Provincial public hearings on Restitution of Land Rights Amendment Bill complete

© Maciej Maksymowicz – 123RF.com

Thousands of people attended the public hearings to voice their opinion on the bill and to give their input on how the bill can work for them. Many are in support of reopening land claims; many have requested the committee to ensure that land claims submitted previously are settled first.

Some also proposed that permanent judges be appointed to preside over land claims whilst many appealed to the committee to intervene and investigate allegations of fraud and corruption within the Department of Rural Department and Land Reform.

The Whip of the Rural Development and Land Reform Committee, and initiator of the Private Members Bill, Pumzile Mnguni, said they “will not rest until our job is done. We have been instructed by the Constitutional Court to conduct widespread public hearings into the Restitution of Land Rights Amendment Bill and we have done just that, going to all nine provinces in the country and giving people an opportunity to speak and write to the committee. Currently all inputs are being captured and categorised”.

When Parliament resumes after the recess, the committee will meet to further deliberate on the inputs received and will meet with all relevant stakeholders such as academia, non-governmental organisations and other interested parties to further enhance this process.

The management of the Rural Development and Land Reform committee has met with Parliament’s legal counsel to charter a way forward to approach the Constitutional Court for an indulgence to extend the deadline.