Cape Town — The chairperson of Parliament’s Public Works and Infrastructure Committee has insisted that Minister Dean Macpherson must enforce the Expropriation Act fully and without hesitation.
The Minister expressed his reservations about the new Act and said he would not allow the expropriation of private property.
“As the Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, there will be NO expropriation of private property without compensation on my watch. The guarantee of property rights under Section 25 of the Constitution is not up for debate and is non-negotiable,” he said in an X post.
As the Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, there will be NO expropriation of private property without compensation on my watch. The guarantee of property rights under Section 25 of the Constitution is not up for debate and is non-negotiable.
— Dean Macpherson MP (@DeanMacpherson) January 24, 2025
According to EWN, the Parliament Committee for Public Works and Infrastructure chairperson, Carol Phiri, said the minister was constitutionally mandated to implement the act, despite his apprehension to do so without compensation.
This led to a clash between the African National Congress (ANC) and the Democratic Alliance (DA) ministers on policy matters. Phiri said the legislation has gone through the mandatory processes and Macpherson has no choice in the matter.
“Whatever that he says, it’s outside. That’s his opinion. But to be honest, it’s a constitutional mandate,” she said.
Meanwhile, Civil rights group AfriForum has warned that it will take legal action against Macpherson if he signs off on the Expropriation Act.
AfriForum released a statement on Thursday and said it would conduct a three-point plan to fight the Expropriation Act and maintained that the act jeopardises private property rights and should be stopped. The plan includes anti-promulgation action, legal action and an international awareness campaign against the Expropriation Act.
The group appealed to Macpherson to refuse to be a co-signatory of the Act’s proclamation and said it would take the Minister and President Ramaphosa to court due to the irrationality of their actions.
AfriForum also said it would test the constitutionality of the Act in court. The group sent a letter to Ramaphosa last year and the main objection the group has against the constitutionality of the act is that the Constitution requires just and equitable compensation.
“However, the act expressly provides for nil compensation in specific cases, but those cases are not limited. AfriForum maintains that this creates serious risks for arbitrary actions by expropriation authorities,” AfriForum said.
AfriForum announces three-point plan to fight Expropriation Act. pic.twitter.com/lBTB0u6zOT
— AfriForum (@afriforum) January 30, 2025
The third aspect includes a targeted international campaign where international players will be approached about the risks and criticism of the act.
Ernst van Zyl, the Head of Public Relations at AfriForum, asserts that AfriForum and other organisations serve as the final line of defence between the government and private property owners.
“Wherever the undermining of private property rights has occurred, such as in Zimbabwe and Venezuela, it has had catastrophic economic consequences. We must therefore use every option available to us in our resistance against this destructive law,” concludes Van Zyl.
AfriForum encourages the public to pledge their support to the campaign against expropriation at www.onteiening.co.za.
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Picture: X/@DeanMacpherson
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
