WINDHOEK – Several families in the Goreangab Dam informal settlement in Katutura were left homeless on Friday after the city demolished their shacks in what the shack-dwellers claim is harassment by the municipal officials, including the Windhoek City Police.
On Friday about 10 illegal structures were removed from the area by city law enforcement officials, and this seemed to have fuelled anger among about 100 affected residents. Residents say the actions of the City of Windhoek municipality have left them destitute and are a stark reminder of those of the colonial apartheid authorities. Angry residents further threatened to build more illegal shacks on any available open space if the government does not provide them with land. “The boers used to beat us, but they at least gave us food and accommodation, this government is giving us nothing, “ charged one angry resident. Petrus Shikongo, one of the affected shack-dwellers, said the government treats them like dogs and baboons. “We are trying to set up homes for ourselves and our families, but look what they are doing to us, where do they want us to go to,” asked Shikongo.
“Only those with money can get land, but what about us the poor,” he fumed. Residents were also furious that the demolition exercise went ahead without any proper consultation with the shack owners, and despite a court interdict which states that the City of Windhoek should leave the Goreangab settlers where they are currently residing. “We have nowhere to go, our children will be unable to attend school and the rainy season will only make our circumstances more unbearable,” squeeled another shack-dweller. The demolished shack cost him N$3 000 to erect. “Where will I get that money from now,” said the worried woman. “When I returned from work, I found my home had been demolished. My possessions had been packed into a corner and the building material was strewn around the area. At no point was I given any notice to vacate,” she said.
Some residents who were present during the demolition exercise, could only watch helplessly as their only worldly possessions were bundled up. They say City Police officers arrived early in the morning, and ‘ransacked’ their corrugated iron sheet dwellings and even harassed some of the informal settlers.
They further claim that their leaders only remember them when it is election time and expressed disappointment in the current leadership.
“Where are they now, wait until the elections then you will see them here,” said another. They also claimed that municipal officials told them to go back to Oshakati where they came from. “What are you guys doing here in Windhoek, go back to Oshakati. We will bring you the food there,” one resident quoted a City of Windhoek official. Residents further claim that land is being given to foreigners, while they are suffering. Approached for comment Windhoek City Police Chief Abraham Kanime said the Windhoek City Police only demolished shacks that mushroomed overnight.
“We are only demolishing shacks which appear overnight, first we request owners to remove them but if they refuse we have no other option but to do it forcefully,” he said.
“For your information these people are building these shacks to rent out to others.
“This not a matter of accommodation, but mostly profit-making,” he said about some people who erect illegal shacks and rent them out to students and to low-income earners around Windhoek.
By Kuzeeko Tjitemisa