✊ PETITION TEXT

National Aboriginal Governance Council (NAGC)

TITLE

Moratorium on the Sale and Auction of Public Land in Cape Town. We Have No Other Just and Lawful Alternative Indigenous Custodianship, Community Survival and Spatial Justice for All

PETITION STATEMENT

This petition is issued by the:

National Aboriginal Governance Council (NAGC) an Indigenous governance formation operating under Aboriginal and Customary Law
together with residents, civil society and working-class communities across Cape Town and the Western Cape.

We declare that:

> The continued sale and auction of public land has reached a point where we have no other just, moral or lawful alternative but to urgently call for a Cape Town city wide and later a province-wide moratorium.

This is not only an Indigenous issue.

It is a human, social, constitutional and developmental emergency affecting:

families without housing

overcrowded and collapsing school capacity

understaffed and strained clinics and hospitals

youth without opportunity

communities excluded from meaningful economic participation

Public land is the last remaining anchor for:

dignity

social stability

future development

inter-generational justice

Once land is sold, it is lost forever.

We cannot build new schools on land that has been auctioned off.
We cannot expand clinics on land transferred to private ownership.
We cannot create community economies when public land is removed from public benefit.

UNITY DECLARATION

We stand together in solidarity

Khoi, San, Coloured, Black, migrant, working-class and allied communities

because our struggle is shared, and our future is interconnected.

We do not seek to displace any citizen or lawful occupier.

We call instead for:

custodianship and stewardship

shared benefit

inclusive development

community-first spatial planning

in the spirit of justice, compassion and constitutional responsibility.

OUR GROUNDS OF OBJECTION

We object to the declaration and disposal of municipal “surplus” land on the following grounds:

1) Housing Crisis and Social Displacement

Thousands of families remain:

on housing waiting lists

in informal settlements and backyard dwellings

displaced through gentrification and land scarcity

Selling public land during a housing emergency is:

irrational

unjust

contrary to constitutional obligations to advance equitable land access.

2) Overcrowded Schools & Strained Public Health Services

Communities face:

overcrowded classrooms

inadequate school capacity

understaffed clinics and hospitals

insufficient social infrastructure

Public land is urgently needed for:

new schools

clinics & health services

community facilities

youth and social development spaces

3) Economic Exclusion & Lost Local Development Opportunities

Public land could support:

community-owned co-operatives

local enterprise hubs

cultural & heritage development

tourism and community-wealth initiatives

Instead of empowering communities
land is being permanently alienated into private hands.

4) Indigenous Custodianship & Customary Law Rights

The Western Cape forms part of the ancestral heritage of the:

Aboriginal First Indigenous Peoples / Khoi and San historically classified as the “so-called Coloured People”.

We assert:

custodianship

stewardship

cultural continuity

spiritual and ancestral relationship to land

in alignment with:

the Richtersveld Constitutional Court Judgment

Customary Law principles

IPILRA

Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC)

Our stance is non-displacing and community-centred.

5) Public Funds Spent on Properties Later Declared “Surplus”

It has been reported that certain properties:

were recently upgraded for community use

received capital investment and infrastructure spending

Yet they are now earmarked for disposal.

We demand transparency regarding:

tenders awarded

upgrade costs

contractors engaged

dates of approval and completion

reasons for reclassification as “surplus”

This raises serious governance and accountability concerns.

OUR DEMANDS

We call for:

1️⃣ An Immediate Moratorium

on all municipal land sales and auctions:

within the City of Cape Town

and across the Western Cape Province

pending meaningful consultation and legal review.

2️⃣ Full Disclosure (PAIA)

including:

surplus-land assessment records

reports and valuations

upgrade expenditure & tender details

housing-waiting-list statistics

3️⃣ Meaningful Consultation and Representation

including:

Indigenous communities

affected residents

civic and social partners

youth & local economic stakeholders

through a structured participation framework.

4️⃣ Development Alternatives

prioritising land for:

housing

schools & education infrastructure

clinics & public health facilities

community centres & social development

local enterprise and cooperative economies

5️⃣ Acknowledgement of Indigenous Custodianship

through:

stewardship agreements

cultural and heritage protection

shared-benefit, community-driven land use

without displacing any citizen of South Africa.

SIGNING THIS PETITION MEANS

By signing, you support:

a moratorium on public land sales

transparency and accountability

Indigenous custodianship recognition

equitable and community-centred development

protection of land for public good

Individual objections generated through this petition will be directed to:

City of Cape Town

Premier of the Western Cape

Municipal Manager

Spatial Planning & Environment Directorate

Property Management Department

South African Human Rights Commission

Registrar of Deeds

and other relevant oversight bodies.

By signing this petition, I further authorise the National Aboriginal Governance Council (NAGC), together with its designated representatives and legal advisors, where reasonably necessary to protect public land, Indigenous custodianship and affected communities, to initiate, join or support court proceedings, including applications for interim, urgent or final interdicts, for the purpose of:

• preventing the sale, transfer, lease or disposal of public, trust or mission-related land pending lawful review, investigation or consultation;

• safeguarding Indigenous custodianship, historical occupation and community use-rights; and

• enforcing transparency, accountability and public participation in land governance.

I authorise the NAGC to act in the public interest and in the collective interest of affected Indigenous and community members, and to submit my support as part of the consolidated community mandate for such proceedings.

This authorisation does not make me a direct litigant or cost-bearing party unless I provide separate written consent to be joined in my personal capacity. No legal or financial liability may be incurred against me without such further consent, and I retain the right to withdraw this mandate at any time in writing.

POPIA & RECORD-KEEPING NOTE

I consent to my information being used solely for purposes of objections, representations and legal proceedings arising from this matter, and to my details being included in a confidential mandate register maintained by the NAGC.

UNITY STATEMENT

> We sign this petition as parents, elders, youth, workers, Indigenous descendants, migrants and citizens — united in the belief that public land must serve public good, and that every community deserves dignity, belonging, opportunity and a future.