traditional council areas, page-18

Just a couple of points from your post 6251484 Manjapra.

1/ Genorah were aware of the Bengs intentions on Nooit. They tried a consultation but the chiefs intentions were made pretty much clear. 16 MRPDA. MRPDA only requests consultation - does not require consent.

From Con Court
[13] On 20 February 2006 the Department informed Genorah that its application had been accepted for further processing and that it was required to: submit an environmental management plan; consult with the landowner or lawful occupier of the land, as well as with other interested and affected parties; and to report the results of the consultation to the Regional Manager.
The environmental management plan was submitted by Genorah
on 21 April 2006 but despite the letter addressed to it by the Kgoshi, dated 13 March 2006, Genorah made no further attempt to engage or consult with the Community. Under
the requirements for the environmental management plan, consultation in that regard also had to take place with affected persons, but none took place with the Community.

Dropping a letter off to the chief with boxes to fill in, is not meaningful consultation. "G" knew beng after their own rights as per their letter to them.

[9] it is common cause that the representative left a prescribed consultation form. The form simply provides blocks to be ticked ―yes‖ or ―no‖ to indicate whether there are any objections to the prospecting applications. (Was never filled in.)
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2/ It was not until a year later that it bloomed on bengwenyama that they could apply via 104.

"G" sent in it's App on the 6 Feb 06. Accepted on the 20 Feb 06
[16] On 10 May 2006, Bengwenyama Minerals addressed a letter to the Department titled ―Application for Prospecting Permit.‖
[15] On 14 July 2006 Bengwenyama Minerals submitted another application for prospecting rights in respect of the farms and this application was accepted as proper by
the Department on 24 July 2006. In its letter of acceptance of this application the Department informed Bengwenyama Minerals that the application complied with section 16(2) of the Act, that it had to consult with interested and affected parties and that it had
to file an environmental management plan to comply with section 16(4) of the Act. The letter also stated that other entities, including Genorah, had applied for prospecting rights on the farms.

[17] On 15 September 2006 the final investment agreement was concluded. On the next day, the Kgoshi of the Community wrote a letter to the Department stating his concurrence and approval of Bengwenyama Minerals acting as a ―black empowered enterprise‖ on behalf of the Community. Approximately two weeks later the Department informed Bengwenyama Minerals that it needed to furnish a guarantee of R20 000 to cover the costs of the potential environmental impact caused by the operations, by 20 November 2006. On 6 October 2006 the Kgoshi wrote a letter regarding the Communitys application to prospect over the farms, in which he stated that Genorah (as well as other companies) had failed to meet or consult with the Community or him as the Kgoshi of the Community in regard to prospecting rights on the farms. He expressed surprise that during the process of the Communitys application they were informed of
other applications and recorded their objection to them. On 10 October 2006 the requisite financial guarantee for environmental rehabilitation was provided by Bengwenyama Minerals to the Department.

[18] What is surprising and perplexing is that during these continuing exchanges between the Community and Bengwenyama Minerals on the one hand and the
Department on the other the Department made no mention of the fact that prospecting rights on the farms had already been awarded to Genorah. What is even more perplexing
is that the prospecting rights were granted over the Communitys land without any notice to the Community. The internal evaluation process of the merits of Genorahs
application within the Department took place during August 2006. On 8 September 2006 the Department informed Genorah that the prospecting rights on five properties, including the farms, had been awarded to it. On 12 September 2006 notarial execution of the award of the prospecting rights was effected. However, only on 6 December 2006
did the Department inform Bengwenyama Minerals that its application for prospecting rights on the farms had been refused because the prospecting rights had been granted to
other entities that had applied earlier.

[19] The financial guarantee required of Genorah for environmental rehabilitation was only provided to the Department by Genorah on 15 September 2006. This was after
Genorah had been informed, on 8 September 2006, that its application for prospecting rights had been approved and also after the notarial execution of this award was effected
on 12 September 2006. In a similar, peculiar vein, Genorahs environmental management plan was approved two months after the approval of its application for
prospecting rights, namely on 13 November 2006. The approval was done by an acting Regional Manager of the Department, a different person to the one who approved
Genorahs prospecting application.

If you have been or done business in these try's of country's, the above should not surprise you.
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3/Well the application was a first come first serve basis.


Section 104 of the Act provides for a preferent prospecting or mining right in respect of communities.
It states that:
―(1) Any community who wishes to obtain the preferent right to prospect or mine in respect of any mineral and land which is registered or to be registered in the name of the community concerned, must lodge such application to the Minister.
(2) The Minister must grant such preferent right if the community can prove that
(a) the right shall be used to contribute towards the development and the social upliftment of the community concerned;
(b) the community submits a development plan, indicating the manner in which such right is going to be exercised;
(c) the envisaged benefits of the prospecting or mining project will accrue to the community in question; and
(d) the community has access to technical and financial resources to exercise such right.
(3) The preferent right, granted in terms of this section is
(a) valid for a period not exceeding five years and can be renewed for further periods not exceeding five years; and
(b) subject to prescribed terms and conditions.
(4) The preferent right referred to in subsection (1), shall not be granted in respect of areas, where a prospecting right, mining right, mining permit, retention permit, production right, exploration right, technical operation permit or reconnaissance permit has already been
granted.‖

It's not first come, first serve.
"G" had no letter from the Bengwenyama-Ye-Maswazi Tribal Council and Bengwenyama Minerals did.

Again this is mostly about "N"