The Prudhoe community in the Eastern Cape say they feel devastated and “dumped” by the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) following the recent looting of equipment worth millions of rand from the Fish River Resort, which had been returned after a successful land claim.
In 2020, the residents claimed victory when the Constitutional Court awarded them the restitution of 26 farms, which included the Fish River Resort property.
Last year, the Prudhoe Community Development Trust leased the property to MahalaX, which intended to develop it for use as a film studio.
The lease was recently terminated.
It is alleged that on Saturday, a burglary occurred at the resort in Port Alfred, where every room was burgled and many items stolen, including stoves, fridges and TVs.
It is further alleged that vehicles with trailers were used to load items from the resort.
Eastern Cape police spokesperson Priscilla Naidu said a Quantum minibus was stripped on the premises and the office areas were also broken into.
“The damage incurred including the stolen property is estimated to be millions of rand. Some of the stolen items were recovered hidden in the bushes,” said Naidu.
She said a case of business burglary was under investigation and a suspect in Mpekweni village with suspected stolen property was arrested, with more arrests expected.
Prudhoe Community Development Trust chairperson Gladman Tom blamed the DALRRD for a lack of safety measures.
“They could do that because there was no security, that place was left alone, with nobody is guarding it. We requested the department to assist, they said they don’t have money. The worst part of it, they left the property March last year and they didn’t offer us any post-settlement support as per the Act. They say they didn’t have money, we must sell some of the land to them to get money.”
Tom said the department has since contacted the Trust, and said they would revert following a meeting on the issue.
The DALRRD said while the Trust leased the land on their own accord, the department would intervene.
“The Land Claims Court ruled in favour of the Prudhoe community. The land was officially transferred in title to the Prudhoe Community Trust in 21 March 2021. The department is not involved in the current lease of the Fish River Resort. The department was only actively involved in the caretakership arrangement with a company called Mentis, who were responsible to manage the site whilst the matter was still in court awaiting finalisation. We are aware that the Prudhoe community through their Trust entered into a lease with a company called MahalaX for the use of the property. The company had intended to set up a film studio on site. The community concluded the deal on its own and the department was not party to the arrangement. The department has since been made aware of the current challenges and we are intervening to find a lasting solution.”
MahalaX said they had negotiated a development plan with the Trust, which included the building of film studios.
Tom said things took a wrong turn, alleging MahalaX entertained negotiations with community members other than from the Trust, and they had only paid for one month of the lease period.
Mary Brennan from MahalaX said following protests at the site on multiple occasions around August last year, they obtained an interdict from the High Court in Grahamstown.
“Given the material cost of disruption to operations, and the hostile and violent nature of the event, all operations ceased and significant losses were incurred.
“MahalaX was not in a position to refinance or re-establish operations until such time as the court interdict was made permanent and it was clear that the social cohesion issues affecting the Prudhoe community were resolved. In early January, MahalaX presented a financing solution to all stakeholders and began the process of securing the investment. The financial instrument is larger than this project and is currently in a due diligence process with potential government partners. All potential short-term investors declined to participate due to the social cohesion issues, and longer-term finance sought has not closed in time to enable the site to be re-operationalised in timelines that were suitable to the Trust. The lease agreement with MahalaX has been terminated by the Trust,” she said.
Cape Times