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The last farmworker to abandon National Council of Provinces chairperson, Thandi Modise's farm said his family was forced to leave because they faced starvation.
The Sunday Times reports that Tebogo Moekaedi spent 47 days on the farm, and was told by his predecessor to feed the pigs only every second day to eke out the pig feed left on the farm.
His predecessor also warned that he had only received R800 in payment for three months work.
In a statement on Saturday afternoon, issued on Modise's behalf, claims that farmworkers abandoned the farm due to ill treatment, were dismissed as "baseless and malicious".
Last Saturday, police and officials of the SPCA went to the farm near Potchefstroom, where they found dead and dying animals, including pigs, sheep, geese, goats and ducks.
It appeared the animals had been without water and food for around two weeks.
There were no farmworkers on the property, no electricity, and the water pumps were broken.
