Oshakati
DTA finance secretary Nico Smit says government should not underestimate the youth and think the use of teargas and rubber bullets will scare and disperse demonstrating landless youth.
Smit was responding to the recent scenario where landless people, including the youth in Katima Mulilo, stormed the municipal offices over the non-availability of residential land at the town.
Teargas was also used to disperse youth at the town.
Smit said the use of teargas and rubber bullets will only worsen the situation, hence his call to government to stop using force to suppress the housing problem.
Instead, the DTA finance secretary has joined the chorus of fellow politicians calling on government to engage the youth, especially the Affirmative Repositioning (AR) leaders to address the issue.
“Talk to these young people, bring them to the table and listen to them. The time where the older generation can ignore the youth has passed,” pleaded Smit.
Smit was speaking at an election preparation workshop in Oshakati last Saturday.
Last week, the executive and legislators also joined forces and established a Cabinet committee to find ways to tackle the land issue, which continues to threaten peace and stability.
According to Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, the Cabinet committee is made up of Deputy Prime Minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, Attorney General Sacky Shanghala, Minister of Urban and Rural Development Sophia Shaningwa and Land Reform Minister Utoni Nujoma.
The committee is expected to come up with proposals ranging from repealing land-related laws, funding approaches to how to accelerate the provision of serviced land.
“This is an issue that government has been preoccupied with. We will, at the appropriate time, brief parliament as to what is in the pipeline on how government is dealing with the land issue, be it urban or commercial land. If we continue with this motion, we might end up making the same proposals,” said the PM.
Contrary to the prime minister’s assertions, the DTA finance secretary feels the government is doing little to nothing to address the land issue. At the workshop Smit argued that government turned a blind eye on the land call, a situation Smit foresees could destabilise peace and stability come July 31 – the deadline the youth have set for local authorities to grant them residential land in various towns.
“The land and house issue will end up in disaster if we don’t sit around the table. We have a month left, we still have time,” pleaded Smit.
Smit also called upon the Minister of Urban and Rural Development to instruct local authorities to sit with the landless youths in their towns to see how best to handle the situation, but “we can really not go on like this, we will lead this country into flames”, said Smit.
Smit informed his party’s supporters and sympathisers the party would this year focus on the local authorities, as local councillors are the ones in touch with the grassroots.