North Coast hit by new land grabs

Erica Abrahams

The ringleaders behind the illegal land grab attempts on vacant plots between Etete and Tinley Manor in May last year are thought to have orchestrated the resurgence of the activity in Sheffield, KwaZulu-Natal last month, said police.

Umhlali South African Police Service (Saps) Captain Vinny Pillay said the issue was more complicated than it first appeared, reports North Coast Courier.

“There are different elements to this. On one hand we have people desperate for homes closer to where they work and on the other we have the same people being scammed into buying plots from people who are trying to drive an agenda,” he said.

Pillay said last year 17 people were arrested when more than 1 200 people travelled from as far as Eshowe and partitioned sections of land for themselves.

On Sunday about 80 people watched in horror as their homes – shacks and tents – of the past year were torn down.

KwaDukuza municipality (KDM) media liaison officer Sipho Mkhize said people were illegally selling plots and circulating Facebook adverts for the sale of unoccupied land around KwaDukuza.

“People are being motivated to build on this land despite us warning them not to. We cannot allow the situation to get out of hand and we are forced to demolish because people cannot just take over vacant land,” he said.

“At this point, we also believe that the situation escalated after more people saw an opportunity for land and took it.” Neither the police nor the municipality could confirm whether the recent land grab had come about through political interference.

While 11 families had been given permission to live on the property, new structures were erected over the past year, with shacks now bordering on private land. This was the second time the structures had been demolished.

IPSS Security’s Brennon Knots said they had been monitoring the situation at Sheffield since plots were being marked on land belonging to their clients.

“We have been working with the police and with KDM to keep an eye on what is going on and we also assisted with the demolition on Sunday.

“At the moment we are trying to make sure privately owned land is also not completely invaded. On Sunday, one of our guards who was looking after the area was told that 200 people would be going to the land in Sheffield for a meeting that evening. He was told that if he was still there at the time, his life would be in danger.

“Building of shacks resumed shortly after we all left on Sunday afternoon.”

KDM had issued an eviction notice to the squatters two weeks ago. – Caxton News Service