RP calls for clear expropriation guidelines

THE Republican Party (RP) said yesterday that the Wiese Family from the farm Ongombo-West was being unfairly singled out by Government to further its land reform aims.

Stressing that the party supported the policy of expropriation of commercial farmland as a land reform mechanism, the party’s president, Henk Mudge, said yesterday Government needed to be clearer on the criteria it was using to determine the farms that it wanted to expropriate. “The Government should never expropriate land in order to punish certain individuals, especially when accusations have not been fully and fairly investigated,” Mudge maintained, making reference to the farm of the Wiese family.Ongombo-West is one of about 15 farms Government has identified for expropriation and served with an eviction notice.A labour dispute that led to the eviction of farmer workers put the farm in the spotlight.Speaking in their defence, Mudge said the family had always been known to have treated its employees well and that they were victimised.”It is unforgivable for the President to accuse him of being a criminal.That is so unfounded,” he claimed to the media in Windhoek.”These are committed, patriotic Namibians who only did well in the past.”The RP also said it was necessary to clear the air on reports that the party was at loggerheads with the Namibia Agricultural Union (NAU).Mudge said while the party was of the opinion that it had not properly informed its members of the union’s deliberations with Government, it harboured no antagonism towards it.”The land reform issue is having an emotional effect on the farmers and it must be resolved as soon as possible,” he told the media in Windhoek, “Expropriation must be dealt with in a sustainable manner.Government can’t deal with it in the manner it has up to now.”Mudge said the party’s chairman of the Agricultural Committee, Dirk Mudge, would attend a farmers’ meeting in Otjiwarongo today where it hoped to lay to rest claims of tension ” … between the Mudges and the de Wets, and the RP and the NAU.”The RP said it was still awaiting an audience with the Lands Minister to gain clarity on Government’s expropriation plans, including the criteria for identifying farms and the number of farms and time-frame for expropriation.”The Government should never expropriate land in order to punish certain individuals, especially when accusations have not been fully and fairly investigated,” Mudge maintained, making reference to the farm of the Wiese family.Ongombo-West is one of about 15 farms Government has identified for expropriation and served with an eviction notice.A labour dispute that led to the eviction of farmer workers put the farm in the spotlight.Speaking in their defence, Mudge said the family had always been known to have treated its employees well and that they were victimised.”It is unforgivable for the President to accuse him of being a criminal.That is so unfounded,” he claimed to the media in Windhoek.”These are committed, patriotic Namibians who only did well in the past.”The RP also said it was necessary to clear the air on reports that the party was at loggerheads with the Namibia Agricultural Union (NAU).Mudge said while the party was of the opinion that it had not properly informed its members of the union’s deliberations with Government, it harboured no antagonism towards it.”The land reform issue is having an emotional effect on the farmers and it must be resolved as soon as possible,” he told the media in Windhoek, “Expropriation must be dealt with in a sustainable manner.Government can’t deal with it in the manner it has up to now.”Mudge said the party’s chairman of the Agricultural Committee, Dirk Mudge, would attend a farmers’ meeting in Otjiwarongo today where it hoped to lay to rest claims of tension ” … between the Mudges and the de Wets, and the RP and the NAU.”The RP said it was still awaiting an audience with the Lands Minister to gain clarity on Government’s expropriation plans, including the criteria for identifying farms and the number of farms and time-frame for expropriation.