Land Bank Fails to Answer

Statement by Dr Igor Scheurkogel MP – DA Member of the National Council of Provinces:

The Democratic Alliance welcomes confirmation from the Information Regulator that it will conduct a pre-investigation into my complaint against Land Bank following its failure to respond to my application under the Section 77 E Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA).

Land Bank has neither responded to my PAIA request nor notified me of an extension. A state-owned institution entrusted with supporting agriculture should understand its responsibility to answer lawful requests for information.

Our request was straightforward.

We sought:

1. Land Bank’s financial statements for 2012 to 2026.
2. Records identifying approved attorneys, liquidators and auction houses involved in Land Bank’s debt-recovery and liquidation processes, including the authority under which they act.
3. Approved cession agreements, sale-of-book-debt agreements and service-level agreements involving Land Bank and third-party agricultural intermediaries and cooperatives, together with the relevant authorisations and any required National Treasury approvals.

These records are essential to examining potential conflicts of interest and overlapping roles in liquidation proceedings. We want to establish whether the arrangements comply with applicable legal requirements, including section 55 of the Insolvency Act and clause 58.8 of the Legal Practice Council’s Code of Conduct. We also want to know whether the applicable procurement requirements were followed, including section 217 of the Constitution where agreements involve contracting for goods or services.

South Africans deserve to know how much Land Bank has recovered through liquidation processes, what those processes have cost, who has benefited from the appointments, and how the proceeds have been accounted for. Access to these records will help Parliament scrutinise the Bank’s management of public resources.

This scrutiny is particularly urgent following the suspension of new applications under the Blended Finance Scheme because grant resources were insufficient to meet overall demand.

Land Bank plays a pivotal role in protecting food security, supporting farmers and advancing agricultural transformation. Fulfilling that mandate requires sound financial management, transparent decision-making and accountability for every rand spent.

The DA calls on Land Bank to cooperate fully with the Information Regulator and provide a lawful response to the outstanding request. Any refusal to disclose records must be properly justified under PAIA. Farmers and South Africans deserve transparency, and Land Bank must account.