Johannesburg – The Expropriation Bill signed into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa has sparked an outcry with several political parties rejecting it for not going far enough to take back the land without compensation and at least one threatening to challenge the move in court for conflicting with the constitution.
A day after President Cyril Ramaphosa signed into law the Expropriation Bill which repeals the pre-democratic Expropriation Act of 1975 and sets out how organs of State may expropriate land in the public interest for varied reasons, several parties have expressed their dismay.
The Democratic Alliance (DA), the second-largest party in the Government of National Unity, on Friday indicated that it will challenge the Bill in court.
“The DA considers the signing of the Expropriation Bill into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa a matter of the utmost seriousness,” Willie Aucamp, DA spokesperson said in a statement made available to the EFE.
“It is a direct attack on the constitutional rights of South Africans.
“We have obtained a legal opinion that the Expropriation Bill is unconstitutional. We will fight this dangerous legislation by every possible means, including in the courts.”
Other political parties against the Bill included the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party led by former president Jacob Zuma, which said it was a “completely useless piece of legislation”.
Speaking on state-owned SABC TV news, MK Chief Whip Mzwanele Manyi said the Bill was nothing more than African National Congress (ANC) rhetoric aimed at “fooling the people”.
John Hlophe, the new MK Parliamentary leader, said that his party would act within the law to lobby for changes to the Constitution that pave the way for “expropriation without compensation”.
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party described the signing of the Expropriation Bill into law as a “cop-out”.
The EFF said on X: “The Expropriation Act is, therefore, a legislative cop-out by the African National Congress (ANC), and only used to fool our people into believing that the party is doing something to address the almost tyrannical neglect of the land question in this country.”
“It will not assist in resolving the tragedy of land restitution in this country, which has hollowed out State coffers for compensation to white settlers who illegitimately own our land.”
The African Transformation Movement (ATM said it was deeply disappointed by President Ramaphosa’s decision to sign the Expropriation Bill into law.
“This Bill, which provides for expropriation with nil compensation in certain instances, is a betrayal of the aspirations of the people of South Africa who have long called for genuine land reform through expropriation without compensation,” the ATM said.
Announcing he had signed the controversial Bill into law on Thursday, President Ramaphosa said: “This law will assist all organs of State – local, provincial and national authorities – to expropriate land in the public interest for varied reasons”.
He said local, provincial, and national authorities will use this legislation to expropriate land in the public interest for varied reasons that seek, among others, to promote inclusivity and access to natural resources.
Supporting the move, the GOOD Party said it “welcomes the President signing the Expropriation Bill into law”.
GOOD Party Secretary-General Brett Herron said colonial and apartheid land grabs, never reversed, were a major contributing factor to the state of acute inequality in South Africa today.
“Historically excluded from land ownership, the vast majority of citizens remain excluded today because they can’t afford the price of entering the property market,” Herron said.
“Their exclusion from the property market means they lack tangible assets to leverage cash from the financial sector, which leads to their economic exclusion.
“It’s a cruel and vicious cycle.”
Dismissing concerns around expropriation, Herron pointed to the Constitutional Court ruling 23 years ago, which ordered: “No one may be deprived of property except in terms of law of general application, and no law may permit arbitrary deprivation of property”.
Herron added: “We support the Expropriation Bill being signed into law”.
