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Land expropriation will be orderly – Ramaphosa

Publish date: 21 February 2018
Issue Number: 4404
Diary: Legalbrief Today
Category: Policy

President Cyril Ramaphosa continued to push the need for land expropriation without compensation in his response to the State of the Nation Address (Sona) debate yesterday, but offered no detail except to warn that ‘we will not allow smash-and-grab interventions’, notes Legalbrief. It will be an orderly process, he insisted. He told the National Assembly that returning land to black South Africans would help heal the divisions of the past. He said this was ‘a collective task. It is not the task of the ANC alone. It is our task as a nation, it belongs to all of us’. And, according to a News24 report, he said Parliament needed to interrogate the statement that the expropriation of land without compensation was incompatible with a flourishing economy, or that it represented a ‘violation of the spirit’ of the Constitution, adding: ‘We must see this process of accelerated land redistribution as an opportunity and not as a threat.’ Talk of expropriation without compensation dominated the Sona debate on Monday, with some opposition parties warning the policy will have a devastating impact on the economy and food security, notes a Business Day report. However, Ramaphosa said: ‘We will need to determine, collectively, how we can implement this measure in a way that promotes agricultural production, improves food security, advances rural development, reduces poverty and strengthens our economy.’

Full Fin24 report

Full City Press report

Ramaphosa remained cagey about Cabinet changes, but warned his Cabinet would be expected to undergo lifestyle audits. ‘On the matter of the composition of the Cabinet, an announcement will be made by the President at the appropriate time, so don’t go ahead of yourselves,’ he told opposition MPs. He said the work to be done at the moment was to tackle corruption and state capture which were issues raised during the debate. ‘It is time that we implement our resolutions ... on matters such as lifestyle audits of all the people who occupy positions of responsibility,’ the President said, according to a report on The Citizen site. Ramaphosa said these audits were in the public interest, adding that the first to be audited will be members of the Cabinet. ‘I am heartened to have heard that the Commissioner of Police has also said that the high echelon of the police will also go through lifestyle audits ... that is positive,’ he said. He added government was determined to tackle corruption and other economic crimes, including those perpetrated in the private sector.

Full report in The Citizen

He also used the occasion to promise to compensate the families of 44 miners who died during clashes with police in Marikana in 2012. According to a TimesLIVE report, Ramaphosa said government needed to take responsibility for its sins. ‘We must be prepared‚ as government‚ that where we have failed our people‚ where we have made mistakes‚ we will take steps to correct those mistakes. One of such was the Marikana tragedy which stands out as the darkest moment in the life of our young democracy. Members will recall that the commission of inquiry headed by retired Judge (Ian) Farlam investigated the direct and root causes of the tragedy‚’ said Ramaphosa. He noted three broad areas were identified for action by the Farlam Commission: compensation for the injured and families‚ examining the procedures of Public Order policing and preparing valid cases for prosecution. ‘I would like to use this opportunity to address what role I played in my capacity as a Lonmin director in the events of the tragic week. Notwithstanding the findings of the Farlam Commission on my responsibility for the events that unfolded‚ I am determined to play whatever role I can in the process of healing and atonement for what happened at Marikana‚’ he said.

– TimesLIVE

A review of the configuration‚ number and the size of national government departments will take a number of months, Ramaphosa noted. Another TimesLIVE report quotes him as saying: ‘These changes will obviously only happen when we have gone through the review process‚ when we have gathered the evidence that we need to gather.’ He emphasised changes of this nature needed to be well-considered. ‘This review‚ which we expect to take a number of months‚ will be based on a thorough analysis of the suitability and the costs of the existing configuration,’ he added. There are currently 35 Cabinet Ministers whose remuneration‚ perks and housing needs are funded by taxpayers. Cabinet Ministers earn more than R2m a year and their deputies earn about R1.9m. Former President Nelson Mandela’s administration consisted of 28 Cabinet Ministers. Thabo Mbeki also had 28 Cabinet Ministers. The number swelled under Jacob Zuma. DA leader Mmusi Maimane said during the Sona debate that the country’s bloated government needed to be slashed. ‘It is entirely possible to cut our executive down to 15 ministries‚ with spending priorities that promote economic growth and job creation. This would save us around R4.7bn each year,’ the report quotes him as saying.

– TimesLIVE

Ramaphosa's Sona response

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