New land reform minister, the PAC’s Mzwanele Nyhontso, vows to ‘use all available means’ to amend Constitution

Not sure why PAC has a ministerial position when they received less than 1% of votes cast. The will of the people?

This individual is a radical Pan-Africanist Communist with only 1% of the vote, yet he receives front-page placement. If the Daily Maverick continues to view its responsibility as sowing fear and doubt to sell papers, then unfortunately for them, this story falls short of that objective.

"He suggested that the proposed scrapping of section 25 should be put “before a plebiscite for the people to approve or reject”. Cyril said only those who respect the constitution are welcome. Yet this 1%er doesn't even knew what it says. Before changing the constitution to scrap section 25, he'll have to change it to allow a plebiscite.

Land reform is a political football. Political leaders are playing games with the land issue. Times have changed, we are urbanizing. There is mountain of land in SA, but people choose to move to the city or urban areas. It shows a lack of imagination and creativity on the part of our political leaders to harp on an issue that is a non issue. The land question is a sign of a poverty of ideas, I mean am I supposed to think for guyz who have so much resources on their hands to summon educated nerds to build workable solutions for the era we find ourselves in. Come on guys, I am just a boy with no resources, I can't think for you. Look, there's land in the rural areas, but South Africa is urbanizing at a rapid pace. So what do we need, urban planning, such as housing all the people in a dignified manner, using skyscrapers as residential areas to reduce the need for land while increasing the number of people housed in the least amount of space. Economic ideas, such as how do we create economic opportunities for for the urbanites. New organizational models, using digital technologies to create viable economic opportunities for most people an all the rest of it

As Paddy Ross says, how do these guys qualify to get a Ministerial post with the number of votes they supposedly got? Mystifying. And The Good Party(?) - another total mystery...a person who has proved to be more of a 'Fence sitter' than a 'Fence mender' in her previous job. And back to the PAC yet again, the expression "Food security" seems to have disappeared off Ramaphosa's list of Very Important Expressions to use Frequently (You know, we don't have to worry about what happened to Zimbabwe, across the border, the former 'Bread Basket of Southern Africa' prior to Mugabe) Historical facts are a killer for politicians - anyone remember Ramaphosa's 'Electricity War Room?' Oh, and another one - 'There will be no long drop toilets in government schools by 2022...' And yet again, PAC - have you noticed how Communist parties never ever hold up an example of a country successfully operating under this form of socialist government?

If the Honourable Minister wishes Section 25 scrapped, that's fine. Of course, we then need to roll back the clock all the way to the migrating Nguni settlers who dispossessed the native San and Khoi tribes of their lands in Zimbabwe, down through present day Limpopo and Mpumalanga, Free State, North West and Northern Cape, as well as eSwatimi and KZN and then halfway through the Eastern Cape down to the Key River. We can then get all the Western settlers to give back the parts of the Eastern Cape, Western Cape, and Northern Cape to the San and Khoi. Now THAT would be a fair and equitable roll-back of Section 25, but somehow I suspect the Honourable Minister seeks a different roll-back?

Another bad appointment. There is nothing wrong with the constitution the problem lies in government and the incompetence there, he should work on his department making it an effective well run goverment example

All land is stolen, the land belongs to the earth, but if you can cultivate land to produce food for the benefit of the people, or to allow them to enjoy the countryside, then you should be encouraged to lease or own land. The problem is that the jealous, envious people want to own the land, not because they are deserving or want to help others but rather for their own benefit. Zimbabwe is a good example of how such a policy works, ultimately it is economic suicide where land ownership changes to a corrupt minority from a useful and possibly deserving minority.

The PAC received a quarter as many votes as the spoilt ballots. The man has no platform and no voice and the PAC does not belong in the GNU. As to “ ill-gotten property in the hands of settler communities”... Which whites (which is what he actually wants to say) own land that they did not buy? If there are indeed people that were given land that was taken away from somebody else, then by all means I agree that land MUST be confiscated without any compensation. As to the rest of us, we bought and improved the land. If the minister is indeed interested in “ a comprehensive approach to land reform and rural development aimed at land restoration and redistribution, enhancing economic and agricultural productivity and improving the quality of life in rural areas” then I suggest the enormous low-hanging watermelon in the room is the 5 million hectares of land under the control of unelected chiefs, kings and queens by way of tribal trusts. That is a primitive feudal system and unbundling this will empower millions of families while at the same time addressing land ownership statistics. If the minister wants land, I predict it is land he will get. No buildings, dams, roads, bridges, livestock, vineyards, orchards, boreholes, electrical infrastructure, etc.

CR thought he was clever putting this one in as a minister I hope it blows up in his face big time.

CR thought he was clever putting this one in as a minister I hope it blows up in his face big time.

