DA’s Helen Zille: This minister’s warning on Expropriation Act was ignored

The DA remains firm in its opposition to the recently signed Expropriation Act and has filed papers challenging it, arguing that it is “substantively and procedurally unconstitutional.”

On 23 January, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the controversial Expropriation Bill into law.

The bill allows for the expropriation of land with no compensation if it’s in the interest of the public or for a public purpose.

DA files papers

Although the National Assembly adopted the bill in 2020, the DA, Freedom Front Plus (FF+), and some civil society groups opposed it.

DA federal chairperson Helen Zille announced on Monday afternoon that the party filed papers electronically with the high court on Friday.

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Zille said the presidency signed the act into law despite the advice of Public Works and Infrastructure Dean Macpherson, who provided Ramaphosa with a legal opinion that there were issues with the bill that rendered it unconstitutional.

“The DA has asked the court for an order that will nullify the Expropriation Act in its current form,” Zile said.

The DA’s challenge to the Act is both substantive and procedural and includes:

• The process of adopting the Act did not conform to the Constitution. Five out of the seven provinces that voted for the Act in the National Council of Provinces did so without obtaining a provincial mandate in the manner prescribed by law and regulations; and
• The Act is vague and contradictory in several clauses, which renders it unconstitutional.

Act seeks to fulfil ANC’s expropriation without compensation mandate – Zile

Zille added that beyond the legal shortcomings, the act seeks to fulfil the mandate of the ANC’s 2017 elective conference, which required the party to include expropriation without compensation as a legal instrument—something the DA strongly opposes.

Watch Zile speak about the DA’s challenge against the Act here:

“In the current Expropriation Act we reject the ANC trying to smuggle in further powers of expropriation without compensation in an Act that is meant to provide for expropriation in circumstances where the state needs to develop infrastructure such as roads, railways and dams,” Zille said.

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“Every country has legislation to ensure that the state can, with fair compensation, build public infrastructure, but this Act goes too far outside of these accepted international norms.”

The DA federal chairperson accused the ANC of significantly expanding the scope of expropriation and maintaining the possibility of land restitution indefinitely by passing and signing the Expropriation Act.

“However, the ANC is no longer in power on its own,” she said.

‘ANC no longer in power on its own’

“The voters require the ANC to be in a coalition, and the ANC is bound by a signed Statement of Intent for a coalition with the DA. This means that they cannot simply proceed to implement resolutions of ANC elective conferences.”

Zille said the ANC has to share power for the first time in South Africa’s democratic history, and it won’t let the party act as if they won a majority.

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The Expropriation Act has caused diplomatic problems for South Africa, with US President Donald Trump signing an executive order to cut foreign aid to South Africa because of alleged racist laws against white people.

The Department of International Relations and Coordination (Dirco) noted Trump’s decision to prevent South Africa from receiving foreign aid.

US cuts foreign aid

The ministry said Trump’s posture against South Africa is based on misinformation.

However, the South African government said it is willing to engage with Washington to resolve any disputes or misunderstandings.