Farm expropriation case causes discord in Limpopo
The owners of a hunting farm in Makhado in the Limpopo province have been at the centre of a land expropriation dispute since the second half of 2017. Akkerland Boerdery received “a notice of intention to expropriate” in October last year and were notified in April 2018 that the farm was to be inspected for an auditing and handover process.
Akkerland Boerdery was actually facing claims on two of its farms. According to Johan Eybers at City Press, “[they] appear to be the first properties that will be expropriated without following a court process.” Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform, has confirmed her commitment to the implementation of land reform in South Africa, having signed two expropriation orders in accordance with section 42E of the Restitution of Land Rights Act in August. This was according to Mashile Mokono, who heads up the ministry’s Land Reform Office.
Eybers goes on mention that, “the Akkerland case comes as the ANC’s top structures have decided over the past weeks that government must urgently proceed with test cases in order to test the concept of expropriation without compensation.” That being said, the government did offer compensation for the land (R20 million to be exact), but the owners demanded a total of R200 million.
Akkerdal Boerdery’s estimation has fallen under scrutiny for numerous reasons. Not only did Coal of Africa offer them R20 million for the land (in connection to the Makhado coal mining project, but in 2015 government-hired property valuation experts DDP estimated the land’s worth at R20.75 m. This amount was okayed by the Office of the Valuer-General, hence the government’s offer to Akkerdal.
Akkerdal, however, disagreed, citing two valuations performed in 2011. The first, and independent one, estimated the farms to be worth R200 million, while the second put them at R50 million, though this was under the provision that they would be turned into an eco-estate.
A challenge to the Valuer-General’s estimation of a property’s worth is a misguided step in seeking compensation. In August, 30 KZN property owners were met with possible expropriation. They refuted the government’s valuation of their property at R460 million, believing the joint-value to be worth R760 million.
Eybers notes three factors considered by the Property Valuation Act. He explains, “[they are] how the property was acquired, how much state assistance the land owner received over the years and the purpose of the expropriation.” He states, however, “these farmers are disputing the formula that the Valuer-General uses to determine the value of property. According to them, the formula puts too little emphasis on the market value of land, improvements and the existing purpose for which the land is used.”
