According to a resident of Rysmierbult, Ventersdorp, the Department of Land Affairs bought land from a farmer after a land dispute in 2006. The farmer who sold the land then decided to rent a piece of the land from the com- munity, for which he pays a monthly rental. The community elected a committee of 10 people to deal with the finances of the area. To ensure the funds are used efficiently, the community collec- tively appointed these people to oversee the finances and control the funds. Even so, the community has no clue what the monthly rental is. “The committee opened a trust fund into which the money is deposited. It is supposed to be used to build homes, buy cattle for the community and take care of the community’s financial needs, but none of that has happened,” one of the residents said. For the last 15 years, the community has only heard that an account was opened for the funds. “We have tried to get answers from the elected committee, but no one wants to answer us,” he said. “We don’t even know what the rental amount is,” he continued. “We only want to know what is happening with the money.” Every other week, the committee hosts meetings to update the community. “In every meeting, you hear lie after lie. They keep repeating themselves. If you listen carefully, you’ll notice that even they aren’t sure of what they keep telling us,” the community member laughed sarcastically. The community alleges that some committee members live a lavish lifestyle, yet the community does not benefit from the funds. “The com- munity has tried to get answers about the money numerous times, but no one is willing to answer us,” he said, visibly frustrated. “We have exhausted all our options, but nothing is happening,” he added. The Herald asked the committee for comment, but none was forthcoming by the time of publication.