Katutura residents protest

Protestors demand removal of RedForce
On Wednesday, a group of Katutura residents took to the streets to protest various municipal problems while accusing the City's leadership of failure.
Augetto Graig
"Time is money, and money is what we don't have."

These words were included in a petition that was handed over to the minister of urban and rural development, Erastus Uutoni, on Wednesday.

Dissatisfied residents of Katutura held a protest march, during which they first headed to the headquarters of the Windhoek municipality and then to Uutoni's office, seeking answers and assistance.

The residents gave the minister 72 hours to take action and provide feedback.

They specifically demanded that Uutoni intervene in the municipality's appointment of RedForce for debt collection. Furthermore, they said they have lost confidence in the Windhoek city council and requested that the minister remove the municipality's leadership.

Demand for change

The residents' dissatisfaction with the town council comes six months after they submitted a petition to the municipality with proposals to address the issues of debt, water and electricity supply in their neighbourhoods. According to the residents, the municipality has not responded to it so far. Windhoek's mayor, Joseph Uapingene, did not meet with the residents at the municipal headquarters during the march, and when he later appeared at the ministry's office, the crowds did not want to listen to him.

Shaun Gariseb, a community activist from the Katutura Movement for Change and the spokesperson for the protesting residents, said Uutoni should consider their proposals, which have been made in the interest of both the municipality and the residents, and compel the municipality to implement them. If Uutoni does not respond to their demands, the residents will either have to approach President Hage Geingob or the courts, he said. He added that other options would have unfavourable outcomes.

Property seizures denied

Renowned musician Jericho Gawanab also raised the issues of access to water and electricity, as well as RedForce's practice of seizing people's homes over municipal debt, during the march. Upon inquiry, RedForce's deputy executive director and legal advisor, Margaret Malambo, denied that the debt collector seizes homes due to non-payment.

"Neither RedForce nor the City of Windhoek has ever seized or sold property to recover debt since the establishment of our contract," she emphasised. "Our debt collection methods are holistic and ethical, derived from the credit management policies our clients control. We maintain that all our dealings with the debtors handed over to us are above suspicion," she added.

"The protests are, of course, regrettable," said Malambo, adding that the leaders of the protesters are inciting people because they cannot repay their own debts. "It is our firm opinion that these leaders are deliberately inciting residents to serve their own interests and neglect their responsibilities towards our clients. In short, our operations remain unaffected – we will continue to carry out our work as required," she concluded.

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Namibian Sun 2024-11-23

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