David Rakgase’s title deed finally transferred into his name

19 April 2021

Note to Editors: Please see attached pictures here and here. 

Mr David Rakgase’s 18-year-old fight to secure title over his Nooitgedacht farm in Limpopo has ended after the government finally relented and transferred the title deeds into his name. The DA is delighted that Mr Rakgase now has full ownership of his farm and has been freed from the insecurity of short-term leases.

Yesterday, I joined Mr Rakgase and his family at their farm to celebrate this milestone. He expressed his gratitude to the DA for joining him in his fight to have the government honour its commitment to sell him the Nooitgedacht farm.

In 2002, under the Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development (LRAD) programme, Mr Rakgase had been offered the option to buy his farm, only for government to renege on this commitment. It was only after the High Court ruled in favour of Mr Rakgase in September 2019 that the sales agreement was finally signed for the original 2002 offer of R621 000.

During my visit, I met several other farmers who had gathered at Mr Rakgase’s farm and were also struggling to secure title after having been resettled under the LRAD programme. Their stories were of a confirmation of what we already know about the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD), that it has not only failed to at land reform but was intent on keeping farmers beholden to the state by refusing to grant them title deeds.

Mismanagement of the land reform process explains why the ANC government has decided to take a populist approach and pursue the ill-thought amendment to section 25 of the Constitution. It provides perfect cover to avoid having to explain its rank failure on land reform over the past two decades.
While the ANC pursues its grandstanding approach to land reform, the DA is on the ground to ensure that justice is served for farmers who have been hard done by the ANC’s chaotic land reform process. We are fighting for the right of all farmers to own the land that they work on and not be beholden to the state in perpetuity through insecure lease agreements.

Spent time with David and Mmofa #Rakgase in Northam, Limpopo today. #Landreform @Our_DA pic.twitter.com/X7p6Msqrs8

— Annette Steyn (@AnnetteSteyn1) April 18, 2021

Issued by Annette Steyn, DA Shadow Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, 19 April 2021