Fences don’t make good neighbours in Kavango

ILLEGAL Oshiwambo-speaking cattle herders in the Uukwangali traditional area of the Kavango Region have allegedly destroyed the farm fence of a Rukwangali-speaking farmer.

The farmer, Ngoma Olavi Frans, told The Namibian that Oshiwambo-speaking herders removed his fence poles and cut the wire on the northern side of his farm at Zigizi. On the eastern side, Frans alleged that his fence was cut to let in their cattle so that they can drink from a pond on his farm.He said he found the broken fence on January 1 and reported the matter to the Kahenge Police but they allegedly refused to open a case.”They said unless I have seen the person physically, there is nothing they can do,” he said.He said after that he went to report the matter to the Regional Councillor for Mpungu constituency, David Hamutenya, who paid a visit to his farm.Vilho Hamunyela, the spokesperson for the Oshiwambo-speaking farmers evicted from the Uukwangali area, said it was unlikely that their cattle herders would resort to such acts.Hamunyela told The Namibian that when the Oshiwambo-speaking farmers and their herders were leaving Uukwangali, some Kavangos fenced off wells and waterholes to plant crops there, making use of the cow dung as fertiliser.”So, these wells belong to the Oshiwambo-speaking farmers,” he said.The Region Police Commander at Rundu, Deputy Commissioner Olavi Auanga, said he was not aware of Frans’s claims, but if what he said was true, the Kahenge Police did not act correctly by refusing to open a docket.He said it was the duty of the Police to investigate all complaints, even if the complainant had not seen anybody committing a crime.On the eastern side, Frans alleged that his fence was cut to let in their cattle so that they can drink from a pond on his farm.He said he found the broken fence on January 1 and reported the matter to the Kahenge Police but they allegedly refused to open a case.”They said unless I have seen the person physically, there is nothing they can do,” he said.He said after that he went to report the matter to the Regional Councillor for Mpungu constituency, David Hamutenya, who paid a visit to his farm.Vilho Hamunyela, the spokesperson for the Oshiwambo-speaking farmers evicted from the Uukwangali area, said it was unlikely that their cattle herders would resort to such acts.Hamunyela told The Namibian that when the Oshiwambo-speaking farmers and their herders were leaving Uukwangali, some Kavangos fenced off wells and waterholes to plant crops there, making use of the cow dung as fertiliser.”So, these wells belong to the Oshiwambo-speaking farmers,” he said.The Region Police Commander at Rundu, Deputy Commissioner Olavi Auanga, said he was not aware of Frans’s claims, but if what he said was true, the Kahenge Police did not act correctly by refusing to open a docket.He said it was the duty of the Police to investigate all complaints, even if the complainant had not seen anybody committing a crime.