With rival investors fighting over invalid leases — and one staging an unauthorised sod-turning ceremony at the shuttered Fish River Resort — land affairs minister Mzwanele Nyhontso has moved to restore order.
He has ushered in a new community trust board and a fresh attempt to stabilise the Prudhoe community’s R245m land claim asset.
After years of infighting, maladministration and a string of irregular contracts, the Prudhoe community in Peddie says it is entering a new chapter as it seeks to regain control of its land and long-troubled development prospects.
The Amagqunukhwebe Prudhoe Community Development Trust, established to manage land parcels including the Fish River Resort and Maitland Farm, has been mired in legal battles since the state transferred ownership rights to the community.
Its most valuable asset, the Fish River Sun, closed in November 2017 after years of financial strain following the loss of its casino licence to Gqeberha’s Boardwalk Casino in 2012.
The situation escalated in November when an American-linked company, Joktel, moved onto the resort site despite its lease being declared invalid.
The company hosted a sod-turning event and announced ambitious development plans — including expanding the hotel from 126 to 250 rooms, revamping the Gary Player-designed golf course and building a water park.
It even claimed it would open in February.
On Tuesday, Nyhontso visited the Prudhoe community to formally present the trust’s newly elected 10-member board, effectively halting any further investment activity until governance is restored.
The board will now be led by banker and property executive Wilmot Magopeni, who holds an MBA and has more than 20 years’ experience in management and leadership roles across the financial sector. He could not be reached for comment.
Two trustees are independent, while the remaining members were elected from the community.
Former chair Gladman Tom, who lodged the land claim in 1998 and oversaw multiple contractual disputes involving the resort, is no longer on the board.
Former board member Zolani Breakfast welcomed the changes, saying the community needed external expertise.
Breakfast previously conceded that mistakes had been made in securing investors for the resort.
“What I like is that now it will be handled by an outsider with relevant experience.
“We will be behind the board, even the new people coming from the community, to ensure our finances are in place.”
In May, the master of the Bhisho high court appointed Vimba & Associates to oversee the trust’s assets and investigate its affairs.
Director Ntandazo Vimba said the trust was now moving in the right direction.
“The new trust must restore governance. We handed over the reports on the status and affairs of the trust and the work that had been done so far.
“This is a good step forward by the minister during the induction.”
However, the legal battles around the resort are far from over.
We want the Fish River Resort to be the iconic destination it should be for the Eastern Cape.
— Developer Xoliswa Daku
Developer Xoliswa Daku, of the Daku Group, is challenging what she calls the unlawful termination of her lease, while also disputing the validity of a competing lease held by Vuyokazi Batana’s Ezamatshawe company.
In court papers, Daku’s lawyers argue she still holds a valid grant for use of the resort land and that Batana’s lease — signed on the same day Daku received her termination notice — is unlawful.
Both companies’ leases have been deemed invalid, though each continues to challenge the other’s position.
Following the November sod-turning event led by Batana, Daku’s lawyers instructed Ezamatshawe to cease all construction until the dispute was resolved.
Daku said she welcomed the new board’s appointment and hoped to work with it.
“We want the Fish River Resort to be the iconic destination it should be for the Eastern Cape.
“But at the same time, we have not stopped our legal engagements to conclude this unfortunate situation of trustees who mismanaged processes of governance.”
Vimba said the dispute was strictly between the two companies.
“Both their contracts are invalid, so it is their own battle. The community is not involved.”
He also confirmed the department would provide security for the resort.
Nyhontso’s office said he was unavailable for comment due to party congress commitments.
Responding to the latest news, an emotional Batana said her company would continue to work at Fish River.
“Nyhontso can say anything he wants, he is the minister, he cannot speak on behalf of the community, the people want jobs.
“My company has not been removed anywhere.”
The turmoil follows nearly three decades of struggle by the Prudhoe community to regain control of its ancestral land in a R243m land claim.
Instead, mismanagement and internal rifts plunged the resort’s future into uncertainty.
Community leaders have openly acknowledged the mistakes made.
Breakfast said desperation for work drove people to support whichever investor appeared to offer immediate progress.
Another trustee said the clashing agreements, verbal promises and factional pressure created a “headache-inducing mess” that further divided the community.
“There was false hope created for these people,” Daku said.
Daily Dispatch
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