After months of sustained pressure, the Democratic Alliance today succeeded in getting the West Restitution Association’s plea for assistance in its stalled restitution project heard by the Portfolio Committee on Land Reform and Rural Development.
Since the West Restitution Association’s land claim was settled in 2000, its approximately 2000 beneficiaries have waited 26 years for the promised houses on land near the area from which they were dispossessed in the West Bank of KuGompo City (formerly East London) in 1965. Due to the subsequent delay, the land has been illegally occupied, causing further setbacks. After years of waiting, the Association approached the DA for assistance in bringing its grievances before Parliament.
The DA’s call on the Committee to intervene not only gave the Association an opportunity to present its case today but also ensured that the Commission on the Restitution of Land Rights and the ANC Mayor of the Buffalo City Metro (BCM) Municipality, Princess Faku, together with her delegation, were present to account to the Committee for the nearly three-decade delay.
Today, the BCM Municipality avoided taking responsibility for its 26 years of inaction and attempted to shift the blame. The DA insists that the BCM Municipality provide the Committee with realistic timelines, including deliverable dates and key performance indicators (KPIs). The BCM Municipality today committed to sending an action plan to the Committee for review within three weeks.
Previous ANC national and local governments have failed the displaced West Bank community in KuGompo City. Despite numerous promises of land restitution, they still lack the land promised to restore their dignity. The DA will ensure that their plea brought to Parliament today is heard and not ignored. The BCM Municipality and other stakeholders must be held to account through strict oversight, and the DA will hold them to account for the action plan they promised today.