Ondangwa council to oppose court order
The Ondangwa town council last week filed its notice of intention to oppose a court order preventing it from impounding animals.
The court papers were filed by the law firm of Sisa Namandje & Co., and followed an order that was recently made by the Oshakati High Court after the Oshana SPCA had approached the court with an urgent application.
The SPCA filed the application due to the inhumane conditions at the council's impound pens. Animals were left there without food and clean water for days on end.
The court ordered the immediate release of the impounded animals and that no other animals may be impounded until policy regulations are drafted and implemented by the council to ensure compliance with the Animal Protection Act and the Model Pound Regulations.
According to Wilmarie Horn, who manages the Oshana SPCA and is a lawyer by training, the notice that was filed was not in compliance with High Court Rules.
She explains that the notice does not comply with Rule 65(5) of the High Court Rules, as the service address of Namandje's law firm is not within a flexible jurisdiction of the Oshakati court.
The filed papers indicate the address of the law firm as 11 Robert Mugabe Avenue, Windhoek, where all processes must be served.
Horn says the law firm has been informed of this.
The return date to the High Court is 14 February, when the court will determine whether the interim interdict granted in favour of Oshana SPCA on 26 January will be made final or not.
A criminal case of animal cruelty was also opened against the council. The organisation received a complaint on 17 December about animal cruelty at the impound pens of the Ondangwa town council. During inspections the animals were found to be kept in terrible conditions.
According to court papers one bull, seven donkeys of which one was pregnant, one calf, seven goats, 10 pigs, one piglet and three dead goats were found in the impound pens. Although the animals had some water, it was dirty.
“They did not have any food and were very hungry. They were starving and to that end the gates were locked to the pens with padlocks,” the affidavit filed by Horn says.
According to Horn one goat and one pig needed urgent medical attention.
ELLANIE SMIT
The court papers were filed by the law firm of Sisa Namandje & Co., and followed an order that was recently made by the Oshakati High Court after the Oshana SPCA had approached the court with an urgent application.
The SPCA filed the application due to the inhumane conditions at the council's impound pens. Animals were left there without food and clean water for days on end.
The court ordered the immediate release of the impounded animals and that no other animals may be impounded until policy regulations are drafted and implemented by the council to ensure compliance with the Animal Protection Act and the Model Pound Regulations.
According to Wilmarie Horn, who manages the Oshana SPCA and is a lawyer by training, the notice that was filed was not in compliance with High Court Rules.
She explains that the notice does not comply with Rule 65(5) of the High Court Rules, as the service address of Namandje's law firm is not within a flexible jurisdiction of the Oshakati court.
The filed papers indicate the address of the law firm as 11 Robert Mugabe Avenue, Windhoek, where all processes must be served.
Horn says the law firm has been informed of this.
The return date to the High Court is 14 February, when the court will determine whether the interim interdict granted in favour of Oshana SPCA on 26 January will be made final or not.
A criminal case of animal cruelty was also opened against the council. The organisation received a complaint on 17 December about animal cruelty at the impound pens of the Ondangwa town council. During inspections the animals were found to be kept in terrible conditions.
According to court papers one bull, seven donkeys of which one was pregnant, one calf, seven goats, 10 pigs, one piglet and three dead goats were found in the impound pens. Although the animals had some water, it was dirty.
“They did not have any food and were very hungry. They were starving and to that end the gates were locked to the pens with padlocks,” the affidavit filed by Horn says.
According to Horn one goat and one pig needed urgent medical attention.
ELLANIE SMIT
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