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MINISTER, 100 OTHERS FACE EVICTION

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KANCESI – Jabulani Mabuza, the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade, is one of about 100 families facing a probable eviction from a farm at KaNcesi near Mnyokane.


Mabuza’s shop, styled Buy Cash Hardware, and Machegwini Primary School alongside several grocery stores, were built within the perimeters of the farm owned by two deceased siblings; Fanisile Audrey Mabila, the former Accountant General and Alethka Khululekile Mangwe (nee Mabila).


Other people have built mansions on the private farm. There is also a motor spares store adjacent to Buy Cash Hardware, which is situated within the farm. There are three shops built there.  
The school started operating in 1999. Interestingly, the home of Masitsela Dlamini, the School’s Chairman, is also situated within the farm. Construction of a high school has begun on the farm.


The property, which measures 85 hectares, has been evaluated at E10 million, documents seen by the Times SUNDAY reveal.
The Mabila siblings bought the land from Farms (Sales) Proprietary Limited in 1998 at an undisclosed price. Fanisile died on October 30, 2016. She was serving a suspension at the time of her death. She died at the age of 54.


It could not be established when her elder sister, Khululekile, passed away. However, Khululekile, who was married to Mpini Ndvuna Michael Mangwe, was born in 1957. 
The two still co-own the farm at KaNcesi and their dependents look set to benefit from its sale or any form of utilisation. Ncesi means sorry.

Sorry not enough -  affected businessman


One of the affected businessmen said: “Ncesi (sorry) is not enough; it won’t make us recover the money we have invested here.”
He said he was never told by the chiefdom authorities that the land they allocated to him was actually a portion of the farm.


Papers indicate that the executors of Portion 16 of Farm No. 1214 in the region of Hhohho have instructed their attorneys, Bongani Mdluli and Associates, to work on the matter.
Attorneys have been mandated to explore alternative avenues in case the affected people did not cooperate with the executors. In an interview, Mdluli confirmed that the land on which certain homes were built and businesses set up was a farm.


He declined to divulge what he would say to the affected people. He said his client had a legal right over the said property. 
“Regarding that property, I can safely say the law is on our side. We will seek alternative avenues for redress if we don’t agree terms with the affected people. I hope we won’t reach that level,” he said.
Minister Mabuza, in an interview, said he was not aware that his shop was situated on a farm. He said the chiefdom’s authorities gave him the land.
The minister said he offered a cow for the acquisition of the property. This, he basically did in terms of the culture and tradition of emaSwati, he told this newspaper.
He was also of the opinion that the executors or their representatives should engage them in talks over the property.  “I invested handsomely in that area. I am also extending the shop to demonstrate that I relocated there to offer quality business services to the people,” he said.

School unaware it’s
built on private farm
On the other hand, the school head teacher and her deputy said they were also unaware that the school was built on a private farm. They refused to disclose their identities on the grounds that the issue was outside their jurisdiction.
“We came here to work, not to talk about land,” said the head teacher.
The head teacher telephoned the school’s chairman in the presence of the news team to enquire about the ownership of the land. The chairperson, Dlamini (Masitsela) acknowledged that the school was built on a farm.
When he was contacted by the Times SUNDAY, he said the appropriate authority over the issue were the elders of the community.
However, he did not refute the statement he had earlier made to the school’s head teacher and her deputy that the school was built within the perimeters of the farm.
Princess Ntfombise, the Community’s Chief, said she was not aware that her people built homes and set up business on a farm. She said her Inner Council was also not aware that the property in question was a private farm.
The princess welcomed talks with the executor or his representatives.  “My Inner Council was not aware that the land you are talking about is a farm,” she said.
No order at KaNcesi
– martin dlamini
One of the affected residents, Martin Dlamini, a soccer administrator, said there was total chaos at KaNcesi. He mentioned that there were three chiefdoms allocating land to people.
He said the Inner Councils of Maphalaleni, Ekuvinjelweni and Nkhaba allowed people to build homes on the farm. The administrator said there was no specific chiefdom responsible for the allocation of land. “It’s disaster there,” he said.
He added: “There’s absolutely no order at KaNcesi. That is why we are facing this problem now.”
According to the Farm Dwellers Control Act of 1982, which was recently amended, it defines a farm dweller as a person who resides on a farm on the strength of a written agreement with the farm owner.
Sources said the people who set up structures on the farm did not enter into an agreement with the Mabila siblings. An attorney, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they would be regarded as squatters in the absence of the written agreement.
Farm dwellers, unlike squatters, have legal rights. According to the amended law, a property owner who intends to sell his or her farm shall give the dwellers, neighbouring Eswatini Nation Land chiefdoms or the government of Eswatini first right to make an offer to purchase that farm through the Fund set up by government.
Government is expected to establish a Fund to be known as the Farm Dwellers Security of Tenure Fund.
It is stated in the Farm Dwellers Control Act that the Fund shall assist in the purchase of farms or portions of farms so as to give farm dwellers security of tenure and ensure that their status of being farm dwellers is eliminated.
Minister of Education and Training Phineas Magagula did not respond to telephone calls. He was telephoned six times yesterday.
Dr. Sibongile Mtshali, the Principal Secretary, was reported out of the country.

Land management
board can’t intervene
Clement Dlamini, the Chairman of the Land Management Board (LMB), said they did not have any constitutional mandate to adjudicate on disputes over private farms.
He said they only dealt with land belonging to government, Ingwenyama or Eswatini Nation Land. However, he warned people against building homes on private farms.
Dlamini said certain people were in denial that there were farms in the country.
“If someone is not sure about the land allocated to him, he must consult with the Deeds Office,” he said.
He said Eswatini is a peaceful country, which respected the land rights of its people, including those who owned farms.


 








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