The South African Agricultural Initiative (Saai) has laid charges against the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) for paying R586.5 million for a 60% share in a 1 028 hectare portion of farmland, the sum being 2 198% higher than the property’s valuation in 2018/19.
Saai – an organisation set up to protect the interests of family farmers – laid the charges on behalf of one of its members, who contributes monthly to the GEPF at the Brooklyn Police Station this week.
The GEPF member, Jaco Engelbrecht, is a part-time farmer and teacher from Koffiefontein.
Saai said in a statement it had also given the case number to the Hawks’ Serious Crimes Unit.
The statement said the organisation became aware of the transaction after an advertisement was published in the 31 January edition of Landbouweekblad, saying that that farms IP (564) with 481 hectares and Palmietfontein (403) with 547 hectares had both been purchased by the GEPF.
‘However, the title deed indicates that the GEPF only bought 60% of portion 97 of Palmietfontein (403) for the amount of R586.5 million.
‘Motswala City sold portion 97, measuring 547 hectares, for about R10 million to Isago@N12 Development Pty Ltd in 2007. The city’s 2016/2017 valuation roll indicates that the property had been valued at R16.55 million at that stage. IP (564) was bought in 2007 for R8.75 million in the same transaction and the city’s 2018/2019 valuation of the property was R8.97 million.
‘According to the title deed, 60% of both farms were sold to the GEPF as agricultural land for an amount of approximately R586.5 million.’
Saai CEO Francois said: ‘There is a 2 198% price difference between the valuation price and the price the GEPF paid to purchase the property for government employees. It is unoccupied agricultural land that was bought with the intention of further development. The GEPF is an entity that is supposed to manage government employees’ pension funds in an honest and responsible way. To pay such an enormous escalation for the transaction, is neither honest nor responsible.’
He added: ‘Isago Holdings Pty Ltd received a 40% share of the portion 97 development for an amount of nil rand. With the GEPF transaction, the value of their shares now stands at a total of R391 million.’
In a another statement, trade union Solidarity said it had submitted an application in terms of the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) to the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) and the GEPF ‘to get to the bottom of the deal to acquire the farm Palmietfontein near Coligny for a huge amount of R500 million’.
Said Connie Mulder, head of the Solidarity Research Institute: ‘We suspect a snake in the grass here. It is actually baffling that while the Zondo Commission’s work is continuing and the lawsuit against Zuma is taking place, government officials still continue to steal the pensions of ordinary workers in an unperturbed way. Clearly, corrupt officials have no fear of consequences.’
Solidarity noted that this came ‘amid controversy over the pension money of millions of civil servants that is raging on the political playing field after Cosatu proposed that Eskom’s debt burden of R450 billion be redeemed by its workers’ pension money’.