Give us alternative land, or we stay: EFF land grabbers

12 November 2014 - 15:00 By Sipho Masombuka
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Community members from Nellmapius, East of Pretoria, begin to erect homes in the newly named "Malemaville" on Tuesday November 11, 2014. The EFF started illegally allocating community members land in the area.
Community members from Nellmapius, East of Pretoria, begin to erect homes in the newly named "Malemaville" on Tuesday November 11, 2014. The EFF started illegally allocating community members land in the area.
Image: KEVIN SUTHERLAND / THE TIMES

Pretoria land invaders led by the Economic Freedom Fighters have called on Tshwane metro council chief whip Jabulane Mabona to let them stay on the council land or give them alternative land.

Two police Inyalas and a metro police armoured vehicle are blocking the entrance route to stop people from carrying building materials into the land along the N4 highway.

However, people continued building overnight, with seven shacks standing by dawn.

Police have ordered people to remove the shacks and stop building.

EFF member in the forefront of the land grab Eddie Mathiba said: "We will remove these shacks only if we are given alternative land. That's our condition to stop because people want land".

A crowd of about 200 people is this morning lining the busy Pretoria road waiting for Mabona and local councillor Precious Marole.

Tshwane metro police spokesman Isaac Mahamba said they were "exhausting all peaceful means to stop the land invasion and then we will take it from there". 

The land invaders have threatened to bring N4 highway and Pretoria road bordering the land to a standstill if their demands were not met.

On Monday metro police opened fire with rubber bullets, injuring several people.

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