330 TO BE EVICTED FROM SNPF FARM

MBABANE – The eviction of illegal occupants from a farm belonging to the SNPF and the demolition of their houses is imminent.

SNPF is the acronym for the Swaziland National Provident Fund. This comes after the residents allegedly failed to raise E4.7 million, which was required for them to purchase the farm from SNPF.

The occupied area has about 60 homesteads. After SNPF obtained a judgment for the eviction and demolition of houses situated on Farm 319, Manzini, the residents filed a complaint with the Swaziland Commission on Human Rights and Public Administration, as they alleged that they were allocated the land by traditional authorities. The two parties further agreed that the matter should be resolved through a process of negotiation and compromise facilitated by the commission. This agreement was made an order of the court on April 19, 2016.

The commission has since filed a report with the High Court on the negotiation process.

Memorandum

The commission said consequent to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) entered into by the SNPF and the Madonsa residents, the commission was mandated to resolve a complaint which was lodged by the residents against the fund through a negotiations and compromise process in 2011.

In the court documents, the commission said the Madonsa residents came to be in the illegal occupation of the farm, as a result of an error, which they could not ascertain whether was negligent or genuine, committed by Umnyenyweni Royal Kraal through the kukhonta system.

 The commission said it was evident that the residents had been unable to raise funds towards purchasing the portion of the farm, which had been evaluated to cost E4.7 million. Giving a background of the matter, the commission stated that the residents started settling on the farm as early as 1998, after they, on different occasions, approached traditional authorities of the area.

After consultations with several stakeholders, the commission recommended that the portion of the farm occupied by the residents should be partitioned from Farm 319, and the costs borne by the residents.

The stakeholders included Indvuna Malangeni Dlamini of Emnyenyweni, the Human Settlement Department under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development and the Regional Administrator’s office. Others were Noah Nkambule, a former Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Mrs Ceko, from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy.

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