Renewed focus on controversial land deal

MALALANE – The Carte Blanche team this week visited Malalane after having been approached by the provincial Democratic Alliance (DA), in an attempt to bring this matter to a close.

In March 2012, AgriECO published an article questioning this land deal which encompasses 70 hectare of development property adjacent to the N4 in Malalane. At the time, land next to Buffelspruit was sold twice in one day.

Mr Willem Veli Magugula, a businessman in Emindini and, according to the Corridor Gazette of February 2, 2012, previously involved with the building of RDP houses, bought the farmland for R41 million.

This 70 hectares previously belonged to a company called Misty Sea Trading (Pty) Ltd that originally acquired it for R5,8 million. The same day that the transfer was done, Magugula, trading as Bongivele cc, sold the land to NLM for R50 million.

This resembled a deal in Ermelo in which Bongivele cc bought land from Fremax Farms for almost R12 million, selling it to the Mpumalange Public Works Department for a whopping R36,48 million, soon after.

At the time the Public Prosecutor,

Ms Thuli Madonsela started an investigation into these deals, with the Hawks currently still investigating both deals.

In a twist to the tale, it is now alleged that five hectares had been held back by Bongivele cc and that the NLM has transferred, or started procedures to transfer, it back into Magugula’s name.

AgriECO asked NLM for a written agenda of a meeting which had been held in Kopwha Hall regarding this issue, but, according to the 2012 article, it was never received. When local DA councillor,

Ms Mariette Preddy started asking questions during such a meeting in 2012, she was suspended by a member of the mayoral commission.

New questions are now being raised about the five hectares which are allegedly being transferred back to Bongiveli cc after NLM had already paid for it as part of the

70 hectares acquired from this company.

That specific piece of land is indicated as having already been serviced with some infrastructure such as sewage pipes. It is suspected that this has been done with governmental development grants, but to date, nothing can be proved conclusively, which is why Carte Blanche has become involved.

Corridor Gazette is in possession of all the information relating to the original title deeds whereby the original sale of the full

70 hectares was transferred to Bongiveli cc for R9 million less than the amount it was sold to NLM on the same day – the exact same modus operandi used in the sale in Ermelo.

Confidential NLM council documents relating to this sale, based on a resolution dated August 26, 2008, regarding to this land sold to NLM in 2011, form part of the Hawks investigation and the

Carte Blanche programme which is to be aired after all role players have been consulted. These documents make it clear that “for reasons unknown to the NLM, the said property; was sold to Bongiveli cc, who assumed responsibility to proceed with the township application, as submitted”.

The official investigation will focus on what has become of the five hectares and the town planner, Mr Doctor Nkosi, will be asked to indicate the boundaries of this piece of land.

He will also have to answer questions on the development of the said piece of land, if any, and if it had been done with grants for land development or not.

The Auditor General’s report of

November 30, 2013 states that the investigation in progress has resulted from possible irregularities in the acquisition of land in NLM.

Corridor Gazette has spoken to the spokesman for NLM, Mr Cyril Repinga who emphatically denied that the municipality had anything to do with the acquisition of the land in question.

According to him, the Provincial Department Land Affairs, after a request from NLM for additional land, bought the 70 hectares. He said, “We as the municipality do not care and do not know how much money changed hands or who the seller was. We are only interested in the land for development purposes as Malalane is in dire need of additional land.”

He said that the information presented to him by Corridor Gazette was “not factual at all and total rubbish”. He was adamant that “if there was any truth in the allegations, people would already have been taken into custody, referring to the investigation by the Hawks and the Public Prosecutor into the deal.

As far as money already spent on infrastructure on the land in question, Repinga made it clear that the provincial Department of Land Affairs was responsible. He also said that “people make a lot of noise and true facts are misconstrued”.

Asked about the alleged “missing” five hectares, he referred Corridor Gazette to view the original title deed. He further said that as far as the investigation by the Hawks was concerned, he couldn’t comment as it was sub judice.