• Government

'City of Windhoek failed us'

- 2023-11-14 08:11:00

Residents of Groot Aub are outraged by what they describe as a "colossal failure" of the Windhoek municipality to get the town's affairs in order after it took over control of the settlement.
The residents also insist that the town's status be changed back to that of a settlement.
Some community members who were without access to water for a week appealed to the government to instead hand the town over to the ||Khomanin traditional leadership to manage it as a communal area.
During a tense community meeting that took place on Sunday afternoon, community members agreed that their living conditions had drastically deteriorated since the municipality's entry.
One of the residents, James Lewis, says their land has been taken away and they are worried about the well-being of their children.
"We have elderly residents and we have to sell our land to get water. We fetched water from the 'gorras' (water holes in the river). If there was an advantage to this arrangement, then they could have taken Groot Aub. I think it is better to give it to the ||Khomanin traditional leadership to manage as communal land," he said.
Another resident, Richard van Wyk, claims the municipality has a money-making agenda and has therefore decided to "jump over Kranzneus and Omeya" to get to Groot Aub where the municipality can benefit from the exploitation of sand.
"Those companies finished our roads and left us in the dust. They didn't even build a community kitchen here for the residents," he said.
Chief Jorro Eiseb of the ||Khomanin Traditional Authority says the expectation was that the municipality would find solutions to Groot Aub's problems, including the huge need for water, electricity and sanitation.
Eiseb says he met with vice president Nangolo Mbumba after the community sent a petition and was promised they would receive feedback within three weeks.
Mbumba confirmed that he had met with a person from the community and as soon as he went through the petition, a meeting with the queen of the ||Khomanin community would be called.
City of Windhoek spokesperson, Harold Akwenye, said for the municipality's part that no official complaints about water shortages at Groot Aub have been received.
"Our daily water supply remains constant and our staff on the ground have not reported anything about this. The City of Windhoek remains committed to residents' needs and the development of Groot Aub. Our commitment to the community is evident in the ongoing efforts to accelerate development.
"We believe with the local government's cooperation and support, we will make significant progress. If residents face challenges, we encourage them to reach out to our dedicated channels and we will investigate and address the issues promptly. Our goal is to ensure the well-being of all residents and we remain committed to the provision of essential services," said Akwenya.