WINDHOEK – The City of Windhoek municipal council has instructed that the controversial sale of a house in Otjomuise – from which a family of 13 was evicted – be set aside.
City CEO Robert Kahimise said council also instructed attorneys to ensure the transaction is reversed.
A family of 13 found itself sleeping on the street last week after Desmond Howard, an employer of one of the family members and who had built the house for the family, transferred the house into his own name. The family was then evicted from the house in Otjomuise.
During a press conference last week, Kahimise said the City noted with great concern the increasing trend of fraudulent eviction of senior citizens and vulnerable members of society from their properties through dubious land transactions.
“Every year our vulnerable people around Windhoek are swindled through this scheme of their houses and are evicted, leaving them homeless and in the process, entrenching patterns of poverty, discrimination and social exclusion,” remarked Kahimise.
He said council has standard practice invoke stipulations in the sales agreements for these types of properties meant for targets groups.
“More particularly, these properties once allocated may not be sold to any third party within a period of seven years,” added Kahimise.
He said in this particular case involving the Otjomuise family, the restrictive re-sale conditions were omitted from the final deed of sale, despite the fact that clear instructions were given to the conveyancing attorneys to ensure that such pre-emptive rights were registered against the title deed.
He said this omission is being internally investigated.
Kahimise revealed that on 3 September, 2011, Howard concluded a purchase agreement of an immovable property in Otjomuise which was earmarked as part of the low-cost housing scheme.
He said on 14 September 2011, property owner Joel Araeb and his wife Salode Araes concluded a sale agreement with the Windhoek municipal council.
He said when this agreement was signed, they had already sold the immovable property to Howard on 3 September 2011.
Kahimise further said Howard paid the purchase price to the City on 15 September 2011. He explained that the purchase price was not paid for and on behalf of the said Araeb couple to obtain ownership but for Howard to obtain ownership of the immovable property after seven years from 3 September 2011.
“Thus all along the intention of the parties in the first agreement was never to pass transfer of ownership of the erf and any dwellings thereon to the Araeb couple.
“The purchaser (Howard) had at all material times the intention to acquire ownership of the erf to construct not one but many dwellings and or apartments,” stated Kahimise.
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