Blaauwkrantz Farm resident Zwelothando Moni fears he and his family and friends face eviction – leaving them on the verge of losing the only home they have ever known.
Moni said several families had already been evicted from the farm, sited between Uitenhage and Kirkwood, including elderly women who had worked there for decades.
He said seeing people he had known all his life, now homeless, was heartbreaking and he claimed that some, after four decades of service, were given only R18,000 when they were evicted from the farm.
“Out of the 21 beneficiaries from the 1400ha of land the department of agriculture and agrarian reform bought us, there are only seven families left, two died and the rest were evicted from the farm,” Moni said.
“The farm owner has evicted about seven elderly women from his property, some this year alone. These are women who have worked 42 years on his farm,” he said.
In 2005, the government bought a stake in the Blaauwkrantz Farm for R948,927 for 21 employees, of whom seven are still working on the farm, according to Moni.
The employees were to have a 49% stake and Blaauwkrantz owner Arthur Rudman, 51%.
But Moni said they had not benefited despite the government buying it for the empowerment of black farm workers.
He said the owner did not share profits generated from the farm, which breeds kudu, bushbuck, impala and nyala.
Rudman could not be reached for comment.
During the last leg of the constitutional review committee land hearing in Jansenville on Saturday, Moni said even though the government had bought the land for them, they were never given title deeds.
Moni accused Rudman of trying to evict them from their 1400ha and only offering 300ha of land for the 21 beneficiaries to live on.
Department of rural development and land reform spokesperson Linda Page said the department was not aware of any evictions and the department had not bought the farm.
“What the department is aware of is that the farmer, through lawyers, offered to transfer 334ha to the Blaauwkrants Werknemers Trust, including all transfer fees related to this transfer.
“This transaction is in the hands of lawyers for both groups,” Page said.
She said the department did not buy the farm, but through a share equity scheme purchased 49% of the business using the Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development grant for the Blaauwkrantz Werknemers Trust.
“The grant was not sufficient to cover their portion of the purchase price and Rudman secured a loan on their behalf to top up,” Page said.
During the land hearing, Moni said he wanted Section 25 of the constitution to be amended because living the way they did was painful.