Swakopmund
Swakopmund and Walvis Bay municipalities have failed the residents of the Democratic Resettlement Community (DRC) in Swakopmund and Tutaleni at Walvis Bay in the provision of basic and essential services.
This was said by Governor of the Erongo Region Cleophas Mutjavikua, when he addressed various stakeholders during a consultative meeting here on Friday.
The said townships are home to some of the poorest and most marginalised residents of the two coastal towns. DRC residents have been campaigning for years for the formalisation of the area so that basic services, such as water, sanitation and electricity can be provided to the fast-growing area on the north-eastern outskirts of Swakopmund.
Tutaleni in Walvis Bay is overcrowded, with sprawling backyard shacks that raise the risk of fires in the residential area, despite most of the residents having access to services, such a water and electricity.
“I have pleaded with the Municipality of Swakopmund for five years to formalise DRC, but to no avail. Our people cannot live like this. We had a lot of discussions, but nothing changed – apart from few pipes. Our renewed mandate demands that we change this state of affairs. At least the residents must be able to see a significant change, if not a 100 percent change,” Mutjavikua said.
Referring to Walvis Bay, the governor said the town is growing at a rapid pace, especially the business, formal residential and informal settlement areas, and appealed to town planners to determine the level of estimated population growth for the next five years.
“My suggestion is that we should consider developing a suburb behind Dune 7, as the Kuisebmond suburb basin is not going to accommodate our future residential needs. Collectively we must come up with a solution to the problem of backyard shacks in Tutaleni and Kuisebmond. Let’s be strategic and futuristic in our approach. As good Samaritans the leadership provides blankets and tents when fire strikes, but the causes of these fires remain unaddressed,” he stated.
Mutjavikua said the delivery of housing, water services and sanitation are the main challenges facing local authorities in the region and urged the newly elected councillors to work together to solve these issues in the interest of the residents. “The housing backlog continues to haunt our country and new ways to address this challenge are of cardinal importance. Our national government will welcome new inputs and innovative initiatives aimed at solving this challenge,” he said.
“It is true that the elite or expensive land is subsidising the classified cheap land. This should be explored extensively. If one takes a block of land in Meersig and exchange or off-set it to eradicate the current situation at Tutaleni, is that not feasible?” Mutjavikua asked.
The meeting was attended by various government officials and private stakeholders.