White farmers sceptical about President Ramaphosa’s assurances

Johan Steyn, TLU-SA Eastern Cape chairman, said that – inexplicably – there appears to be much optimism regarding these meetings (to which agricultural representative TLU-SA was not invited) and the blatantly pacifying statements released thereafter.

“What was discussed, and the subsequent statements made, do certainly not reflect the sentiments of the majority of farmers. Their feeling is that these statements were purely aimed at calming very troubled waters regarding the government’s clearly stated objective of stealing rightfully owned property. It is a smokescreen at best.” he said.

Steyn highlighted the fact that this obfuscation is historically a common tactic used by the ANC. “Radical objectives are publicised to gauge reaction thereto. Depending upon this reaction, the statement is watered down, only to be steamrollered through at a later stage.”

The ANC’s longterm objectives are clearly detailed in their various policy documents that are available in the public domain for all who consider it important to read and act upon. Steyn says he believes that the strong resistance the ANC has encountered regarding their proposed property theft, particularly from TLU-SA members, has forced the government to scrabble around to reduce potential conflict.

However, he believes that they will not veer from their Communist-inspired policy.

“We need to understand that we are embroiled in a long-term struggle against a Communistic government. They use every sly tactic in the book, including lies and misrepresentation, to pacify and mislead their opponents. Unfortunately, the management of certain industry bodies have not learnt the hard lessons our history teaches us and are destined to repeat the same mistakes over and over again.

“The ANC through Mr Ramaphosa and other senior ANC officials continue to confirm that property will be expropriated without compensation. Why would they now suddenly change what is accepted ANC policy?”
Steyn emphasised that the ANC continues to prove that they are not interested in facts, reason, dialogue nor economic realities.

“As we continue to see to the north of South Africa, Communistic governments care little for their citizens or the collapsed state of their economies. Zimbabwe’s government, for example, continues to pursue its disastrous policies, despite the fact that it has totally destroyed that country’s economy. This all at the expense of its citizens. Farmers here in South Africa will certainly not sit idly by while our economy is destroyed due to the legalised theft of our rightfully owned property.”

The fact that an increasing number of foreign governments are taking a stand against the ANC’s failed policies is proof that the ANC will not be able to rely on aid should they stubbornly persist in pursuing their doomed plans.

Yesterday, Ramaphosa published a piece in the British Financial Times in a bid to stop the run on the South African currency. The Rand stabilised on his assurances that this was “no land grab” nor “an assault on the private ownership of property”.