Expropriation Act won't be used to grab land haphazardly - Mashatile

CAPE TOWN - Deputy President Paul Mashatile has moved to assure Parliament that the contentious Expropriation Act won’t be used to grab land haphazardly.

He said while the act would assist in fast-tracking land reform, those who applied for farming land must put it to good use.

Answering questions in the National Council of Provinces on Thursday, Mashatile said while the Expropriation Act should ensure redress for those who had their land taken from them, the process must follow the law.

The deputy president said that while government wanted to speed up land reform, it did not want reclaimed land to lie fallow.

It's estimated that hundreds of farms across the country were currently not being utilised.

"Farm land, arable land, it should not go to waste. So, definitely in the coming months, that’s going to be the focus."

Mashatile said that government would support those who wanted to use the land productively.

But he said the process would unfold legally.

"There's no way you can have the law and the law allows you to grab land just haphazardly."

The US government has used disinformation about the Expropriation Act to fuel its claims of lawless land reform in South Africa.