A referendum on whether the state should expropriate land without compensation could be on the cards. That’s if the pro-Jacob Zuma grouping has its way at the ANC policy conference.
The proposal‚ which was first raised by the party’s biggest province in terms of membership numbers KwaZulu-Natal‚ is expected to dominate discussions on Sunday when the party discusses economic policies.
Other Zuma backers‚ including ANC Women’s League president Bathabile Dlamini and North West ANC chairman
Supra Mahumapelo‚ expressed support for the proposal.
ALSO READ:'What has Zuma done wrong?' supporters chant at policy conference
Zuma is empowered by the constitution to call for a referendum through an act of parliament.
Should the meeting resolve that Zuma should call such a referendum‚ it would open the flood gates as lobby groups would exert pressure on the president to call a referendum on other contentious issues such as the death penalty.
Dlamini said they would propose that the policy conference urge Zuma to call for a referendum to settle the land issue because the constitutional property clause had time frames on what land could be claimed back.
“It says the land can only be claimed from 1913. What about the land that was taken before 1913. It means we will claim nothing.
“We want a referendum because it will not restrict (government). We are also going to talk to land researchers so that we know exactly how much was invaded‚” Dlamini said.
She said that they wanted land reform to also change human settlement patterns‚ with blacks being relocated close to areas of work.
Dlamini also said it was misleading for people to suggest that black people already owned huge tracts of land through entities such as the Ingonyama Trust in KwaZulu-Natal which manages land parcels on behalf of the Zulu Royal family.
“Black people were pushed to inhabitable land and we want them to now own land where there is economic development‚” she said.
Mahumapelo said the call for the amendment of the constitution to expropriate land without compensation would not work because the ANC would need the backing of the opposition in parliament.
“If the president calls for a referendum then he will implement in parliament what the people want.
“In that way no one can challenge that in court‚” Mahumapelo said on Saturday.
But other Zuma backers insist that the ANC should push for expropriation without compensation.
ANC Youth League president Collen Maine said there was no need for a referendum.
“I don’t think we need a referendum‚ we must go and read the resolution of Polokwane and Mangaung and what it says about the land issue. What’s lacking is implementation and it’s not only on the land issue. We’ve got good policies which we are not implementing as a movement.
“The comrades are advancing the position of their structures of their PGCs (Provincial General Councils). We’ve got a position as the youth league that they must implement the resolution of Mangaung. So they must persuade us and we’ll persuade them‚” said Maine.
During the opening of the policy conference on Friday‚ Zuma said the ANC will have to deal with the land question within the ambit of the law and the Constitution.
But ANC structures like Gauteng‚ Northern Cape and Western Cape have expressed vehement opposition to this and have called for the implementation of existing policies.
ANC Mpumalanga chairperson David Mabuza said there were differing views on land in the ANC and conceded that a compromise would have to be reached.
“We will have to debate it thoroughly and find a common ground‚” he said.
Referendum on land issue could be on cards if pro-Zuma lobby has its way
A referendum on whether the state should expropriate land without compensation could be on the cards. That’s if the pro-Jacob Zuma grouping has its way at the ANC policy conference.
The proposal‚ which was first raised by the party’s biggest province in terms of membership numbers KwaZulu-Natal‚ is expected to dominate discussions on Sunday when the party discusses economic policies.
Other Zuma backers‚ including ANC Women’s League president Bathabile Dlamini and North West ANC chairman
Supra Mahumapelo‚ expressed support for the proposal.
ALSO READ:'What has Zuma done wrong?' supporters chant at policy conference
Zuma is empowered by the constitution to call for a referendum through an act of parliament.
Should the meeting resolve that Zuma should call such a referendum‚ it would open the flood gates as lobby groups would exert pressure on the president to call a referendum on other contentious issues such as the death penalty.
Dlamini said they would propose that the policy conference urge Zuma to call for a referendum to settle the land issue because the constitutional property clause had time frames on what land could be claimed back.
“It says the land can only be claimed from 1913. What about the land that was taken before 1913. It means we will claim nothing.
“We want a referendum because it will not restrict (government). We are also going to talk to land researchers so that we know exactly how much was invaded‚” Dlamini said.
She said that they wanted land reform to also change human settlement patterns‚ with blacks being relocated close to areas of work.
Dlamini also said it was misleading for people to suggest that black people already owned huge tracts of land through entities such as the Ingonyama Trust in KwaZulu-Natal which manages land parcels on behalf of the Zulu Royal family.
“Black people were pushed to inhabitable land and we want them to now own land where there is economic development‚” she said.
Mahumapelo said the call for the amendment of the constitution to expropriate land without compensation would not work because the ANC would need the backing of the opposition in parliament.
“If the president calls for a referendum then he will implement in parliament what the people want.
“In that way no one can challenge that in court‚” Mahumapelo said on Saturday.
But other Zuma backers insist that the ANC should push for expropriation without compensation.
ANC Youth League president Collen Maine said there was no need for a referendum.
“I don’t think we need a referendum‚ we must go and read the resolution of Polokwane and Mangaung and what it says about the land issue. What’s lacking is implementation and it’s not only on the land issue. We’ve got good policies which we are not implementing as a movement.
“The comrades are advancing the position of their structures of their PGCs (Provincial General Councils). We’ve got a position as the youth league that they must implement the resolution of Mangaung. So they must persuade us and we’ll persuade them‚” said Maine.
During the opening of the policy conference on Friday‚ Zuma said the ANC will have to deal with the land question within the ambit of the law and the Constitution.
But ANC structures like Gauteng‚ Northern Cape and Western Cape have expressed vehement opposition to this and have called for the implementation of existing policies.
ANC Mpumalanga chairperson David Mabuza said there were differing views on land in the ANC and conceded that a compromise would have to be reached.
“We will have to debate it thoroughly and find a common ground‚” he said.
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