Opponents of the land
expropriation bill – passed in
Parliament late last month –
welcomed a statement from
president Jacob Zuma last
week in which he agreed to
take all the objections into
consideration before signing
the bill into law.
All the bill needs is Zuma’s
signature to repeal the
Expropriation Act, 1975 (Act
63 of 1975).
Aside from political
opposition, the bill has also
made potential investors
jittery as it broadly allows
for the expropriation of
property by the state in the
“public interest or for a public
purpose” which could expose
all property owners, including
foreign investors, should the
state deem their assets as
being in the “public interest”.
CEO of the American
Chamber of Commerce, Carol
O’ Brien, told FTW that the
expropriation bill called for
expropriation of land for a
public purpose and allowed
the courts to determine the
amount of compensation
payable.
“This Bill in itself is not
problematical, but read
in conjunction with the
Promotion and Protection
of Investment Bill and the
intellectual property policy
paper, a worrying trend starts
to develop,” she said.
Head of policy research at
the South African Institute
for Race Relations (SAIRR),
Dr Anthea Jeffery, said:
“Given the various ways in
which the bill contradicts
the Constitution, parliament
should never have adopted
the measure in its current
form. It now falls to president
Zuma to rectify these
failings.”
She said private property
rights to land, houses and
other assets were vital to
democracy, development and
economic growth. “To avoid a
recession, South Africa needs
an annual growth rate of 7%
of gross domestic product
(GDP) – which would double
the size of the economy every
ten years – coupled with an
upsurge in investment and
employment,” said Jeffery.
She pointed out that
these advances would not
be possible if the bill was
enacted in its current form.
“A better bill – one which
allows expropriation in
appropriate circumstances
but also has constitutionally
compliant safeguards
against any abuse of this
power – can easily be
crafted,” she said.
There were again
rumblings of concern about
Zuma’s intentions around the
bill as just a day after he had
issued a statement saying
that “all matters are still
being processed” minister in
the Presidency for Planning,
Monitoring and Evaluation,
Jeff Radebe, defended the
bill.
He said at a media briefing
after Cabinet’s fortnightly
meeting that the bill
defined the administratively
“ just” process that any
expropriating authority must
follow.
“It also sets out the
rules by which government
can lay claim to land in
the public interest and for
public purposes. The bill
follows the bill of rights
and property clause criteria
to be considered in the
case of compensation for
expropriation. It will also
allow for property owners
to be fairly and equitably
compensated,” Radebe said.
CAPTION
Jeff Radebe addresses media following Cabinet’s fortnightly
meeting.
Zuma calms investor fears over expropriation bill
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