The National Unity Democratic Organisation (Nudo), represented by myself in the Windhoek City council, will table a motion soon calling for the total overhaul of both the organisational and departmental structures of the City of Windhoek.
It is a fact that our people, the Windhoek residents, have send us to council to be their ears and mouth and to speak on their behalf on bread and butter issues that continue to affect them.
However eight months into office it is now clear that the organisational structures and division of power is a hindrance towards service delivery.
The current practice were the council agenda is set by strategic executives and not by councillors should be done away with, as this in part means that the people who are elected by the residents are not the ones who dictate and formulate agendas point to discuss at council. The strategic executives, who are not accountable to the residents of the city, do this.
This set up results in 99 percent of the agendas points to only be about land rezoning issues, thus having no platform for the councillors to air their views and discuss bread and butter issues that affect their constituents.
It is my belief that we were not elected to only cater for the well-off of the wealthy, whose pre-occupation is only rezoning their businesses, but equally we were elected to address burning issues that affect the residents like water, electricity and basic service delivery.
It is unacceptable that we as councillors should be confined to a working format designed and perfected to cater only for a selected few. It is time to revise and revisit this format of calling and constituting these meetings so that when council sits, 90 percent of the issues to be discussed will be about our residents needs and problems.
Simply put, councillors should be the ones who must dictate the agenda of council meetings.
Joseph Kauandenge
Councillor, City of Windhoek