SA GOVT: THERE MUST BE EXTENSIVE DISCUSSIONS ON LAND ISSUE

President Ramaphosa's spokesperson Khusela Diko says land needs to be discussed so that all are aware of what is being proposed.

Lauren Isaacs
Eyewitness News

CAPE TOWN - Government says it is seeking clarity from the US government after a tweet by President Donald Trump but has admitted that there must be extensive discussions on the land issue.

In a tweet earlier on Thursday, Trump said he had asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to “closely study South African land and farm seizures and expropriations and the large-scale killing of farmers”.

Earlier this month, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the African National Congress would push to have the Constitution amended to allow for expropriation of land without compensation.

Ramaphosa's spokesperson Khusela Diko says land needs to be discussed so that all are aware of what is being proposed.

“Crime is rife in our country and I don’t think anybody has tried to dispel that particular fact because it is. But the manner in which it is then communicated it is as if it's part of our land reform programme [and] there’s an agenda that is being driven by government and the South African people to seize all this land and to kill all these farmers.”

Meanwhile, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Lindiwe Sisulu says it's regrettable that Trump's tweet is based on false information.

Following Ramaphosa’s instruction, Sisulu says she‘ll seek clarification on Thursday from the US embassy about Trump’s tweet.

She’ll also communicate with her US counterpart Pompeo her feelings about the message which she calls unfortunate.

Washington does not have an ambassador to Pretoria, so Sisulu will have to deal with the Chargé d'Affaires Jessye Lapenn.

The department says further comment will be made after the diplomatic communications.

Additional reporting by Jean Jacques Cornish

(Edited by Thapelo Lekabe)