Zuma wants to change the constitution to take land without compensation
President Jacob Zuma says the ANC and other black parties must come together to get a two-thirds majority vote in Parliament to change the constitution to allow for land redistribution without compensation.
Speaking at an address to the National House of Traditional Leaders, Zuma said that the “hunger for land” in South Africa is real, and that the current constitutional processes around land redistribution is not enough.
He said that the ANC must use its majority to make good on the promise of land redistribution, and that it would need to change the constitution to make this a legal reality.
Earlier this week, the ANC voted against an EFF proposal in Parliament to change the constitution to allow for land redistribution without compensation. The proposal was shot down 264 against, and 31 for.
EFF leader Julius Malema said that his party would add its 6% to the ANC’s 62% to get the two-thirds required to amend the Constitution, and called on the ruling party to support the motion to set up an ad hoc committee on the issue.
However, the ANC was not biting, with the party arguing that expropriation without compensation was unconstitutional and not in line with ANC policy.
Zuma does not seem to agree.
The ANC leader said that black parties should unite in Parliament to make this controversial policy a reality. Such a move would require “unity and common purpose”, he said, and that the process should avoid chaos and illegal land grabs.
Zuma previously said that legislation was currently being changed to allow for the taking of land without compensation, but legal experts said that he was getting confused with the 2015 Land Bill which will allow government to take land without permission, but with fair compensation.
The segment dealing with land is quoted below – the full speech is available here.
The land question is central to the achievement of a National Democratic Society and true reconciliation and empowerment of our people. It is a central issue for traditional leaders.
We have identified the weaknesses in the land restitution and redistribution programme. The willing buyer, willing seller principle did not work effectively. It made the State a price taker in an unfair process. In addition, there are too many laws dealing with land reform which causes confusion and delays.
The fact remains that land hunger is real. This is not surprising as this was the fundamental question at the centre of the liberation struggle.
To attain the goal of radical socio-economic transformation in relation to land reform, we are looking at two critical actions;
First we must undertake a pre-colonial audit of land ownership, use and occupation patterns. Once the audit has been completed, a single law should be developed to address the issue of land restitution without compensation.
The necessary constitutional amendments would then be undertaken to effect this process.
We are also looking at the possible re-design and establishment of the National Land Claims Commission as a Chapter 9 Institution, so that it can have the necessary powers to help us reverse this historical injustice. This would also require a Constitutional amendment.
All of this will require unity and common purpose and action in the country, to ensure redress and meaningful reconciliation.
Naturally government and the governing party would want to ensure that this is an orderly process. We do not support chaos and illegal land grabs. Actions must be informed by the Constitution and the laws of the land.
In the meantime land reform continues on the basis of existing laws.
Read: Zuma’s “expropriation of land without compensation” comment was a blooper: legal expert
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