Govt mum on land plea

GOVERNMENT has not yet responded to a formal request by commercial farmers that moves to expropriate their farms be postponed to the end of this month.

In the meantime, Namibia Agricultural Union members (NAU) who were served with expropriation notices have responded to them. “Individual members of NAU who were approached by the Government have replied.The ball is now in the Government’s court,” NAU’s Executive Manager, Sakkie Coetzee, told The Namibian yesterday.He said that the union was still awaiting Government’s response on the farmers’ request to hold off on expropriation until the end of the month.Some 15 white farmers were served with expropriation notices by Government more than two weeks ago.They were given 14 days to respond.This prompted the farmers to write to Government seeking clarity on certain issues.According to the farmers, the law is not being followed correctly.They contend that the process, as a whole, lacks transparency and that Government is not clear on the meaning of “public interest and just compensation”, nor the criteria being used to identify the farms.They also state that Government has adopted punitive measures as a reason for expropriating farms.Further, the farmers said, Government is using labour disputes as a reason to expropriate farms.When he announced Government’s plans to press ahead with expropriation, Lands, Resettlement and Rehabilitation Minister Hifikepunye Pohamba said Government had targeted “many farms” and had given farmers two weeks to submit their asking price.Earlier NAU President Jan de Wet said the expropriation notices had not come as a surprise as farmers had expected the first moves on expropriation to be made ahead of this past weekend’s extraordinary Swapo congress that elected Pohamba as Swapo’s candidate for the November presidential elections.”The postponement until the end of June will give us time to set up a team consisting of a legal and an agricultural expert as well as an evaluator to assist NAU members through expropriation procedures,” De Wet told The Namibian from his farm.He said a team had been set up to compile a document that NAU, the biggest association of commercial farmers, intended to forward to Government for consideration before taking further steps.Pohamba stressed that land would be taken in accordance with the law.The Namibian Constitution dictates that “just compensation” be paid for property that is expropriated.”Individual members of NAU who were approached by the Government have replied.The ball is now in the Government’s court,” NAU’s Executive Manager, Sakkie Coetzee, told The Namibian yesterday.He said that the union was still awaiting Government’s response on the farmers’ request to hold off on expropriation until the end of the month.Some 15 white farmers were served with expropriation notices by Government more than two weeks ago.They were given 14 days to respond.This prompted the farmers to write to Government seeking clarity on certain issues.According to the farmers, the law is not being followed correctly.They contend that the process, as a whole, lacks transparency and that Government is not clear on the meaning of “public interest and just compensation”, nor the criteria being used to identify the farms.They also state that Government has adopted punitive measures as a reason for expropriating farms.Further, the farmers said, Government is using labour disputes as a reason to expropriate farms.When he announced Government’s plans to press ahead with expropriation, Lands, Resettlement and Rehabilitation Minister Hifikepunye Pohamba said Government had targeted “many farms” and had given farmers two weeks to submit their asking price.Earlier NAU President Jan de Wet said the expropriation notices had not come as a surprise as farmers had expected the first moves on expropriation to be made ahead of this past weekend’s extraordinary Swapo congress that elected Pohamba as Swapo’s candidate for the November presidential elections.”The postponement until the end of June will give us time to set up a team consisting of a legal and an agricultural expert as well as an evaluator to assist NAU members through expropriation procedures,” De Wet told The Namibian from his farm.He said a team had been set up to compile a document that NAU, the biggest association of commercial farmers, intended to forward to Government for consideration before taking further steps.Pohamba stressed that land would be taken in accordance with the law.The Namibian Constitution dictates that “just compensation” be paid for property that is expropriated.