January 24 205 13:00
Cyril Ramaphosa, courtesy of Shutterstock
President Cyril Ramaphosa has signed the Expropriation Act into law. This makes it easier for the state to expropriate land if it’s in the public interest, subject to equitable compensation being paid, according to the president.
The Expropriation Act replaces and updates existing legislation that dates back to 1975 according to experts. It comes into effect after five years of parliamentary deliberations and public consultation and is consistent with the nation’s constitution, the presidency said in a statement on Thursday.
It “outlines how expropriation can be done and on what basis,” it said. “This law will assist all organs of state, local, provincial and national authorities, to expropriate land,” it said.
The ANC in 2017 proposed constitutional changes to make it easier for the state to take land without paying for it and address racially skewed land-ownership which dates back centuries.
The ANC has said that it wikl rely on legislation to achieve its objective of redistributing land.
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