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Land redistribution tops Zuma’s January 8 speech

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With 2013 being the centenary of the promulgation of Land Act of 1913, land redistribution was top of ANC President Jacob Zuma’s speech at the party’s January 8 Statement rally at the Absa Stadium in Durban today.
“We meet 100 years since the promulgation of the 1913 Land Act, which dramatically robbed the indigenous people of our country of 87% of their land, and turned them into pariahs and wanderers in the land of their birth.”
Zuma remarked: “We mark 100 years of the seat of power, the Union Buildings in Tshwane, which was a centre of oppression and discrimination until the dawn of freedom in 1994, when it became a symbol of democracy, hope, peace, unity, progress and development.”
Other issues anticipated to make it into his speech included the implementation of the Integrity Commission as part of the ANC’s organizational renewal; the adoption of the National Development Plan as well as the controversial issue of nationalisation as well as the land redistribution.

We meet 100 years since the promulgation of the 1913 Land Act, which dramatically robbed the indigenous people of our country of 87% of their land, and turned them into pariahs and wanderers in the land of their birth.

Following a 2-hour delay, the ANC’s January 8 Statement celebrations finally commenced when Zuma made his way into the Absa Stadium at about at around 11am.
The event was initially scheduled to kick off at 9am with musical entertainment, which comprised South African artists like Abaqobi, Dr. Malinga, Sfiso Ncwane, among others, but only started two hours later, as the ANC awaited for the president to arrive and their supporters to make their into the stadium.
The wet weather, with light intermittent drizzle, initially looked like it would put a damper on the attendance, but after 10am the empty seats in the stadium were being painted yellow and black as scores of ANC supporters made their way in.
In high spirits, the supporters walked in clusters singing ANC songs such as: “We will follow Zuma where he goes.”

The statement sets the tone for the ruling party’s key service delivery goals. The ANC event also marks the party’s 101st anniversary.In 2007, at the 52nd national conference in Polokwane, the ANC committed itself to transfer 30% of the 82 million hectares of agricultural land, which was white-owned in 1994, to black people by 2014.However, that ANC now says the slow pace of land reform in the country could likely cause the government to miss the target.“The ANC government is unlikely to meet this target given the slow pace of land reform. We have directed our government to urgently speed up the process through a variety of measures. The implementation of these measures will take into account the principles contained in the Constitution in relation to land expropriation.”Zuma says the government will replace the willing buyer – willing seller as it is has not addressed the land redistribution.

– By Land redistribution tops Zuma’s January 8 speech

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