The land expropriation is nothing more than a racist programme to remove European races from Africa. The Pan African movement started by Jomu Kenyatta ,president of Kenya in the 1950's and encouraged by then premier of China Mao Zedong . Their motto is " Africa for Africans " and they strive to rid Africa of all signs of colonialism , including non African races . Many African leaders are members of this club . This political seed was planted by Mao Zedong to remove western influence and for China to step in to get possesion of the resources. South Africa has more than enough land for those that want to farm etc... but the ruling government has not handled the distribution of land and housing as they should have . Their racist objective is to also remove all signs of colonialism through terrorism , crime , persecution etc. on an ongoing slow pace so as not to ruin the economy. It is a form of political racial engineering with the Chinese and to an extent the Russians too who will be the sole beneficiaries of this self destructive racist policy .

The bleatarati commenting in this article need to read it much more carefully. According to the article he is not proposing expropriation without compensation - he is proposing a series of engagements about what to do about land reform and if need be, amend the constitution. Land reform is a massive issue which has been “implemented” very badly by the previous regime over the past 30 years. In many cases the problem is not the land reform program itself but the complete ineptitude of the officials involved trying to implement it. Hopefully, the minister will have a big focus on practical operational issues, the quality of his staff, and corruption which has undermined a lot of the current program. Urban planning also falls under his remit and, as some commentators have pointed out, there needs to be a big focus here to not just cope with future urbanization but fix SA’s disfunctional urban settlements. The last 30 years post apartheid has been largely spent building apartheid. This minister needs to get together with his human settlements, transport and infrastructure colleagues and understand why this happened - only then will they be able to fix things.

All this talk about Africans. I consider myself an African - pale-skinned but African nevertheless - as I was born here and have ancestry back at least 5 generations if my grandpa is to be believed. We need to draw a line and direct all energies to digging SA Inc. out of the hole dug by 30 years of ANC (mis)rule, so that all our citizens can benefit from the tremendous potential of our country. Cyril has missed a trick - surprise, surprise - by not making enough meaningful appointments to the Alliance (not GNU) so that competent, ethical people could begin to bring about the changes so desperately needed. Methinks he is more concerned about perpetuating ANC power than doing what is best for the people. 2026 is just around the corner. Time will tell.

He has no mandate for this, none at all. Does he even realise this? I regret to say that I doubt it. Which proves that he is wholly unsuitable for a role in government.

Those forced removals were a crime against humanity. Truck loads of people passing through 'Grahamstown, (then) on their way to some barren landscape. Heartbreaking!

Whilst the PAC might be irrelevant the issue of land is not irrelevant to many so refusing to tackle it is not going to make it go away in fact it will probably become like a festering sore. Pragmatism is required and with it solutions that can be sustained by this country.

Yet another minister with verbal diarrhea

PAC has lost political ground from the first all-inclusive general election. This is partly because the party continued to campaign for the return of land to the African people, even when the needs of that constituency has, to a very large extent changed. By a large majority, people need land to build homes in urban areas than for farming. So, while the land question remains very important and an emotive subject that must not be taken lightly, PAC has a very small constituency from which to draw its support. However, I fail to understand how and why some white people expect the rest of South Africans and whoever cares to know, that the Khoi and San groups are not Africans. That is stupid and it will never be true, no matter how many times it is repeated. It is a fact that the Khoisan groups arrived frist, followed by a group of early Nguni immigrants to migrate to South Africa that consisted of the Xhosa, (made up of the the Gcaleka, Ngqika, Ndlambe and Dushane clans), the Thembu and Pondo. Another group of Nguni-speakers joined these tribes later, such as amaSwati and other tribes that Shaka, the Zulu king, used to form the Zulu nation. Also, the Khoisan grouping did not perish, but it was fused within the other groups of South African blacks, mostly Xhosa and they exist to this day. So, there is no need to paddle lies in defending the theft, but we need to handle the land issue in a mature manner.

"Land" is very broad. Are people wanting rural land, or do they want an erf in an urban area, or do they want an apartment? Urban sprawl is not a great solution as it creates huge costs in traffic flow and providing utilities. All successful economies have large cities with high rise buildings where large numbers of people live close to each other making public transport efficient and viable. I would like to understand what people calling for expropriation of land have in mind. Can we not get some easy wins by taking land close to the centre of cities (such as Wingfield and Ysterplaat in Cape Town) which is massively underutilised and creating apartments with green areas so as to provide homes to thousands of people on a fairly small footprint.

As a South African with some knowledge (tertiary level) of the pre-history of southern Africa, the land question is at last becoming a more nuanced issue. The utterly distorted-for-political-gain and overly simplistic version of the pre-history and history of southern Africa were served up for example by the Nats for over 50years and later the ANC and it's populist acolyte's albeit in a different form. They both have fed generations of children and beyond still peddling these distortions as an "education" in history in order to "justify" their party and government policies. It's long. long overdue that the public ceased to depend upon the rubbish version(s) of history espoused by politicians without questioning it and applying critical thinking. The sooner Southern Africans accept that (beyond those who were hunter-gatherers and honour them as our First Citizens) we are ALL settlers the sooner we can finally work together to create a nation that refuses to allow politicians to conquer and selfishly set one group against another.

