Families still waiting after 12 years for land restitution payout

More than 190 families forcibly removed during apartheid from their homes in KwaDukathole, Ekurhuleni, are still waiting for restitution 12 years after the compensation process began.

The families were among more than 700 claimants who were relocated to Katlehong after being removed from their homes.

Of the 706 original claimants, 510 have been paid, leaving 196 still waiting.

The department of rural development and land reform has offered R115,717,721 in financial compensation, but the outstanding beneficiaries must first undergo verification to confirm they are descendants of the dispossessed people.

Department spokesperson Sibusiso Lubisi said the outstanding claimants are expected to be paid in the 2027/28 financial year, subject to the completion of the verification process.

Since payments are normally done in batches, it can take approximately two years as a result of compliance processes.—   Sibusiso Lubisi, land reform department spokesperson

“Once all the processes are completed, every beneficiary will be paid as part of the finalisation of payment. Since payments are normally done in batches, it can take approximately two years as a result of compliance processes,” Lubisi said.

He said the department was aware of the 196 beneficiaries on the court list and had met them and their legal representative in Katlehong in February and April this year.

Lubisi said 95% of the 510 approved beneficiaries had been paid, with payment reconciliation expected to be completed by the end of December this year.

He said the 196 were not part of the initial list submitted by the KwaDukathole land claims committee and could not be verified before the first payments were made.

But claimant Lucky Dhlamini said the 196 were removed from the original list after disagreements with their lawyer, Adv Lebogang Matloga, whom they accused of overcharging.

“Initially, when the whole process started in 2004, the number of claimants was 706, but the department only paid 510. Each claimant was given R220,000. This excluded the 12% lawyer’s fee per claimant, which was over R35,000,” Dhlamini said.

He said documents showed an initial financial compensation award of R63m, followed by another R54m.

Matloga declined to comment, saying he still had to respond to the claimants about the status of the restitution process.

For some families, the compensation will have to be shared among several descendants.

Claimant Tem-Tem Zilimbola said the property belonged to her grandmother and the money would have to be divided among her and seven siblings.

“Whatever compensation I receive will have to be divided among my seven siblings because they are also beneficiaries,” she said.

Dikeledi Ralutanda said her family had agreed to establish a family trust to ensure their restitution award creates long-term benefits.

She said her mother and aunt, who both started and continued the claim, have since died.

“I sat down with them, and we decided we will have a family trust, and from that trust we will use it to build rooms in our grandparents’ house,” Ralutanda said.

The community is now demanding a specific payment date, saying it has already waited more than a decade.