- People living on traditional land should be able to get title deeds, Deputy President David Mabuza said.
- While answering questions in the National Assembly, he couldn't say how many black people living on state land received title deeds from government.
- DA MP Annette Steyn said she had been inundated with complaints about people evicted from land by the state.
People living on traditional land should be entitled to title deeds, Deputy President David Mabuza said in the National Assembly.
He was responding to questions on Wednesday. As is usually the case, there was a question about land reform for Mabuza, who chairs the inter-ministerial committee (IMC) on land reform.
He said the IMC was making progress in developing "an overarching land administration policy framework that prioritises the recording of all land rights".
"Access to land is an act of social justice that cannot be delayed," said Mabuza.
He said the constitutionally defined land reform programme would focus on balancing the need to reverse the legacy of land dispossession and deprivation with the vision of fostering nation building, unity and social cohesion.
He also said they would ensure that the land reform programme did not have a negative impact on agricultural production and the economy.
READ | Mabuza: 'Land in traditional communities belongs to the people'
DA MP Annette Steyn said that in 2018, President Cyril Ramaphosa launched a campaign to give black farmers on state land title deeds. She said she had been inundated with complaints that they had not received title deeds or were being evicted by the state.
"How many title deeds did the ANC government hand out the past three years?" Steyn asked.
Mabuza didn't answer this direct question.
He did say that he was "quite content" with the Deeds Office's progress and that they continued to hand out title deeds.
He encouraged Steyn to provide him with information regarding the complaints she had received.
In response to a question from Al Jamah-Ah MP Ganief Hendricks, Mabuza said government was consulting with traditional leaders on how to administer the land under their custodianship.
He said:
He said they must be able to get title deeds and to use their land to enter into commercial agreements for their benefit.
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