The former department of Land Affairs applied to local conveyancers in November 2006 to transfer the title deed of Trentham Park Farm to the farmers co-operative after the co-operative acquired the farm through the national land redistribution programme.
The former department of Land Affairs applied to local conveyancers in November 2006 to transfer the title deed of Trentham Park Farm to the farmers co-operative after the co-operative acquired the farm through the national land redistribution programme.
According to the application, the farm was meant to be subdivided and handed over to four separate Communal Property Associations (CPAs) in the following manner: Kamvalethu (portion 1), Masizakhe (portions 4 and 5) and Mlanjeni (portion 3 and the remainder of the farm).
The 2 500 hectare farm was handed over to the beneficiaries in 2003 with the major portion situated 20km out of Grahamstown on the dirt road to Manley Flats.
Now the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform is opposed to the subdivision of the farm, because only one section of the farm’s community will have access to the main source of water.
"The water source is located in one area of the farm," says national spokesperson Eddie Mohoebi, "and if the current sub-division proposal is approved and implemented, only one community will have access to this water source while the other three will not have access."
Some farmers told Grocott’s Mail that the attorneys had started preparing the title deeds when the application was stopped by Land Affairs official Lizo Mhlontlo.
They said Mhlontlo stopped the process because he wanted the farmers to consolidate the land into a single property- to which some farmers were opposed to.
However, Mohoebi denied that Mhlontlo stopped the acquisition of the title deeds and argued that he actually gave the beneficiaries a copy of the title deed. He added that without a title deed the farm could not qualify for the Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme through which they acquired a tractor and other implements.
"The real issue is the sub-division of the property," he points out. "Now the four CPAs want the entire CPA to be sub-divided and registered in their names, and this is where our department, together with the Department of Water and Environment as well the Department of Agriculture disagree."
Meanwhile, agriculturist Bongi Faye of the Eastern Cape Agricultural Research Project (Ecarp) said only one portion of the farm does not have a water source as other portions have inherited "water points" from the previous farmers who owned them.
"The two CPAs which are on the farm which belonged to Mr Wilmot (a vegetable producer) have a water point, the other farm owned by Mr Long has its own and it’s only Greenhills that doesn’t have."
She disputed that Greenhills could benefit from water from any of the farms, arguing that the farm was situated further away from the rest and therefore needed its own water point.
"Greenhills has its own reservoir and water pipes which the agriculture department promised to replenish as they once caught fire," she said.
Faye emphasised the need for the farm to b subdivided arguing that the farmers were so divided that for them to work together was almost impossible.
She questioned the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform’s decision to block the subdivision of the farm and asked at which meeting the decision had been taken. "Is this because the decision to carry out the subdivision was taken at a meeting where all stakeholders were present?" she asked.
Meanwhile, an aggrieved farmer Alcott Blou expressed his dismay with poor service delivery and accused extension officers from the agriculture department of not monitoring the farmer’s management of the land.
"They don’t come to our farm to conduct inspections as to assess our management of the land," he explained. "They only come to meetings where they make empty promises."
He said they cannot get funding and support from institutions because they do not have a title deed. He argued that Mhlontlo stopped the lawyers from processing the title deed because the farmers did not agree with the consolidation of the land into a single property.
Blou confirmed that the farmers are divided into two camps because one group wants to plant chicory while others plan to farm vegetables. "We want to produce vegetables because we acquired the land for the purposes of food security," he said.
Another farmer Welile Ncanywa accused agriculture department’s extension officer Patrick Nelani of snubbing meetings called by the farmers to iron the matters out.
"He doesn’t care about us, therefore we would like the government to assign another official to our farm," said Ncanywa.
Mohoebi said allegations that government officials were giving the farmers the run around have not been brought to the attention of management in the province.
"If that is the case, members of the CPA should bring their concerns to the [provincial]executive manager Zodwa Masholungu who will immediately intervene to address the matter," he suggested.
Nelani told Grocott’s Mail that he assists the farmers with technical advice, sourcing of potential funders and ensuring that they benefit from government programmes.
He denied that he did not avail himself for scheduled meetings but mentioned that he intentionally missed one meeting.
"I refused to attend a meeting which was scheduled to take place at Ecarp offices, because it was called by one faction of the farmers," he explains.
"I can’t meet with factions I want to meet with the whole body of farmers at all times." He added that the farmers are in the department’s implementation plan for the 2010/2011 financial year which begins in April.
"We are starting with supplying a water pump and reservoir in Greenhills as other areas already have water points," said Nelani. Attempts to obtain comment from the other farmers drew a blank.
