One of the houses that was demolished in East London this week when the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) evicted residents who illegally occupied its invaded land.
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The Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality (BCMM) in the Eastern Cape has expressed concerns about hundreds of people who were left distressed when their houses built on invaded land belonging to the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) were demolished this week.
What has fallen for the community of the Bompini settlement outside East London is awaiting its counterpart in Thornville, outside Pietermaritzburg in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, where the Pietermaritzburg High Court has granted an order to demolish expensive houses and evict residents who illegally settled on the invaded Eskom land.
It remains unclear how long the residents have occupied the East London land, which the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development’s entity has designated for agricultural research and development purposes.
Neither the municipality nor the ARC has revealed how many structures were flattened and how many community members were left homeless. But it was reported that there were more than 2,800 shacks and 800 brick houses.
“We deeply regret the distress and disruption that has been caused to families who, while not formally authorised to occupy this land, now face the loss of their shelter and community.
“The metro is not turning its back on this challenge,” read BCMM’s response to questions sent to it.
The ARC had on several occasions approached the Eastern Cape High Court seeking eviction orders against land grabbers who had illegally occupied government properties.
The entity said that the illegal residents had caused deforestation of protected natural forests in Umthiza Research Farm in East London.
BCMM spokesperson Bongani Fuzile said the land invasion and eviction highlighted the scarcity of land suitable for human settlement in the metropolitan region.
He said the municipality was currently identifying potential land parcels through market-based acquisition, its partnerships, and other mechanisms that could be purchased, rezoned, and developed for human settlement.
He said the municipality was ready to provide temporary accommodation structures for the victims of eviction.
“BCMM's intention is not merely to provide temporary relief, but to create sustainable, long-term housing that enables the Bompini community and other communities in similar circumstances to rebuild in safety and with dignity,” he said.
Fuzile said since this was not a problem that could be solved by the municipality alone, the municipality was calling for a genuine partnership with other government departments.
“The way forward is to form a multi-stakeholder task team, including municipal officials, national representatives, community leaders, and independent experts, to map out a concrete, time-bound plan for re-housing,” he said.
The ARC did not respond to the questions sent to the senior marketing and communications manager, Joy Nonzukiso Peter, on Thursday.
AN ARC official, who cannot be named as he is not mandated to speak to the media, said the entity cannot respond because the matter is still with its legal service and the court.
“They (illegal occupants) went to the court on Thursday, which is why the demolition was halted,” said the official.
The official could not say how many houses had already been demolished before their owners approached the court.
In a statement issued on November 19, after the ARC had launched an application at the High Court in May 2024 to evict illegal grabbers of the Farm 1345 East London Rd, the illegal occupation continued to spread.
“A final court order in the ARC’s favour was subsequently issued by the Eastern Cape Division (East London) on 28 November 2024, declaring the occupation and land grabbing to be unlawful.
“The illegal occupants were subsequently granted until 26 February 2025 to vacate the farm.
“However, instead of adhering to the court order, which was served and appended on each illegally constructed structure, the illegal occupants continued to illegally occupy the property, and some started turning the temporary structures into permanent houses,” read the statement.
The statement confirmed that the eviction and demolition had already started. “Following persistent unlawful occupation of the farm, which is designated for agricultural research and development, the Sheriff and the South African Police Service are currently carrying out the eviction process.
“This week’s eviction process follows previous attempts that were interrupted by the illegal occupants, who would approach the court to launch frivolous applications to stall the proceedings,” read the statement.
The ARC had repeatedly warned members of the public not to buy land from unscrupulous people who sell it under the false claim that they own it.
“It is greatly concerning that despite public warnings that the ARC issued in its 24 June 2024 media statement and through several interviews on community radio around East London and national radios, illegal occupation continued.
“Community members continued to risk their hard-earned funds on illegally purchasing stands and erecting permanent structures.
“Members of the public are warned to resist the temptation to illegally occupy or invade land, as this will only result in them losing their hard-earned money and investments during evictions,” the ARC said.
Eskom’s entity, the National Transmission Company South Africa (NTCSA), has already secured a Pietermaritzburg High Court order to evict illegal occupants of its Leliefontein Farm. It was understood that there were more than 150 houses that were due to be demolished as of November 11.
“The date of 11 November 2025 was a preparatory, tentative date that was communicated to the internal cross-functional stakeholders only,” read its written response.
The power utility said it had no arrangements to provide temporary accommodation to the residents whose houses will be demolished.
“It (NTCSA) is not legally obliged to provide temporary accommodation, and this is in line with the court order obtained,” NTCSA said.