POLOKWANE – The Southern African Agri Initiative (Saai) last Thursday issued a summons against the police to insist that a Limpopo farmer, Solly Letsoala, be compensated for the damage caused by illegal trespassers on his farm.

This follows after Letsoala’s complaint of the resulting theft and damage to his property which he lodged with the police in September 2023, did not result in any police action against the guilty parties. Saai has since assisted Letsoala with legal aid and the police’s silence has led to an official summons being issued.

The summons demands that the SAPS take responsibility for the more than R7m worth of damage caused by illegal trespassers on Letsoala’s farm.

This will cover the damage that Letsoala has suffered in terms of his property, implements and especially his mango production. According to Saai, the police’s failure to act after Letsoala’s pleas that the police should intervene, can be considered as negligence.

“Saai wants to assist farmers who are confronted with illegal trespassers on their farm and where the police, despite their constitutional duty, fails to act against it,” emphasises Dr Theo de Jager, Saai’s executive director.

He explained that this is why Saai launched a campaign against illegal trespassing. This campaign aims to raise awareness about the seriousness of increasing trespassing incidents and to ensure that the police are held accountable to combat this.

“Illegal trespassing is an increasing problem, while the police is also increasingly failing to act against this. Saai will continue to push for trespassing laws to be sharpened and applied more strictly,” says De Jager.

In February, Saai sent a formal application in terms of the on the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) to the police to demand transparency about the larger trespassing problem.

Among other things, Saai asked for reports on the number of reported incidents of trespassing and how many convictions there were.

Saai encourages farmers to notify them of illegal trespassing incidents on Taking a Stand Against Trespassing on Farms – SAAI.

The public can now also watch Saai’s video interviews with Letsoala to understand the seriousness of the trespassing issue.