Date set for new property clause
• Land reform amendment likely to be known by end of that month
Investors who were rattled by the government proposals to expropriate land without compensation could know by the end of March 2019 what the redrafted section 25 of the constitution will look like.
Investors who were rattled by the government proposals to expropriate land without compensation could know by the end of March 2019 what the redrafted section 25 of the constitution will look like.
This week both houses of parliament — the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) — adopted the contentious report on expropriation without compensation, which calls for a constitutional amendment to make it explicit that expropriation without compensation can be used to address skewed land ownership patterns dating back to the colonial era.
On Thursday, during its final sitting of the year, the National Assembly adopted a draft resolution by ANC chief whip Jackson Mthembu calling for the establishment of an ad hoc committee, which will initiate and introduce legislation amending section 25 of the constitution.
The expropriation debate has polarised the country and spooked investors, with the proposed amendment set to be challenged in court by various stakeholders and political parties. The process to change the constitution could be stymied pending the conclusion of court processes, which may end in up in the Constitutional Court.
The matter could eventually be processed by the next parliament, which means the amendment might not happen at all if the parties backing the change fail to secure a two-thirds majority among them.
The DA has vowed to challenge in court the “flawed processes” leading up to the adoption of the final document.
The high court in Cape Town is due to hear an application by lobby group AfriForum on a date yet to be set. The group wants a declaratory order that the adoption of the report by the joint constitutional review committee was unlawful and should be set aside. It wants the public participation process reviewed.
The Institute of Race Relations also indicated in November that it is preparing to take legal steps to prevent the push by the ANC and EFF to amend the constitution.
The DA and other smaller parties objected to the establishment of the ad hoc committee on Thursday, but were outvoted. Mthembu said the ANC wants the legislature to process and pass the amendment bill before the five-year term of the current parliament ends in May, just before the general elections. This gives the ad hoc committee at least four months to conclude the process. The committee, which will consist of 11 members of the National Assembly, has to report to parliament by March 31 2019, said Mthembu.