The African National Congress (ANC) has defended its decision to propose a new change to the land expropriation without compensation plan. The alteration could see the decision making process shift from the courts to the Minister of Land Reform.
This follows reports that the amendment could remove the courts as the arbiter on whether or not the state will pay for land it expropriates. The ANC is now proposing that the minister and not the courts must have unlimited powers on the expropriation of land without compensation.
| Also read | ANC’s position on land reform remains unchanged: Mapaila |
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The South African Communist Party (SACP) says the African National Congress (ANC) has not backtracked on its position of land reform |
The ANC’s Mathole Motshekga, who is leading an AdHoc Committee on Land Reform, says the proposed amendment was made at the National Executive Committee’s Lekgotla this month and is yet to be voted on in Parliament.
“The ANC took the draft bill to its NEC and the Lekgotla, which made recommendations in line with the call of Parliament. We are also still expecting other political parties to do the same. The judges adjudicate over disputes, they don’t go out and investigate as to where is a piece of land. So to try and get our courts to do administrative or executive work would be a violation of the separation of powers.”
Listen: ANC’s Mathole Motshekga on Land Expropriation Bill
