Cape Town – The Land Claims Court ruled in favour of the District Six land claimants on Friday.
Former Land Reform and Rural Development Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane and her department had been taken to court by the claimants after they missed a February court deadline to compile a long-overdue and proper draft plan to redevelop the area.
The court found that Nkoana-Mashabane, now Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and People with Disabilities, hadn't complied with the court order, EWN reported. Her successor, Thoko Didiza, now has to comply with the order.
Being the minister in charge at the time, Nkoana-Mashabane was hit with a personal costs order, with Acting Judge President of the Land Claims Court Yasmin Meer ruling she had been "grossly unreasonable" in discharging her duties. Judge Meer hoped her ruling would go a long way in resolving the District Six land claim saga.
Nkoana-Mashabane had argued in her defence that there had been time, legal and financial challenges regarding a comprehensive plan for the restitution of District Six.
While the redevelopment of District Six would cost around R11 billion and restitution in the region of R2.4bn, the department could only afford to spend R351m a year, Nkoana-Mashabane said in an affidavit. She said the R1.5m price tag per family unit was "unaffordable and unsustainable".