MKP blames ANC MPs after R350m drug bust

Syndicates thrive as land restitution stalls, party says

- By Tshwarelo eseng Mogakane

MKP MPL Pekky Shongwe has warned against idle farms

The MK Party (MKP) has laid blame for the R350-million drug cache uncovered at an abandoned farm in Mpumalanga, squarely at the doorstep of ANC legislators, accusing them of dragging their feet on land restitution and thereby creating fertile ground for criminal syndicates.

The party's fury follows a Hawks-led raid over the weekend that shut down an international drug laboratory at Oudehoutkloof farm in Volksrust.

Police arrested five Mexican nationals carrying questionable travel documents, along with an elderly South African man. Two other suspects - believed to be from West African countries - fled into nearby bushes and remain at large.

Authorities uncovered a chilling scene: freezers packed with crystal methamphetamine valued at about R350-million, neatly stored in lunch boxes and buckets. Surrounding the drugs were barrels of precursor chemicals, laboratory equipment, and makeshift security in the form of a pellet gun with blanks and three live 9mm rounds.