President Cyril Ramaphosa. Picture: GCIS
IN A massive development for land reform in South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa has officially signed the Expropriation Bill into law.
The landmark legislation was signed to address issues of land inequality and provide a framework for the expropriation of land without compensation.
According to the Presidency, this is a measure to advance social justice and promote public interest in a country that is still grappling with the legacy of apartheid.
In a statement on Thursday, Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said the Bill has undergone a five-year process of public consultation and parliamentary deliberation, and aligns legislation on expropriation with the Constitution.
Magwenya stated: “Section 25 of the Constitution recognises expropriation as an essential mechanism for the State to acquire someone’s property for a public purpose or in the public interest, subject to just and equitable compensation being paid.
“Up to now, expropriation of property has been governed by the Expropriation Act of 1975, which predates the expropriation mechanism provided for in section 25(2) of the Constitution.”
But the president’s move was quickly met with opposition from Democratic Alliance (DA), Freedom Front Plus, and the IFP.
They all vowed to challenge the step to the Constitutional Court to challenge the bill's constitutionality.
The DA accused the ANC of attempting to “bulldoze” the bill as a last-ditch effort to gather votes in the run-up to the national and provincial elections on May 29, 2024.
At the time, speaking for the DA, Tim Brauteseth said the bill amounted to nothing more than introducing expropriation without compensation through the legislative backdoor by passing it in the NCOP with the ANC in full support.
Meanwhile, the IFP said it supported the expropriation bill, but it differed in the way it was being followed, as the party believed that those who owned land must be compensated if the state deemed there were grounds for expropriation.