Hon Chairperson, hon Minister, hon members, ladies and gentlemen, there is no doubt about the need and urgency to accelerate land reform in our country, and to link it to rural development. We in the IFP support this link and trust that it will better address the plight of the landless, particularly in the rural areas where, according to government reports, over two million households lack space even for gardening.
However, in the IFP our point of departure is that this all-important portfolio has not always been properly handled. To a large extent it has become a hotly contested terrain, often leading to polarisation. There is polarisation between government and traditional leaders, especially where land tenure is concerned. Government policy is seeking to change communal land ownership into individual land ownership. This will aggravate landlessness, leaving land ownership in the hands of the affluent, and this will erode the role of traditional leaders in the administration of land. We appeal to the department to clarify the role of traditional leaders in this respect.
There is also polarisation between established, mostly white commercial farmers and new black entrants to the industry. The new entrants need to be mentored by established farmers, but the atmosphere prevailing in land restitution, especially with so many invalid claims, makes co-operation and mentoring impossible. We hear that the Department of Agriculture is advocating for the reopening of colleges of agriculture and to extend admission to emerging farmers. While the objective is good, colleges fall under the Department of Education, which has its priorities and backlogs to address, other than agriculture.
The crucial question is, of course: In a country with such a dire shortage of skills, why were colleges closed in the first place?
There is also polarisation between the landless living in informal settlements in our urban areas and the municipalities. The shacks of the landless are often bulldozed in a most insensitive fashion on municipal orders, leaving the tenants without a roof over their heads. This is most inhuman and degrading. So much polarisation does not augur well for our young democracy. [Time expired.] [Applause.]