Malete Land Board wins first round against squatters
Tsaone Basimanebotlhe | Thursday September 22, 2016 16:03
The land authority dragged the squatters to the Tribunal seeking an order for eviction in an issue that dates back to 2013.
The Land Tribunal president, Sampa Kaisara ruled that the matter was urgent.
“The applicant has demonstrated the prejudice they are likely going to suffer if the case is not heard. Indeed a lot is likely going to be lost if the matter is not resolved.
“The matter will be postponed to November to a date yet to be set because the respondents are not ready to proceed today (Wednesday). In October, the court will be otherwise engaged,” Kaisara said.
Earlier Land Board chairman, Roy Letsatsi said a study done in 2012 in the affected areas had shown that the population of people had increased.
“This issue backdates to 2012 after we were tipped off by the Mogobane chief. That is when we made a study in these unrecognised settlements, which are ploughing fields.
“After realising that, we called the concerned members or squatters to our area for interviews. We later wrote to them that they should move and we gave them 35 days,” Letsatsi said.
He continued: “We suspended the action after communication to us from authorities. Then in February 2015, the Land Board met and reviewed the case. To our surprise when some officers visited the site, they found that some youths had illegally allocated themselves plots there”.
Letsatsi said the Land Board did not have a problem with people who had ploughing fields in those areas. However, it wanted to evict those who had no fields, but had erected dwellings.
“If those people are to be left there, then other people will assume that it is right to allocate yourself a plot.
“Some people have started transferring their properties to disguise that indeed the number of squatters has increased in the area. Some leaders are behind this issue because they have advised them not to move,” he said.
The respondents’ attorney, Joram Matomela said the application for the urgency did not meet the requirements, as the application form did not have any founding affidavit done under oath.
He argued that the applicants had failed to demonstrate the prejudice they would suffer if this matter was not heard urgently.
“This kind of application has serious consequences and the applicant should show how they would suffer.
They should have made affirmation so that we could do cross-examination during the case. The principle of justice should be observed,” Matomela said.
He also added that the Land Board had taken a decision on the matter in 2015, but failed to implement it.
Matomela said his clients had no other homes apart from the ones in those areas.
“Also, as far as they know, the Bamalete Tribal Administration and Land Board are still negotiating. They could have told my clients if the negotiation collapsed,” he said.