A subscription gives you full digital access to all our content
Questions or problems? Email helpdesk@heraldlive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting
Controversial council land reduced to ruin
the municipal-owned Kruisfontein farm in Alexandria has been used as commonage for cattle without any municipal oversight
the land over-grazed and riddled with alien invasive vegetation
The commonage has also been a haven for stock thieves who have struck neighbouring farms over the years
strays from the commonage have wandered onto public roads and neighbouring farms
None of the cattle are branded in accordance with the Livestock Identification Act
The issue has been compounded by the fact the municipal pound was still not operating a year after it was supposed to be ready
When TotT visited Kruisfontein farm recently
we saw many of the animals were in a terrible condition
and we came across several dead and rotting animals
The Alexandria Agricultural Association (AAA) has been trying for years to get the municipality to do something about the issues which plague this farm
After continued lack of response from municipal manager Rolly Dumezweni
in October last year AAA chairman Brent McNamara laid charges against Dumezweni as the responsible official
for failing to enforce the municipal commonage bylaws and contravening the Livestock Identification Act
The matter is still waiting for a decision by the Director of Public Prosecutions in Grahamstown
Kruisfontein farm has had a convoluted history since it was purchased by the Alexandria Transitional Council (the predecessor of Ndlambe Municipality) for R2.6-million in the mid-1990s and intended for a land reform project
In 1998 it was leased to the Chungwa Trust
primarily made up of family members of ANC stalwarts Stone Sizani and the late Thembile Bethe
[pullquote]Full-scale looting of farm infrastructure had started a few years ago[/pullquote]
but the trustees claimed that in 2002 Ndlambe had converted their lease to a 99-year lease
The municipality denied this and the matter went to court
The farm was also the subject of investigation by the former Scorpions into the use of state funding
and the Scorpions retrieved a number of files from the farm
a former Alexandria mayor and then Ndlambe councillor
He was named along with Sizani in an auditor-general’s report as a beneficiary of a land scheme meant to help poor farmers
The case remained unresolved by the time Bethe was murdered in December 2009
The same year Chungwa Trust applied to the Grahamstown High Court for a review of the Ndlambe council’s decision in 2003 to rescind an earlier decision to grant a 99-year lease to the trust
even though the municipality denied making the earlier resolution
Chungwa Trust had a five-year lease which expired in 2009 and the municipality told them it would not be renewed
the municipality claimed it could not attend to any issues on the farm as the matter was “sub judice”
when the high court ruled that Chungwa Trust failed to comply with the provisions of Section 7 of the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act
“The farm started becoming a problem in 2009,” said McNamara
“When the trust was there the farm was going backwards but there was some form of control.”
He said the full-scale looting of farm infrastructure had started a few years ago
In addition to the dairy and farmhouses which are now shattered ruins
there was a borehole pumphouse which used to supply water to the entire farm
The cattle on the farm now huddle around rapidly diminishing watering holes
and when TotT visited we saw a sickly animal stuck in the mud
as well as rotting carcasses and skeletons
About two years ago the Grahamstown Stock Theft Unit conducted an operation on the farm in which they found stolen cattle
With the assistance of local farmers they used mobile kraals to round up about 750 animals and used loudhailers in Kwanonqubela township to call owners to come identify their beasts
He’s got his own fenced off section in the commonage
Grahamstown and Motherwell had cattle there
He said the AAA had offered solutions to the municipality
one of which was to properly tag the animals on the commonage
Dumezweni said he and other officials met with McNamara on June 2 to discuss various issues relating to cattle
“At exco on June 3 a resolution was taken that the Alexandria Stock Owners be given permission to utilise the Kruisfontein farm while the processes of the lease agreement is being finalised
Exco also resolved to look at the issue of establishing holding pens
but this is subject to the availability of budget / funds,” Dumezweni said
“The municipality has supplied fencing material to the stock owners that indicated they will erect the necessary fence
At present a TLB will be send to the farm to address the issue of water availability to the animals.”
He said the Department of Agriculture had also offered assistance
“The municipality engaged Kula Developments in 2014 to conduct a study that looks at the re-capitalisation and commercialisation of Kruisfontein farm
This study took place while the high court Case was ongoing,” Dumezweni said
The local economic development department applied for funding to implement the resolutions of the study
Dumezweni assured that the pound would now be available for SAPS and members of the public who want to impound stray cattle
are continuing with the process of obtaining funds for the re-capitalisation and commercialisation of Kruisfontein farm
The municipality is committed to enforce bylaws in any commonage with the most minimal staff we have.”
Talk of the Town is the weekly newspaper of record for the community of Ndlambe and serves readers in and around Port Alfred