Retired parliamentarian Jesaya Nyamu has sprung to the defence of lawmakers who have appealed for the establishment of a parliament village where homeless MPs can lodge when parliament is in session.
The former Swapo Party and Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) MP feels Namibian lawmakers are ill-treated and not well catered for.
“They [MPs] are right to make those demands because they are ill-treated. I wish they can stand up and demonstrate. The have the power to change laws, I hope they do it to better their conditions,” said the outspoken Nyamu.
He said the salaries of MPs were “not enough for them to survive”.
“Those people [MPs] are on the receiving end, especially the ones coming from the regions and constituencies – who have no accommodation here. I think parliamentarians in Namibia are the worst treated in SADC,” said Nyamu.
“Now we increased the members of parliament yet we could not cater for the small group we had,” said the former trade and industry minister.
Nangof Trust Executive Director Andrew Harris in an interview yesterday said he was hopeful that debate regarding land and housing would top lawmakers’ agenda.
“We hope they implement measures to avail land, because the problem at hand now is the lack of immediate supply,” he said.
Harris singled out the cost of transport and renting as some of the factors making the lives of many Namibians, specifically in Windhoek, difficult.
“Member of the National Assembly should deal with the land problem as soon as possible and use the resources of the country to alleviate poverty,” he said.
He said housing and land should be dealt with to benefit all instead of some. Affirmative Repositioning (AR) leader Job Amupanda yesterday said he was in the process of writing to National Assembly Speaker Professor Peter Katjavivi regarding what he termed a “scandal”.
“The scandal of MPs, who spent only few weeks in parliament, already negotiating deals to secure free luxurious apartments and further negotiating their accumulation is a clear sign that Affirmative Repositioning is the only solution to land greed and corruption,” Amupanda said.
Lawmakers last week in the National Assembly called on government to provide them with accommodation claiming the rent they pay is too much.
MPs made the proposal during the debate on the vote of the Ministry of Works and Transport, calling for the establishment of what they called a ‘parliament village’, which will cater for MPs during their five-year parliamentary tenure.
The Deputy Minister of Home Affairs and Immigration Erastus Uutoni who broached the topic said new MPs who come from the regions find it difficult to find decent accommodation in the capital because of high rental prices.
Uutoni said some landlords charge astronomic amounts such as N$15 000 which many MPs could not afford, adding that MPs are the leaders of the country therefore they need to be catered for.
“It is very disturbing for new MPs coming from the regions to come struggle with accommodation. MPs must be assured of accommodation when they come and not be stressed,” bemoaned Uutoni.
He said the situation was so bad that some MPs squatted with friends or relatives.
The Minister of Sport, Youth and National Service Jerry Ekandjo, Safety and Security Minister Charles Namoloh and Justice Minister Dr Albert Kawana supported the proposal.
Inclusive of benefits, ministers and deputy ministers and ordinary MPs earn about N$78 000, N$58 000 and N$45 000 per month respectively.
The public have over the years pleaded with MPs to formulate laws that will regulate the price of rent, but those pleas have fallen on deaf ears.
High rent prices have become a norm in Windhoek over the years because of a lack of affordable houses, a situation which has condemned many potential homeowners to be perpetual tenants.
The current housing backlog in the country is over 100 000 housing units.