Nauta gets 18 plots at N$44 a month

By Eliaser Ndeyanale
SENIOR personal assistant to the Founding Father, John Nauta was sold 18 plots measuring 11 611 square metres by the Onandjaba settlement management and has to pay a paltry N$44 monthly for each plot contrary to calls by the Minister of Urban and Rural Development, Sophia Shaningwa for one plot per person, Confidente has learnt.
The Onandjaba settlement is situated in the Okalongo constituency in the Omusati region.
According to documents in Confidente’s possession, Nauta was sold 18 plots by the management of Okalongo settlement last year. He pays N$44.00 per month for each plot and N$9 504 per year for all the plots.
Speaking to Confidente Monday, a seemingly angry Nauta said he had applied to so many local authorities so he could not remember which ones allocated him land. “Is it your business or why do you want to know what I am going to do with the land? Listen, even if I got it, it’s not for free.”
Meanwhile, President Hage Geingob in his State of the Nation Address on Tuesday, has warned that local and regional authorities no longer have the luxury of time and are required to act with the urgency on the land issue. “The need to urgently avail resources to ensure the provision of affordable land and housing to our people is undeniable.”
Please said the housing and land availability shortages which are increasingly exacerbated by rural-urban migration needs local and regional authorities attention.
Government will never condone illegal land grabs but in the same vein, we will no longer tolerate the slow implementation of agreed upon strategies to resolve these issues, said, in reference to the attempted land grabs in Walvis Bay recently.
“It is with concern we observe the opportunistic attempts to hijack the genuine and valid land concerns of Namibians in order to incite violence and disorder. Other influential politicians who got land include former Okalongo councillor Jhonny Haikela. Haikela got three plots measuring 664 square metres, 483 square metres and another one also measuring 483 square metres. Inquired what he is going to do with the plots and if it not in contrast with the minister’s call, Haikela asked, “What is your interest? Did she send you? Before she (Shaningwa) was appointed as a minister I was already a resident of Okalongo, so what is your point?”
Shavuka Hilde the owner of Leinge Private School situated just a stone’s throw away from the T-junction of the gravel road from Ongenga to Outapi in the settlement has acquired nine plots located at Onandjamba proper. She refused to comment when contacted. “Confidente I cannot comment on that,” she said.
The chairperson of the Namibia Chamber of Commerce Industry in the Okalongo Constituency, Antonius Lungameni got two plots measuring 587 square meters.
Prominent businessman in Okalongo Mwetupunga Josua is the owner of plot 628 measuring 1217 at Onandjamba Extension 2. Hialulwa Paulus who lost in the Swapo party primary held at Okalongo is the proprietor of plots 631 and 632. The plots are measuring 802 and 1230 respectively.
Kalomho Robert a director in the Ministry of works is the holder of plots 686 and 687 also located at Onandjamba Extension 2.
Sources privy to the matter have told Confidente that some people who got massive land in the settlement have started selling them to other people at prices ranging from N$60 000- N$125 000 for their own benefit. Last week Confidente reported that at the moment there are about 8 000 residents who have applied for land, however they were told that there were only 800 vacant plots and that at one point they were told that there were no vacant plots, yet they see how the settlement is selling larger portions of land to their friends.
Some disgruntled residents wrote to the Urban ministry’s permanent secretary Daniel Nghidinua last year requesting the ministry’s intervention. Nghidinua did not respond to questions sent to him.
Control administrative officer at the settlement Armandus Kandowa denied allegations that the land was sold. He also denied that the settlement had defied the minister’s call since the minister only came up with a plot per person call recently.
“We have not sold the land. Those people are leasing. How can you sell land if it belongs to the State? Nauta and others have applied to develop the land but the land is not theirs. It’s not even the first time Nauta is developing residential plots. He did that before at Outapi and those houses have already been sold. I don’t know who is giving you that funny information,” stressed Kandowa.
When Shaningwa was contacted for comment, Tuesday, she said it was high time councils, villages and settlements start taking seriously her call to allocate one plot per person.