Ramaphosa must come clean on the ANC’s stance on EWC
6 June 2021
The ANC speaks from all sides of the mouth on the matter of expropriation without compensation, depending on the audience. The DA demands immediate clarity from President Ramaphosa on the ANC’s exact position on this crucial issue.
On the one hand, we have the ANC this week in the ad hoc committee agreeing with the EFF that the draft bill (to amend Section 25 of the Constitution to allow for expropriation without compensation) should be revised to enable “state custodianship” over land.
Let’s be clear. This is nationalization by stealth. A 2013 Constitutional Court judgement on this matter confirmed that custodianship does not imply compensation. Crucially, the matter of expropriation may start with land, but there is nothing in the wording of the amendment bill to suggest it won’t soon extend to other types of property. Also, this revision diminishes the role of the courts, which at least offer some form of protection against deprivation of one’s property and against power abuse by the executive.
On the other hand, we have President Ramaphosa in soothing tones reassuring the business community and investors that this kind of expropriation will not happen, and that EWC will be undertaken in such a way that it does no harm to the economy and food security.