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- A public hearing on the expropriation of land without compensation failed on Sunday in Polokwane.
- This, after members of the ANC and EFF stormed the hall, demanding that they be allowed to enter first.
- The public hearing had to be canceled, which committee chairman Bongani Bongo said was “very unfortunate.”
The public hearing of the parliamentary ad hoc committee on land expropriation without compensation collapsed in Polokwane, Limpopo, on Sunday.
The event was scheduled to start at 11 a.m., but was delayed after members of the ANC and EFF descended in large numbers and stormed Jack Botes Hall.
This violated the Covid-19 health protocols, as the number of people in the room was well above what was prescribed by the Covid-19 rules regarding indoor meetings.
The room was then cleared, but chaos reigned when EFF members again demanded entry into their numbers.
The event moved to 2 p.m., but the situation degenerated and fists almost flew as the regional leaders of the ANC and the EFF argued over who should be allowed to enter the room first. The situation forced the chairman of the ad hoc committee, Bongani Bongo, to cancel the event.
Addressing the media, Bongo said the decision to cancel the event followed the advice of security personnel and technical staff.
“I would await the report from the security and technical staff. So far, the meeting is canceled until further notice,” Bongo said.
He said EFF members had been reaching first to other regions where public hearings were held in the province. Other hearings in the province were held in the Vhembe, Mopani and Sekhukhune regions.
“This time they did not want to accept that the ANC came first.
“I must declare that the amendment of the legislation (article 25 of the Constitution) requires [a] two-thirds majority, and neither party in Parliament has a two-thirds majority.
“It is the two parties (ANC and EFF) that have resolutions on the expropriation of land without compensation. I don’t know where the flaws are,” Bongo said.
He described the collapse of the public hearing as “very regrettable.”
He made it clear that amending article 25 of the Constitution may prove difficult if public participation is found to be flawed.
“Anything that we do outside the law or that we consider that we do not follow the Constitution to the letter will be challenged in court,” Bongo said.
