Concerns over local land claim by the Bakwena Ba Mare Phogole
Hundreds of local stakeholders attended the meeting about the land claim by the Bakwena Ba Mare a Phogole in the South of JHB, Ekurhuleni and the Vaal.
THE office of the Regional Land Claims Commissioner in Gauteng invited all concerned stakeholders to attend a meeting over the land claim by the Bakwena Ba Mare a Phogole community, at Emperors Palace on Thursday, November 24.
This meeting was to inform stakeholders that a claim has been made and investigations into the land claim are already underway. The land claim involves large amounts of land in the South of Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and the Vaal.
The commission informed the stakeholders present that a land claim is just a land claim until investigations have been done and finalised. Those in attendance were also encouraged not to panic as the meeting was about informing residents of the claim and about the procedures and decisions that could be taken after investigations have been completed.
According to the commission, investigations are already halfway done and the community will be informed formally of all the findings. The claim was initially dismissed by the commission for various reasons but after a court appeal, the court advised the commission to investigate the claim again. The first claim was dismissed because the commission was not convinced that a community of people or families of the Bakwena Ba Mare a Phogole could have occupied and had control over such a large amount of land.
To claim land, one has to prove that he or she had occupied and had control over that land before he or she was repossessed. However, the court found that there could be areas that were not explored by the commission before, hence the commission is investigating the claim again.
The CHRONICLE is going through presented documents and will feature a more detailed and informative article in the next issue.
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