‘Not on my watch’: DA’s public works minister Macpherson opposes expropriation law

His deputy Sihle Zikalala of the ANC has welcomed the signing of the bill

24 January 2025 - 10:36
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Public works and infrastructure minister Dean Macpherson says the guarantee of property rights under the constitution 'is not up for debate and is non-negotiable'. File photo.
Public works and infrastructure minister Dean Macpherson says the guarantee of property rights under the constitution 'is not up for debate and is non-negotiable'. File photo.
Image: Lubabalo Lesolle

The DA minister of public works and infrastructure Dean Macpherson has opposed President Cyril Ramaphosa's signing of the Expropriation Bill into law.

The move has been met with resistance from political parties including the EFF, MK Party (MKP), ActionSA and the DA, who called the bill a “red-line issue” in their participation in government.

The Expropriation Bill sets new guidelines for land expropriation without compensation. According to the Presidency, the bill outlines how state organs may expropriate land in the public interest for different reasons.

“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,” the Presidency said.

Macpherson took to X to express his disapproval.

“As the minister of public works and infrastructure, there will be no expropriation of private property without compensation on my watch,” he said.

“The guarantee of property rights under the constitution is not up for debate and is non-negotiable.”

However, his deputy, Sihle Zikalala, has welcomed the signing of the bill into law.

“This is the legislation that will take South Africa in reality on the path of economic transformation and inclusive economic growth,” Zikalala said.

“This is a culmination of the long history of struggle waged by the forebears against the dispossession of most black people through the 1913 Land Act and the notorious Group Areas Act. We will use the newly promulgated legislation to enhance the delivery of infrastructure development programmes, industrialisation and agricultural reform that improves food security.”

The DA has threatened to take legal action to challenge the bill, with ActionSA also considering approaching the courts.

“The DA strongly reiterates its opposition to the Expropriation Bill, which President Ramaphosa has signed into law. While the DA recognises the constitution allows for acts of redress and restitution, including land reform, we have serious reservations about the procedure and important substantive aspects of the bill. We are in discussions with our legal team to formulate our case,” the party said.

The MKP has condemned the move as a “betrayal of South Africans' struggles for true land restitution”, while the EFF argued the Expropriation Bill fails to provide a radical departure from the past.

“The legislation, disguised as a solution to South Africa's land question, is nothing but a continuation of injustice and a betrayal of our people's struggles for true land restitution,” said MKP spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela.

“MK Party categorically rejects the law and its attempts to sanitise the theft of our land. Our ancestors' cries for justice cannot be silenced by legislative tricks designed to preserve the status quo.”

TimesLIVE


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