Ondangwa is very dirty – Sankwasa

Urban and rural development minister James Sankwasa describes Ondangwa as one of the dirtiest and most unattractive towns in the country.

He says the town is littered with refuse and tall shrubs and grasses posing a health risk to tourists and residents. Sankwasa said this during his visit to the town yesterday.

“Ondangwa is very dirty and unattractive. It is not attractive at all to tourists and even just to us citizens. The town is not impressive. I want you to clean up this town. Every time I pass through Ondangwa when visiting, I’m always met with dirt and plastic scattered all over the town. Employ people to clean up and have a clean town,” Sankwasa informed the town council.

Ondangwa, situated as a gateway to the northern regions, has long dealt with hygiene issues, leading to multiple clean-up campaigns over the years.

In 2004, former president Sam Nujoma rebuked the town mayor over the state of the town.

Sankwasa urged the town council to find solutions in handling the town’s dirt.

He highlighted that the lack of sewer reticulation is a huge challenge for Ondangwa, as it poses a health risk to residents.

“The problem with Ondangwa is the sewer. When it rains, the sewer water mixes with rain water and the dirty water spills all over. Something needs to be done to avoid such health risks in the future. You are endangering the lives of the residents,” he said.

He added that the Ondangwa Town Council’s procurement system needs to be evaluated, adding that contractors are given projects worth huge amounts of money but are failing to deliver them on time. The employees, he said, are also overpaid.

“People should be able to live within their means. The employees must appreciate what they are earning and not have big hearts to take more than they are earning. This issue of contractors being given money before completing projects should also come to an end. This is totally unacceptable,” he said.

Sankwasa commended the council for rendering effective services to the residents and paying the service providers on time.

Ondangwa Town Council chief executive Ismael Namugongo says the town is battling a high rate of illegal land occupatin due to urbanisation.

He says the town’s current land backlog stands at about 8 000.

“Land grabbing is a big problem here. Every year people are grabbing land to construct their houses, even in proclaimed areas. This is a huge challenge that we have tried to tackle over the years,” he adds.

Ondangwa councillor Nicodemus Amadhila says the town has waste removal trucks that collect waste on designated days.

“We have waste removal trucks and we try to keep the town clean by removing all the waste and grass. We also have a cleaning campaign this month which is aimed at keeping the town and residential areas clean,” he says.

He urges the residents to keep their areas clean at all times and avoid littering.

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