EFF will visit the community of land claimants in Bushbuckridge and open a criminal case of corruption against former Minister GugileNkwinti

10 March 2021

Commissar Sam Matiase, a CCT member for Land and Agrarian Reform together with EFF provincial leadership in Mpumalanga will meet the concerned, affected and aggrieved land claimants and supposed beneficiaries of the 2014 Mala - Mala R1.1 billion land claim deal.

The Mala - Mala Land Claim Deal which is made up of several farms around the luxury game reserve adjoining the Kruger National Park was valued at R750-million by its previous owners. However, the Land Claims Court rejected and refused that previous owners should be paid this amount on the basis that the price was far above the market value and the actual value of the land and claimants lodged an appeal to the Constitutional Court.

Before the case could start, the former Minister GugileNkwinti sought and went for an out-of-court settlement and the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform paid more than R1.1-billion. Both the Land Claims Court and High Court ruled that the price of R750-million for Mala - Mala was too excessive and not in the best interests of South Africans and will cut deep into the fiscus. However, the deal went through nonetheless before the case reached the Constitutional Court and this needed to be investigated.

In 2018, the Rural Development and Land Reform portfolio committee resolved that a forensic investigation by the special investigative unit should be initiated to probe the circumstances of the inflated prices including the allegations that some 900 households were supposed to benefit from the deal but in reality only 250 households benefited.

What is most concerning is that, the Mala - Mala Ranch and Game Reserve is now co-owned and managed by the community, represented by the N'wandlamharhi CPA, and previous owners Michael Rattray and his partner Stephen Saad.

Sadly, the community and the CPA through which it holds and owns 40% of shares for 10 years while the original owners own a 60% share. Meaning that the white owners take a lion share of the annual profits and throw some few crumbs to black people who are predominately women, poor and working class.

The corrupt ANC government has successfully frustrated and aborted the forensic investigation which would expose corruption in this deal and also look into the verification process used to determine who the original beneficiaries of the deal were and bring those responsible for this corruption and financial crime to book.

The EFF will meet with supposed beneficiaries and then proceed to open a criminal case against former minister GugileNkwinti, the former DG, Mr. Mduduzi Shabane and the Commissioner for Commission for Restitution and Land Rights, MsNonfundoGobodo and their associates.

Issued by Vuyani Pambo, National Spokesperson, EFF, 10 March 2021