ANC members accused of selling land for illegal occupation

Holding
an umbrella to protect herself from the hot sun, Mxolosi Mthetwa finally sits
down next to her shovel and sips a cooldrink. She has been clearing a small
plot of land to build a shack.

She woke up early in the morning
to register her name and to have a site allocated to her in Marikana, Kwathema,
southwest of Springs.

The people who allocated land to
her and many others have vowed to protect them, GroundUp reported.

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“I am very happy today
because finally, my children and l have a piece of land of our own,” she
said.

Mthetwa was a backyarder for 20
years. Her rent was R400 a month.

“My God and ancestors have
answered my prayers. Month end, when I get my pension, I will buy material to
build a shack,” she said.

Mthetwa said she bought a piece
of land for R1 500 seven years ago at another occupation, but the Red Ants
destroyed her shack.

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‘We are just a group of angry residents’

Sipho Zwane, a Marikana resident
and the chairperson of the community committee in charge of land allocations,
claims to be non-partisan. Together with members of the South African National
Civic Organisation (Sanco), he runs the occupation.

“I was angered by the fact
that members of the ANC have been selling land to people for as much as R15 000
a stand. When we go to the councillor [Tshepiso Petros Mondlane (ANC)] to
report, he turns us away,” said Zwane.

“This is not a politically
motivated initiative; l am not a member of any political party, neither are any
of my committee members. We are just a group of angry residents who have put
our feet down to stop ANC corruption.”

Zwane said he formed a committee,
together with other angry residents, to start allocating land to people.

READ | ‘I don’t know where I will sleep or get money to buy materials to rebuild my shack’

Mahlatsi Sithole, a member of the
committee, said: “A member of ANC sold me land for R15 000 three years
ago. I spent all the money which l inherited after my father’s death to ensure
that my children and l had a place to live.”

Sithole said the man she bought
it from continued to extort money from her, threatening to take the land back.

“I am a single mother of two
and it made it easier for the man to abuse me. He would threaten me, [forcing
me] to buy him beer or else … On top of the money l initially paid, l can say l
gave him up to R1 200 ‘cold drink money’ from the money I earned selling
chicken feet,” she said.

Sithole said she was saved when
community members intervened.

Land earmarked for housing project

Touring the site with Zwane,
GroundUp saw him being hugged and applauded by the land occupiers.

Sibongile Hlope said: “If it
wasn’t for Sipho [Zwane], the people of Marikana would suffer. Land in this
area is sold. We thank him for taking a stand against corruption.”

Zwane said R1 was charged per
stand.

“For us to make copies of
the paperwork we are using to register people for land, all a person has to do
is give us a copy of their ID, R1 and we register them,” he explained.

READ | Eastern Cape villagers scammed over land claim money during nationwide Covid-19 crisis

Ward councillor Tshepiso Petros
Mondlane (ANC) said: “Those people are occupying the land illegally. They
heard that a housing project is earmarked for the area and they want to benefit
unfairly. Steps will be taken to remove those people because by invading the
land they are standing in the way of the land being developed. I am told that
an EFF man is in charge of giving out the land, but l am still investigating to
put facts together.”

He said he was never involved in
selling plots.

“It came to my attention
that certain ANC members are selling land and using my name. I am not involved
in any way. We are investigating to get to the bottom of the issue.”

Zwane vowed that he would die
protecting the people from being taken off the land. He said he was not with
the EFF.