Auleria Wakudumo
Communal herders under the Ondonga Traditional Authority claim that well-connected politicians and businesspeople with close ties to Ondonga King Fillemon Shuumbwa Nangolo are at the centre of the land storm.
Names of prominent Namibians have surfaced in the ongoing land disputes in the Okashana Kuukongo waNehale, an area under the auspices of the Ondonga Traditional Authority.
They include former Cabinet minister Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana, Oshikoto governor Penda Ya Ndakolo, business mogul Ben ‘BH’ Hauwanga, Swapo Oshikoto coordinator Armas Amukwiyu, Oshikoto Regional Council chairperson Samuel Panduleni Shivute, Affirmative Repositioning movement leader Job Amupanda, Ondangwa mayor Paavo Amweele as well as lawyers Sisa Namandje and Kadhila Amoomo.
Accusations
According to them, all 61 plots have been allocated to well-known people. The list also includes some headmen such as Petrus Muteka of Omutsegonime A and Fillemon Kambala of Omutsegonime B.
Right of reply
Responding to the allegations this week, Namandje told New Era that he has been lawfully allocated a relatively small portion of land by the traditional authority to undertake an agricultural project to produce food.
“I have already commenced with the development of the land, and production starts next year,” Namandje said. He added that he is thrilled to be part of food production north of the veterinary cordon fence, known as the Redline. However, when he was asked by New Era about the size of the land, he refused to go into specifics.
Iivula-Ithana said, “I have been having my plot for 29 years, and I have not been involved in the current land enclosure.”
Amwele said the traditional authority can do as it wishes with land within its jurisdiction.
“The communal herders are actually fighting for the king’s place. Let the traditional authority do what it wants; let it fence the land all it wants. Cooperation is needed between the traditional authority and the communal herders,” he said.
Amupanda, on his part, said he cannot speak ill of his traditional authority in newspapers.
He said it sounds like the herders are involved in some kind of communal campaign.
“I know nothing about it,” he said.
He, however, did not indicate whether he was allocated land or not.
Meanwhile, Ya Ndakolo said he does not own nor have any land allocated to him in the contested area.
“People just want to talk nonsense. I have not received a complaint from the herders about the issue as a governor. The only place I have at Okashana is a ranch of 20 square meters with less than 200 goats, and it is not fenced,” he said.
Furthermore, Amukwiyu said the allegations made towards him are false. “I am also a herder, and my land is not fenced, just like anyone who owns a ranch there,” he said.
Voicing his side of the story, Hauwanga said he recently helped fence his father-in-law’s ranch “because of the fear of losing it to those involved in land allocation.”
But he does not own any land, he claimed.
Amoomo did not comment, instead stating he needed clarity on the specific allegations against him.
Genesis
Following complaints and reports of individual farmers as reported by New Era, over 85 cattle herders have since signed a petition against what they deem unlawful fencing off and occupation of Okashana Kuukongo waNehale.
The Ondonga Traditional Authority (OTA) recently confirmed that some individuals are unlawfully fencing off and taking possession of land.
However, some of those accused of illegally fencing off large tracts of land claim to have authorisation from the authority.
The affected communal herders had a meeting on 18 February 2023, and resolutions were taken that the unknown individuals must be engaged by the Oshikoto police regional commander, Commissioner Teopolina Kalompo Nashikaku.
This was done so that individuals halt their activities to prevent the escalation of conflict between them and affected cattle herders.
“Secondly, animals should not be restricted to corridors of illegal fencing. Hence, those erected poles and fencing wires must be removed,” said Krisian Indongo, the chairperson of Okashana communal cattle herders.
Another engagement was on 11 April 2023.
“All the incidents were reported by news reporters, yet nothing has been resolved. We strongly oppose such activities. We further pleaded for king Fillemon Shuumbwa Nangolo to personally intervene before the escalation of conflicts between the invaders and the affected cattle herders,” the farmers further said.
It is also claimed that the whole Okashana has been demarcated to be fenced off according to a demarcation map.
The farmers are threatening to forcefully remove all the fences if their cries fall on deaf ears.
The law
According to Communal Land Act 5 of 2002, Section 17(1), all communal land areas vest in the State in trust for the benefit of the traditional communities residing in those areas and for the purpose of promoting the economic and social development of the people of Namibia, the landless and those with insufficient access to land who are not in formal employment or engagement in non-agriculture business activities.
The Act also states that any allocation of a customary land right made by a chief or a traditional authority under Section 22 has no legal effect unless the allocation is ratified by the relevant board in accordance with the provisions of this article.
Section 18 of the Act further prohibits fences, stating that no fence of any nature shall be erected or caused to be erected by any person on any portion of land situated within communal land.
Victims
Indongo has since been stripped of his title as secretary of Omutsegonime.
He said this was after he questioned the fences being erected at Okashana.
He mentioned that they were also told to say nothing about the fences when he was secretary.
Indongo and the herders expressed disappointment in the OTA’s leadership, saying most of the herders are Kwanyama/Kwambi, who went there with their cattle because of drought.
Further, the communal farmers from over 12 villages expressed disappointment in the authority, saying Okashana Kuukongo waNehale is their only hope, apart from Uuvudhiya.
“So, how are you going to take grazing land that over 2 000 people depend on? Omutsegonime A alone has over 100 households,” they stated.
“What is more upsetting is the fact that the authority is saying that they have given land to community members when we are the ones complaining. We do not sleep; we have high blood pressure because of this,” they said.
Remove
Illegal fencing is understood as the act of a person creating an enclosure of land by delineating it from the rest of the commonage without approval of such a fence. The owner of such illegal fence could then resume exclusive user right.
In line with the Communal Land Reform Act, a fence is supposed to be approved before it is erected.
The board and or traditional authority is empowered to remove the fence. Hence, the ministry of land reform is not in support of illegal fences on communal land.
Land ministry spokesperson Jona Musheko yesterday said: “Firstly, we will allow the Oshikoto land board to investigate the matter. Land allocations start with traditional leaders or authorities. If the land to be allocated exceeds a certain number of hectares, then they [traditional leaders] should recommend to the board for approval. They [traditional authorities] have the power over the land, but only to a certain extent.
“If there are any issues, the communal land board of a given region takes them on before it is escalated to the minister. There is also a process involving the land tribunal. At this stage, it should be at the level of the board,” Musheko added.
Now, the herders are calling on the police to intervene and remove all illegal fences that have been recently erected without any reservation.
“We request the Oshikoto Community Land Board to intervene swiftly. The herders are suggesting that the expatriates with skills in massive production of maize can perhaps be allocated those plots currently occupied by former minister Iivula-Ithana, Ondangwa mayor Amwele, and the late king’s wife, Secilia Kauluma Elifas,” they suggested.
Authority
When contacted recently, personal assistant to Ondonga king, David Kambonde, said Nangolo decided to grant land to individuals who genuinely want to cultivate and produce food for themselves.
As such, the fences the herders are referring to are the land that has been legitimately allocated, apart from the few individuals who happen to be herders trespassing on Okashana without the king’s approval.