Otavi
Residents of Otavi staying at the Single Quarters have expressed dissatisfaction over the demands of the town council that instructed them to move out of the Single Quarters, as the area has been demarcated for other development.
Last week Monday, the municipality allegedly instructed the technical department to go to the Single Quarters to start planned demolitions but to their dismay they could not start demolishing the Single Quarters, as there were still residents that refused to leave the premises.
The incident occurred following a public notice by the municipality informing residents that new plots would be made available for them, as the Single Quarters would be demolished by June 22, 2015.
While some had already moved many residents refused to move causing chaos at the town.
When contacted for comment, Chief Executive Officer of the Otavi Town Council Moses Matyayi said it was a case of a misunderstanding between residents and the council because some residents did not honour the arrangement that was made between them and the council.
“After consultations we informed residents they should vacate the Single Quarters by 22nd June, and in the process we allocated erven to them so that they could relocate from the Single Quarters to those plots,” he said.
He emphasised that this was not an eviction but rather a process to relocate residents.
Matyayi, however, could not state which new developments are envisaged for the Single Quarters.
Community leader and spokesperson of the Single Quarters residents Lisias Haimbodi said residents were given less than 20 days to relocate – a timeframe residents found inadequate.
“The council communicated with the residents through a public notice, but over 90 per cent of the residents are illiterate and are not informed on these plans. These people got plots how do you move the families to a vacant plot, the 20 days are not even enough to save and buy corrugated iron to put up a structure in this winter,” said the community spokesperson.
Haimbodi feels it was unfair that such a huge group of poor and illiterate people were not properly consulted on the plans to demolish their current homes.
Sources close to council say there are plans to build a new state-of-the-art health centre at the place where the single quarters are currently situated.
New Era visited the single quarters and spoke to Simeon Kamulu, who has been living there for over 20 years and where he operates a food eatery selling roasted and cooked meat and other foodstuff.
He said he is unhappy with the fact that the same erven are being allocated to different people. He says the municipality has irregularly re-allocated his erf to another person who has already erected a structure and he sits now without a home or piece of land to build a house.
“I have six children, the lady that took my plot is also desperate but this would not have happened if the municipality just did their work properly,” he noted told New Era.