The first issue to acknowledge about the land question is that land in South Africa is an African land. The second issue is that Africans in South Africa have been dispossessed of the land. Thirdly, regarding the issue of first arrival and attempts to divide Africans, it only serves to delays the resolution of the land question and may benefit us that are living at this moment in time. What must be understood is that people of Khoekhoe, Khoi, San, Xam and others are living among black & coloured South Africans today. Among Batswana there people people called the Namas (aManama or Monama), who are descendants of Khoisan groups. Among amaXhosa we have amaGqunikhwebe tribe that consists of oGiqwa, Ngqosini, Cethe, Sukwini, Nqarhwane, oGqunu, oGqwashu and others. These people live among other black South Africans and are of Khoisan groupings. In the Eastern Cape there is a town called Queenstown, amaXhosa people, to this day, refer to that town as Komani, in recognition of the chief of Khoi people who lived there with his people. So, do bring your tertiary level knowledge of history but no insults to other people's knowledge and justification of the land theft.

The first issue to acknowledge about the land question is that land in South Africa is an African land. The second issue is that Africans in South Africa have been dispossessed of the land. Thirdly, regarding the issue of first arrival and attempts to divide Africans, it only serves to delays the resolution of the land question and may benefit us that are living at this moment in time. What must be understood is that people of Khoekhoe, Khoi, San, Xam and others are living among black & coloured South Africans today. Among Batswana there people people called the Namas (aManama or Monama), who are descendants of Khoisan groups. Among amaXhosa we have amaGqunikhwebe tribe that consists of oGiqwa, Ngqosini, Cethe, Sukwini, Nqarhwane, oGqunu, oGqwashu and others. These people live among other black South Africans and are of Khoisan groupings. In the Eastern Cape there is a town called Queenstown, amaXhosa people, to this day, refer to that town as Komani, in recognition of the chief of Khoi people who lived there with his people. So, do bring your tertiary level knowledge of history but no insults to other people's knowledge and justification of the land theft.

We do not need to roll back any clock. My dealings with the PAC went far back to 1989. A genuine need for people to put people first as a people and not as a faceless society was and still is commendable. Re- looking at a land act is always as useful as it was then. Things change as so must our policies. It's the corruption connected with land distribution is the core of any behaviour. Land does not necessarily bring wealth as Russia has misguidedly not figured out. But bringing opportunities inside the realm of land can offer a sense of existence; of self worth. I had owned land and it brought nothing but more indebtedness. If by any good conscience a way forward could be addressed to assist peoples to develop a pride of being which doesn't dissolve the respect of others; that minister should be heard and participation in such negotiation should be handled in a democratic way. Being threatened seems a way of life. Put down your sharp tongues and negotiate. That's the South Africa I voted for.

We do not need to roll back any clock. My dealings with the PAC went far back to 1989. A genuine need for people to put people first as a people and not as a faceless society was and still is commendable. Re- looking at a land act is always as useful as it was then. Things change as so must our policies. It's the corruption connected with land distribution is the core of any behaviour. Land does not necessarily bring wealth as Russia has misguidedly not figured out. But bringing opportunities inside the realm of land can offer a sense of existence; of self worth. I had owned land and it brought nothing but more indebtedness. If by any good conscience a way forward could be addressed to assist peoples to develop a pride of being which doesn't dissolve the respect of others; that minister should be heard and participation in such negotiation should be handled in a democratic way. Being threatened seems a way of life. Put down your sharp tongues and negotiate. That's the South Africa I voted for.

These buggers don't have a clue how to ensure LAW FUL Land Reform, that actually is a "Must Have" if ever there is to be socio-economic justice. All their plans and PLOTS violate international law and would breach the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that humanity signed onto, in 1948, after a World War and the Holocaust. If our ConCourt were daft enough as to uphold all these daft plots all countries that are signatories to the UN Charter, that is underpinned by the UDHR, would be compelled to treat SA as a pariah State, as they did with Zimbabwe, and the country would collapse in no time at all. Sigh … can someone up there PLEASE give me a call ????

These buggers don't have a clue how to ensure LAW FUL Land Reform, that actually is a "Must Have" if ever there is to be socio-economic justice. All their plans and PLOTS violate international law and would breach the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that humanity signed onto, in 1948, after a World War and the Holocaust. If our ConCourt were daft enough as to uphold all these daft plots all countries that are signatories to the UN Charter, that is underpinned by the UDHR, would be compelled to treat SA as a pariah State, as they did with Zimbabwe, and the country would collapse in no time at all. Sigh … can someone up there PLEASE give me a call ????