesses of officials of the Lands Ministry
November 25, 2025: Serious allegations have emerged against Sierra Leone’s Director of Lands, Tamba Dauda, who is accused of obstructing a citizen’s lawful land ownership despite a High Court order and ministerial approval.
Businessman Salim K. Sillah has lodged a formal complaint to President Julius Maada Bio, alleging that Dauda deliberately blocked his right to develop property legally acquired through the country’s established land governance process.
Court-Backed Ownership Challenged
According to documents cited in the complaint:
- A High Court Order (MISC.APP466/2024 No. 78) authorized the transaction.
- The Ministry of Lands approved the conveyance in February 2025.
- The Registrar General registered the property on March 13, 2025.
- All National Revenue Authority (NRA) taxes were paid in full.
Despite these steps, Sillah claims the Director of Lands personally halted his right to develop the property, delaying approval of a fence construction permit for more than six months.
Permit Stalled Without Explanation
Sillah says he applied for the permit immediately after ministry officials stopped his construction work. Records show the application cleared all technical and administrative checks, leaving only one pending signature—that of the Director of Lands.
Repeated letters from his lawyers, interventions by two ministers, and even a meeting attended by the Minister of Lands reportedly failed to move the process forward.
Alleged Foreign Influence
In his complaint, Sillah alleges that Dauda admitted he was refusing to sign because a Lebanese national living abroad had asked him to “protect the land.” If true, this would mean Sierra Leone’s chief land administrator allowed a private request from a foreign national to override a High Court order, ministerial approval, and a registered conveyance.
Sillah further claims Dauda threatened to revoke his ownership altogether, despite its legal backing.
Broader Concerns Over Land Governance
The allegations raise serious questions about accountability within the Lands Ministry, an institution long criticized for corruption and inefficiency.
“This undermines the rule of law, violates due process, and threatens the credibility of land governance in Sierra Leone,” Sillah wrote in his letter to President Bio, dated November 20, 2025.
He warned that if such obstruction could happen to him—a businessman who says he has helped create tens of thousands of jobs—then “tens of thousands of poor and helpless citizens are facing the same ordeal.”
Call for Presidential Action
Sillah has urged President Bio to launch an immediate investigation into Dauda’s conduct and to instruct the Ministry of Lands to approve the long-delayed permit.
The case highlights a growing crisis of confidence in Sierra Leone’s land administration system, where constitutional guarantees of property ownership appear vulnerable to bureaucratic obstruction and external influence
Director of Lands, Tamba Dauda, has so far failed to comment on the allegations. Despite several attempts to reach him—and even after he confirmed two separate appointments to discuss the matter—he failed to provide any response
.