THE Omusati regional council will transfer the Okalongo settlement administrator to an unspecified location in the region if the allegations of his dubious land deals are proven to be true.
The chairperson of the Omusati regional council, Modestus Amutse, told this week that a committee comprising council employees was instructed to investigate the allegations levelled against Amandus Kandowa, who is accused of unlawfully dishing out land to people.
Amutse said an initial report on the allegations and findings was presented to him, but he was not satisfied with some parts of the content. He said the initial findings also indicated that some allegations were untrue. However, he added that the land problems still need to be investigated so that they can be solved.
“I instructed them to go back and complete what was incomplete. I expect them to present the completed report to the council, which will be discussed at the next council meeting that will be held before month-end,” he stated.
The chairperson stressed that after complaints by Okalongo residents on what they termed the ‘unprocedural’ allocation of land to certain individuals by Kandowa, he as chairperson decided that it was time for a thorough and transparent investigation into their land affairs. “We want clarity on who allocated land to who, and whether the right procedures were followed,” he noted, adding that if Kandowa is found guilty, there is a possibility that he will be moved elsewhere for the benefit of the people and the progress of the settlement.
“You cannot have people and their leader fighting. Okalongo needs to grow. I want to see Okalongo becoming a town, but that cannot happen if people are fighting,” he stressed, pointing out that the alleged discrepancies on the land issue and mounting allegations and complaints by the people against Kandowa forced the council to recommend his transfer, should the allegations turn out ot be true.
Kandowa told on Wednesday that he is aware of the recommended transfer, but heard only through the media. “I only read about it in the newspaper that I would be transferred. The regional council did not inform me about that. Maybe they are still to do that,” he stated.
He said the allegations against him are untrue, I and are fuelled by tribalism. “There are people in Okalongo who think they own the village, and it should not be open to outsiders. These people do not want outsiders to get plots or build here,” he continued.
He vehemently denied any involvement in the alleged sales of the plots in question, maintaining that the transaction on the alleged plots owned by the Swapo Party and Founding President Sam Nujoma’s aide John Nauta happened before he joined the regional council in 2011. “We don’t give land here. We only make recommendations through the settlement development committee. The recommendations are sent to the regional office, where a committee scrutinises all applications. So, it is not Kandowa who gives land,” he countered. He said he has since written a letter to Amutse, seeking audience with the regional council regarding the matter.
