- Says the squatters occupy land in masterplan for rolling out land servicing projects
- Orders evictions temporarily halted because Batswana are “a caring and compassionate nation”
The continued standoff between Mogoditshane Sub-Land Board and squatters who are resisting eviction is delaying development projects in the area and costing government millions in cost overruns, the Minister of Land Management, Water and Sanitation Services, Kefentse Mzwinila, has said.
Speaking in an interview with The Business Weekly & Review this week, Mzwinila disclosed that most of the squatters are on land in a masterplan for rolling out land servicing projects in the area, which entails design and construction of infrastructure such as roads and associated drainage networks, water reticulation, power, sewerage, telecommunications and street lighting. “Some of these illegally occupied plots are located squarely in areas where these projects are being rolled out, which has forced us to halt construction at a huge cost to the taxpayer,” Minister Mzwinila said.
In the latest development, Mzwinila has ordered Mogoditshane Sub-Land Board to temporarily halt the forceful eviction of the squatters to give them time to leave of their own volition in accordance with Batswana being “a caring and compassionate nation”. The Ministry of Land Management, Water and sanitation Services is the cornerstone of the government’s Transitional National Development Plan, which is anchored on key national priorities that include infrastructure development and sustainable livelihoods.
Presenting the 2023/24 budget speech, finance minister Peggy Serame allocated P6.07 billion to the ministry, in line with the targeted economic stimulus budget that is underpinned by extensive infrastructure investment. The funds will be used for implementation of major water and land servicing projects. Earlier this year, Mzwinila announced that the Metsimotlhabe Block 4 land servicing project, which involved servicing of 381 plots, was 90 percent complete.
“Partial beneficiation has been achieved since some of the plots have been allocated and the community is now using the roads, stormwater drains and solar streetlights,” he said. Mzwinila’s ministry announced at the time that it had allocated 52,277 plots in tribal land between 1st April 2022 and 28 February 2023. “This achievement is six times more than the number of plots allocated in the past two decades, which averaged 8,630 plots allocated annually,” he said. “An additional 60,000 plots are currently being surveyed.”
