One thing that will chase white people out of South Africa

If South Africa were to amend section 25 of the Constitution, allowing for land redistribution without compensation, the country would collapse, as Zimbabwe did. 

These were the words of ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbulula. Mbulula was speaking to Dr Mbuyeseni Ndlozi during an interview with Power 98.7. 

“If you want to see white people running in their numbers out of this country and to the United States, redistribute the land,” he said.

“And then this country will turn into rubble, like Zimbabwe.”

Section 25 of the South African Constitution is the property clause, which regulates the right to property and includes provisions for expropriation with provisions for compensation.

The clause of compensation is one of the most hotly contested issues, with some pushing for land expropriation without compensation, while others argue for the protection of private property rights and just compensation.

Despite holding this opinion, Mbulula said that there will be, and must be, land redistribution, and white people will inevitably run away from South Africa. 

President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the Expropriation Bill in January 2025 to allow for land expropriation without compensation, but are being hamstrung by GNU partners.

The SG said that he is confident the ANC will soon regain the majority of votes, after losing its majority in the 2024 elections.

And when it again holds the majority, land expropriation without compensation will be a reality. “The question is, what are we going to do about it?”

“When the DA is not there to push back and stop this from happening, they are going to run. They are going to take their money and go.”

Ndlozi asked Mbulula if he believes land redistribution should not be pursued out of fear of the white minority leaving the country. To this, Mbulula responds, “No. It must be.”

However, he warns that the effect on the poor will be worse for South Africa than Zimbabwe, because South Africans will have nowhere to run.

“If a loaf of bread is going to be R500 because of land redistribution, like in Zimbabwe, where will the people of South Africa run to?”

“Zimbabweans are running to South Africa. We’ve got nowhere to run, no other country to run to.”

‘This country will turn to rubble’

The ANC has long been an advocate for land redistribution and land expropriation without compensation.  

The party’s policy says land reform should consist of two elements: restitution for those dispossessed during apartheid, and redistribution of land to deal with “land hunger” and “unequal distribution of land.”

The party adds that it is important that this process is done as quickly as possible, because those who have been dispossessed are in a desperate position. 

The ANC has, however, blocked previous attempts to institute land expropriation under former President Jacob Zuma. 

In 2017, the ANC voted against the Economic Freedom Fighters’ (EFF’s) motion in parliament to amend the constitution to make land expropriation without compensation possible. 

The party said that it believed “fair and equitable compensation” was the solution to solving the land issue, as had been the case in Lesotho, Zambia, Malawi and Namibia. 

Land expropriation in Zimbabwe famously began en masse around 2000 and involved the often-violent seizure of thousands of white-owned farms. 

The plan, which had aimed to fast track land reform, redistributed the land to black Zimbabweans, but also resulted in a collapse of agricultural production and severe economic consequences.

Zimbabwe’s GDP per-capita dropped from $582 in 1999 to $340.72 by 2008. From 2000 to 2003, per capita income fell from $1,640 a year to just $661.

Studies have concluded that over the 2000-2003 period, the land reforms alone were responsible for an estimated 12.5 percent average annual decline in GDP growth.