Share

Land expropriation needed, Malema tells Cape businesses

Cape Town - EFF leader Julius Malema on Friday told Cape Town heads of industry that land expropriation without compensation was needed in South Africa.

"The state must take a deliberate decision to nationalise the land and redistribute it for equal use [for everybody]," Malema told members of the Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) over dinner at the Cape Sun hotel.

Malema was sparring with economic futurologist Clem Sunter in a two round debate called "The rumble in the urban jungle".

Executive Director of the CCCI Sid Peimer opened the bout saying  that it was essential for business to come to terms with different future scenarios and how it would affect business opportunities and job creation.

Malema said the willing buyer-willing seller model initiated by the ANC-led government was flawed.

"If people want to buy the land and there is no willing seller we will never own a piece of land ... it does not matter how much money we have," he said.

"The economy is the land, the economy is the mines and resources, there is no food without the land."

According to Malema there was a need for the expropriation of land without compensation to address South Africa's increasing inequality gap.

He sketched a future scenario in which legislation would be passed in Parliament indicating that the state was the owner of the land and "the land shall be allocated to people who have indicated what they want to do with the land" and a decision made on whether that  was in the public interest. 

The main thrust of Sunter's argument was the development and promotion of entrepreneurship in South Africa.

He said a million new businesses were needed to create five million jobs.

According to Sunter the high level of mechanisation in the modern economy has removed a high level of jobs out of the system and the employment model has changed resulting in high levels of contract labour.

Sunter proposed that every big business should have 20% of its supply chain devoted to nurturing the new generation of small businesses.

"We should identify in every township economy the top 1000 entrepreneurs and advise them on how to extend their business into the mainstream economy... we have to focus on small businesses," he said.


We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.88
+0.3%
Rand - Pound
23.86
+0.2%
Rand - Euro
20.39
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.31
+0.2%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.2%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders