Political opportunists on land have another think coming

THE most incredible thing happened this week: different classes of black people went toe-to-toe in two Gauteng suburbs and in North West over land occupation.

The fight mirrored the social divide being sown by some opportunistic politicians, who continue to abuse the desperate situation of far too many of our compatriots.

A group of people carrying their “homes” arrived in trucks in the up-market (by Soweto standards) Protea Glen to erect shacks on open land owned by the municipality.

Many residents came out of their bonded houses and blocked them.

Fights ensued. Blood flowed in the neat and tarred streets.

The police got involved on the side of the Protea Glen residents and drove away the invaders, tearing down structures.

In the not-so-upmarket Vosloorus in Ekurhuleni, east of Johannesburg, residents took to the streets to protest against illegal land invasions by shack dwellers who had erected structures in their suburb.

On the same day, northeast of Rustenburg in North West, a community that has been living in shacks since 2013 barricaded roads near Ledig, demanding houses and land.

They claim the Royal Bafokeng Nation demolished their houses five years ago, as it claimed they had built on its land illegally.

There have been many such invasions over the past three years, mainly by people who are victims of poverty and subjected to unaffordable rentals in backyard shacks.

In all instances, the target land has always been near areas that offer job opportunities.

Then Julius Malema and his EFF caught on, recognising the desperation of shack dwellers and saw a clear opportunity to win easy votes.

The party encouraged these poor and gullible people to forcefully occupy any piece of land they could find.

This was a direct incitement to commit crime.

In many cases the target land was owned by municipalities or private investors, including mines and farmers.

Until recently, most land-grab victims have been white people or companies with a white face.

That was always going to change.

The numerical strength of the black population, and their rising middle-class ranks, mean black people today own more land than white households.

And of course, many pay up to a third of their monthly salaries to live on that land.

So they are not going to just sit back and watch their investments being trampled upon – even by fellow black people.

Political opportunism

Phelelani Sindani is one of the Protea Glen residents who came out in defence of her suburb. “When they come they are going to want electricity and they are going to put up cables and steal it from us. They think we who live in houses are rich, so we will have a lot of break-ins,” she told News24.

In Vosloorus, Gauteng police spokesperson Kay Makhubela told the SABC: “Yes, indeed, I can confirm that the community of Vosloorus barricaded the road, protesting about land invasion in the area. The people who are protesting are the owners of the houses in the area, who are saying they don’t want their houses to be surrounded by the shacks.”

The platinum-rich Royal Bafokeng Nation is also creating a middle-class community for its more than 300 000 members. It ploughs every cent into infrastructure for their benefit, but allows the many nonBafokeng who live on its native platinum belt access to the schools and clinics it pays for.

The political opportunists who say land is a black and white matter have another think coming. They will have to choose between the rule of law and chaos, with the accompanying violence they have fomented over land. Only this time it will be black-on-black violence, middle class vs poor.

’They think we who live in houses are rich, so we will have a lot of break-ins’ – Phelelani Sindani