Erasmus Shalihaxwe
Republican Party (RP) President, Henk Mudge has pledged that, if elected as the next president, his administration will expropriate farms currently allocated under the government’s flawed Land Reform Scheme.
Mudge stated that he would target farms that are currently allocated to government figures, Swapo elites, and their relatives. He said these farms are underutilised and only used as mere weekend retreats and that these properties will be reclaimed by the state.
Mudge made these statements in the party’s manifesto, which was released over the weekend in preparation for the upcoming Presidential and National Assembly elections.
“Land is a scarce, valuable, and non-renewable natural resource. Thus, land should not be a bargaining tool and seen as wealth in itself but rather as an instrument for wealth creation,” he said.
Mudge promised to re-advertise the farms and ensure they are allocated to individuals committed to productive farming.
According to him, it is crucial that land be utilised productively, wisely and responsibly.
He said any destruction of land will inevitably lead to job losses, and a decrease in production and economic activity, leaving Namibians at a disadvantage compared to other countries.
“The RP will introduce policies through which the agricultural wealth of communal areas can be brought closer into the formal economy by rewarding protection of occupancy, security of investment and equitable infrastructural development. Develop feeding scheme programs on commercial and communal land that will be given preference in supplying food to Namibian schools, hostels and governmental ministries such as National Defence,” said Mudge.
He added that his government will guarantee the payment of market-related prices for the land and will remove the requirement that commercial farmers who wish to sell their farms first offer them to the government.
According to Mudge, farmers and landowners should have the option to withdraw their sale offers if the government’s price does not align with the official property valuations.
“It should be obvious by now that these conditions only resulted in a sharp increase in farm prices, putting it beyond the ability of beginner farmers to acquire land, even through the Affirmative Action Loan Scheme. We will encourage commercial farmers in possession of excessive land to sell it to the government,” he said.
He added that farms acquired for resettlement will be used by beginner farmers as the first step towards farm ownership, not as a dumping ground where beginner farmers are condemned to endless poverty.
Mudge said his government will prioritise repairing the harm resettled farmers have caused and treat land as a non-renewable natural resource.
This is while ensuring that the policy of willing buyer/willing seller is respected, as per the Constitution.
