In a statement issued by Democratic Alliance leader of the Free State, Dr Roy Jankielsohn, more than 194 162 hectares of grazing had already been lost due to the ongoing scourge of veld fires in the Free State as of 8 September. He said the Free State is fast approaching the 260 000 hectare annual average for the province.
The Democratic Alliance is concerned by the lack of assistance rendered by most municipalities in preparation for, and during, the fire season.
Some of the most serious issues relate to the following:
- Many fires originate on municipal property and quickly spread to surrounding farms due to the lack of adequate precautionary measures such as fire breaks;
- Many municipalities do not have adequate firefighting equipment or trained personnel to deal with fires within towns, much less in rural areas; and
- Most municipalities in the Free State are not even members of Fire Protection Associations as required by the National Veld and Forrest Fires Act (No 122 of 1998).
According to Jankielsohn emerging and commercial farmers receive very little assistance from government to fight the annual scourge of veld fires. Farmers are expected to pay land tax while receiving very little from their local governments for their money. This tax has become a source for funds that are subjected to gross mismanagement, fraud and even corruption.
Farmers, who are responsible for producing food for a growing urban population, are subjected to additional costs relating to disasters such as veld fires. They cannot continue to be regarded as an additional source of funding for local government’s excesses.
The Free State Provincial Government must outline what services farmers receive from local governments from this additional land tax that is paid to local municipalities. The provincial government likewise has a responsibility to serve farmers and their employees, and protect all people from these annual disasters.
In the Western Cape, the DA-led provincial government has prioritised the province’s firefighting capabilities. To date the Western Cape government operates 26 firefighting aircraft and over the next three years an additional R37 million will be invested in expanding the province’s firefighting capabilities. This year alone an additional 10 firefighting trucks have been commissioned to Western Cape rural municipalities to boost their firefighting capacity.
Under a DA government, like in the Western Cape, 97% of fires are brought under control within the first hour of being reported. Jankielsohn suggested the ANC-led Free State Provincial Government should go on a study tour to see how it is done.
