30 May 2021

The Ministry of Land Management, Water and Sanitation Services will intervene in the reported wrangling between Mochudi East residents and Kgatleng Land Board members.

 Speaking during a kgotla meeting attended by village authorities in Mochudi recently, Minister Kefentse Mzwinila stated that the matter was of great concern.

  The promised intervention comes in the wake of numerous complaints of maladministration and a plethora of land acquisition problems facing the land board.

 Mr Mzwinila urged land board members to support government mandate of ensuring proper land administration and management.

 He said they had been duly inducted to ensure compliance with land administration policies for facilitation of socio-economic development.

The minister stressed that they had the responsibility to manage and distribute tribal land in an orderly manner.

He also stated that he was aware of pleas to improve compensations of tribal land acquired from individuals.

On another issue, Minister Mzwinila promised residents that water distribution in the area would improve significantly following completion of Masama-Mmamashia pipeline.

Earlier, Mochudi East MP and National Assembly deputy speaker, Mr Mabuse Pule had said residents were at loggerheads with the land board because of alleged unfair and disorderly allocations.

Among the allegations are corrupt practices by board members, sale of land to foreigners, double allocation of plots, poor allocation of tribal land and poor public relations with residents and that Village Development Committees (VDCs) were denied plots.

Bakgatla deputy chief Kgosi Bana Sekai concurred that there were inconsistencies in land allocation as well as confusions between the public and land board with the latter failing to address residents’ grievances.

Kgosi Sekai accused the land board of allocating residential plots on grazing land, cattle post and ploughing fields which he said  contradicted the President’s call for integrated farming.

Another issue, he said, was the faulty Land Administration Procedures, Capacity and System (LAPCAS) numbering of plots which saw  Sikwane residents given codes for Mabalane and vice versa.

Kgosi Sekai said the issue, which remain unresolved, would affect development in the two villages.

“I therefore call on you the minister responsible to make a special dispensation for Bakgatla in resolving their land issues that have long been pending,” he stated.

Kgosi Michael Balebetse of Mmathubudukwane called on the land board and Water Utilities Corporation to work in unison to avoid a scenario where after land allocation, water connection could not be effected because plots were outside the reticulation zone.

Meanwhile land board secretary, Ms Tlotlego Rampha promised to  address allegations levelled against the Kgatleng Land Board.

She stated that the Sikwane- Mabalane numbering mix-up and rearrangement of boundaries between the two villages would be resolved after picking the right coordinates through town and country planning department. 

Ms Rampha refuted claims that residential plots were allocated on grazing land.ends