By: Frans Sinengela
Windhoek has been plagued by mass demolition of shacks in many of its informal settlements, leaving many in the open, and at the mercy of mother nature.
While many had hopes in law-makers changing these laws and making it easier for the acquisition of land by ordinary citizens, it has come to light that even law-makers themselves are squatting in shacks.
NEFF member of parliament Kalimbo Iipumbu says that many parliamentarians are faced with an accommodation crisis.
Iipumbu said that it was high time that this was solved.
Last week, PDM president McHenry Venaani raised a motion for parliament to look at Namibia’s housing financing model and come up with alternative financing methods to ensure all residents have adequate housing infrastructure.
“Many of us are squatting in squatter camps, and some are renting, while some are faced with possible evictions because they cannot afford to pay their rent,” he told The Villager.
Kalimbo accused Swapo MPs of being ignorant of the accommodation crisis that many parliamentarians face because they have the privilege of becoming ministers and deputy ministers.
He said that MPs cannot buy houses through banks because banks require one to pay a monthly instalment for 20 years, while a member of parliament only serves for a period of five years. After that, they do not have the guarantee that they will make it back to parliament the next election year.
“Unless the government provides accommodation for members of parliament, this problem of accommodation will never end,” said Kalimbo.
Swapo party’s chief whip Hambyuka Hamunyera denied Iipumbu’s allegations that the ruling party’s MPs were ignorant about the accommodation crisis faced by fellow MPs.
He said that Iipumbu is new in parliament and does not have facts about this issue.
“He is wrong by saying that. The Swapo MPs came up with an idea to build a new parliament with a parliament house where parliamentarians were to be accommodated, but the opposition shot it down,” Hambyuka told The Villager.
“We know that accommodation is a problem to parliamentarians. That is why we suggested building a new parliament and a parliament house, but they shot it down,” he continued.
Over the years, the city of Windhoek has been hit by the high accommodation cost in its formal suburbs, resulting in the mass-creation of informal settlements. There, many squat in shacks without water and electricity.
In his motion, Venaani lamented the complexity of the process of acquiring land by ordinary Namibians. He urged government to end the monopoly in selling serviced land plots by introducing many players to ensure a quicker and cheaper process of getting serviced plots.
Venaani further said that parliamentarians squat in shanty towns on the outskirts of Windhoek because they cannot afford decent accommodation in Windhoek. he said the situation is serious.
“If a person at the level of a member of parliament cannot afford a decent house, what about a cleaner? Just imagine that!” he exclaimed while motivating his motion in parliament.
Venaani said even nurses, teachers and police officers could not afford proper housing.
This is what, according to him, has resulted in a mushrooming of shanty towns just outside every major town in Namibia. He said this calls for a review of the country’s current financial model.
“A teacher in Kachinakachi cannot afford a house of a million dollars; in the urban area, just an erf is already N$ 300,000; a few square metres. And to build is more than N$ 1.4 million. A teacher cannot afford an urban house. This signifies that we need a new model in this country,” said Venaani.
