Leaonardville residents want own constituency

RESIDENTS of Leonardville in the Omaheke region want the town and surrounding areas to be declared a constituency on its own.

Leonardvile, located some 140 kilometres south of Gobabis, is currently demarcated as part of the vast Aminuis constituency – something the residents claim has not been beneficial for them.

Leonardvile is equidistant between Gobabis and the Aminuis settlement, which is the administrative capital of the constituency bearing its name.

A village council governs Leonardville.

Some residents, in separate interviews with Nampa on Tuesday, said the town and the surrounding farms have grown in population and thus warrants to be an own constituency.

Emil Rooinasie, a government institutional worker, said being part of Aminuis constituency has had no value for them as they often prefer to travel to Gobabis for services they need.

The town of Gobabis is in another constituency, also aptly named after the town.

Rooinasie said travelling to Gobabis has better benefits due to the size of the town.

“When you go to Gobabis, you get to do more things as there are different offices and institutions there compared to Aminuis,” he said.

His views were echoed by Ursula Geingos, a 65-year-old pensioner, who said she has lived at Leonardville all her life.

“One hardly gets transport to travel to Aminuis, so we prefer Gobabis. I see no benefits of belonging to Aminuis constituency at all,” she said.

The residents had, during the hearings of the fourth Delimitation Commission in 2013, raised the matter but were not favourably considered.

The Delimitation Commission concluded in its report that the town’s population and limited services make it hard to be accorded such status.

Residents, however, argued that giving them such status will lead to development as more investors are bound to set up shop there.

“People will want to be part of the development here if we are a constituency on our own, as right now people do not even know of us,” said Harold Tjiriange, a 22-year-old unemployed man.

Residents have vowed to press on with their demands during the next Delimitation Commission hearings.

The Delimitation Commission determines the boundaries of Namibia’s regions and constituencies.

The next Delimitation Commission will be constituted in 2023.

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