Multi Million Rand Farm Left Vacant After Government Purchase, SA Not Impressed
- A young man has taken to Twitter to his devastated reaction to what once used to be a thriving tea farm
- The Twitter user says the overgrown land in Limpopo was purchased by the government back in 2006 but has been left to decay for over five years now
- Mzansi social media users had mixed reactions as always but many called for proper skills and training to be given to receipts of farming land
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Twitter user @ChristoThurston has ignited a heated debate on social media over land expropriation after sharing a short clip of abandoned government land in the Limpopo bushveld.
Source: Getty Images
According to the young man, the dishevelled land used to be a tea farm that employed over 3 000 workers.
Tea farm left vacant after government purchase, land expropriaton process blamed
Today, it seems the tea farm is only a shadow of what it used to be, completely unkept and overgrown.
"Makgoba Tea Estate in Makgobaskloof, Limpopo. This tea farm used to employ 3 000 workers. In 2006 it was purchased by government for R104 million. From 2011 to 2015, R65 742 000 was pumped into the farm. Today the tea bushes grow 3m tall and no one is employed," he captioned the informative clip.
Mixed reactions to the expropriation of land in Mzansi
While some social media users agree with the young man's disappointed outlook on the repossession of native land, others insisted that whoever now owns the property is free to do with it as they please.
Check out some of the lengthy responses below:
@inkingayodwa said:
"This is heartbreaking, really heartbreaking. That's our tax money going down the drain. We are led by visionless leaders indeed."
@BafanaBz said:
"They give people land who knows nothing about farm management or farming. What do you expect from those underpowered people? Train people first before you give them land, then monitor them after you gave them farming skills and land."
@MoimaSakie said:
"This thing of government buying productive farms and handing them over to unskilled people should stop. There should be a skills transfer clause in place, especially operational skills, as part of the sale package. Buying an estate and wasting it is barbaric..."
@TheSouthAfrikan said:
"I know the place before and after it was sold. It is not the only farm around Tzaneen that went under the process of restitution. Once the people have their land you cannot force them to farm. That is the reality that must sink with all. Land repossession is not about farming."
@hmhlarhi said:
"Unfortunately, the beneficiaries failed to run the farm. Makgoba people failed dismally and we can't blame the government for returning their land. Africans must learn commercial farming to avoid similar failures. Unfortunately, land expropriation will likely result in this mess."
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Minister Nathi Mthethwa orchestrates the renaming of many locations in the Eastern Cape
In news of another hotly contested issue that has divided South Africans, Briefly News previously reported that it seems residents of the Eastern Cape are very frustrated at the news of recent name changes in the province.
The Minister of Art & Culture, however, has rejected thousands of objections to the renaming of prominent locations in the Eastern Cape.
The changes were implemented on 23 February and saw many famous locations lose their former names. Port Elizabeth was renamed Gqeberga, Uitenhage became Kariega and King Williams Town became Qonce.
East London Airport was also renamed King Phalo Airport and Port Elizabeth Airport was renamed Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport
Thousands of objections to the name changes in the Eastern Cape
A statement on behalf of Mthethwa revealed that a 12 402 signature-strong petition by residents of Nelson Mandela Bay was sent to the executive mayor's office. The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture also received 690 emailed objections.
However, the office of the minister has shared that none of these apparent objections warranted review and all opposition has thus been ignored.
Mzansi shares their mixed reactions to the name changes
While some social media users have continued the call for an objection to the name changes, others have encouraged their fellow South Africans to embrace our new democracy by dismantling tropes that remind us of our troubled past.
Check out some of the comments below:
@mncedisi_mandla said:
"Why are people so hurt that the town is called Gqeberha, is it because it sounds too African? You should wake up to reality, any form of colonialism must be dismantled."
@LukheleSporo said:
"Once Port Elizabeth, ALWAYS Port Elizabeth!!! LONG LIVE PORT ELIZABETH LONG LIVE!!!"
@Mackeymac123 said:
"The city where I grew up will always be Port Elizabeth to me. Fuck Nathi Mthetwa. #VoetsekANC"
@MvieMvie5 said:
"Port Elizabeth was named by Sir Rufane Donkin, the acting governor of the Cape Colony, for his deceased wife, Lady Elizabeth. Relax, just practice the name Gqeberha we are in South Africa and Africa."
@MindMoneyFit1 said:
"hahaha loving this, other race catching feelings. Just practice, practice, practice. Like it or not it's now Gqeberha. Come now say it slowly with me, Gqe..be..rha. Good boy."
@MissD31283 said:
"Remember, you grew up in apartheid."
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Source: Briefly News
