THE DA is embroiled in a bitter land grab saga involving one of the first communities to reclaim their land in 1994.
The 284 families of Doornkop, about 15km outside the coal mining town of Middelburg, were supposed to celebrate 20 years of being awarded their land by president Nelson Mandela on December 1 1994.
However, they are now battling land invasions which have already cost them 90% of their 850-hectare land. More than 3000 people have invaded their land.
They accuse local DA ward councillor Anthea Grobler and another group of invaders who allegedly set up a committee to sell plots for R500.
This was allegedly at the instructions of Shima Ramaube, who is the subject of a chieftaincy dispute.
But Grobler distanced the DA from the dispute. She said the government failed to handle the land restitution properly.
"The 1994 government should have traced the original buyers before handing over the land. Some of the invaders are linked to the families that bought the land and they feel entitled to be there.
" The DA is not benefiting financially from this. We are just a political party," said Grobler.
Sowetan has seen a 2012-dated letter from Mpumalanga House of Traditional Leaders which confirmed that Ramaube was not recognised as a traditional leader.
In 2009, the beneficiaries approached the court to apply for an interdict to evict the land invaders but could not raise the legal fees.
"We should be celebrating our our land, but we can't because other people are taking it away from us," said Sonnyboy Mathobela, a member of Doornkop Community Property Association (DCPA), which represents the beneficiaries.
The families bought the land in 1905. In 1974, the apartheid government began removing them forcibly from the area. The families reclaimed their land in 1994.
In 2011, a group of people formed an illegitimate association that sold plots for R500, which led to the mushrooming of shacks in the area.
Sowetan saw dozens of shacks being built and some plots are vacant but marked with fences.
The area is undeveloped, with no tarred roads and electricity.
The department of rural development and land reform had provided sanitation, while human settlements issued RDP houses.
"Ramaube formed this illegal committee and collaborated with the DA to allocate sites at a fee. Most of the invaders had been chased out from neighbouring white farms," said the DCPA's Malatsi Koko.
Johannes Mahlangu, one of the land invaders, has built himself three houses there. He said he did so out of desperation in the 1990s and has vowed not to vacate the land. He also admitted to be a member of the illegal committee that sold plots.
"I feel horrible for contributing to this problem. I took bribes in the form of money or alcohol to process allocation of plots," Mahlangu said.
Simon Ntshwane, who chairs Ramaube's committee, said the beneficiaries did not have complete ownership of the land. He said the money raised from the plot sales was being kept in a trust account.
"Ramaube is our chief and he has the right to this land," he said.
DA behind land grabs, say 'original' residents
THE DA is embroiled in a bitter land grab saga involving one of the first communities to reclaim their land in 1994.
The 284 families of Doornkop, about 15km outside the coal mining town of Middelburg, were supposed to celebrate 20 years of being awarded their land by president Nelson Mandela on December 1 1994.
However, they are now battling land invasions which have already cost them 90% of their 850-hectare land. More than 3000 people have invaded their land.
They accuse local DA ward councillor Anthea Grobler and another group of invaders who allegedly set up a committee to sell plots for R500.
This was allegedly at the instructions of Shima Ramaube, who is the subject of a chieftaincy dispute.
But Grobler distanced the DA from the dispute. She said the government failed to handle the land restitution properly.
"The 1994 government should have traced the original buyers before handing over the land. Some of the invaders are linked to the families that bought the land and they feel entitled to be there.
" The DA is not benefiting financially from this. We are just a political party," said Grobler.
Sowetan has seen a 2012-dated letter from Mpumalanga House of Traditional Leaders which confirmed that Ramaube was not recognised as a traditional leader.
In 2009, the beneficiaries approached the court to apply for an interdict to evict the land invaders but could not raise the legal fees.
"We should be celebrating our our land, but we can't because other people are taking it away from us," said Sonnyboy Mathobela, a member of Doornkop Community Property Association (DCPA), which represents the beneficiaries.
The families bought the land in 1905. In 1974, the apartheid government began removing them forcibly from the area. The families reclaimed their land in 1994.
In 2011, a group of people formed an illegitimate association that sold plots for R500, which led to the mushrooming of shacks in the area.
Sowetan saw dozens of shacks being built and some plots are vacant but marked with fences.
The area is undeveloped, with no tarred roads and electricity.
The department of rural development and land reform had provided sanitation, while human settlements issued RDP houses.
"Ramaube formed this illegal committee and collaborated with the DA to allocate sites at a fee. Most of the invaders had been chased out from neighbouring white farms," said the DCPA's Malatsi Koko.
Johannes Mahlangu, one of the land invaders, has built himself three houses there. He said he did so out of desperation in the 1990s and has vowed not to vacate the land. He also admitted to be a member of the illegal committee that sold plots.
"I feel horrible for contributing to this problem. I took bribes in the form of money or alcohol to process allocation of plots," Mahlangu said.
Simon Ntshwane, who chairs Ramaube's committee, said the beneficiaries did not have complete ownership of the land. He said the money raised from the plot sales was being kept in a trust account.
"Ramaube is our chief and he has the right to this land," he said.
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