Thoko Didiza’s Department does not have a database on land restitution
2 September 2021
Minister Thoko Didiza’s Department of Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Reform (DALRRD) does not have a detailed database of all land restitution claims that have been submitted and finalised since 1994. This exposes land restitution claimants to possible risks of evictions, duplicate claims and disproportionately long waiting periods to have their claims settled.
In making the conclusion on the non-availability of the land restitution database, the DA was prompted by the deliberate stalling and obstinate refusal by DALRRD to grant me access to inspect such a database, if ever one existed.
On Monday, this week, I lodged an appeal with the DALRRD after they failed to honor a PAIA request that I had submitted on the 15th of June for information on whether they have a land restitution database and if so, that I be granted access to it.
Before submitting this PAIA request, I undertook the oversight visit to (DALRRD) head office in Pretoria to try and take a look at the land administration database, records of lease agreements and the database of all Proactive Land Acquisition Strategy (PLAS) farms. Not only was I prevented from carrying out the oversight and getting answers on the aforementioned, in line with my responsibilities as a Member of Parliament, but Departmental officials went to extreme lengths to make sure that I left.