Groot Aub worried about crime, water
RESIDENTS of Groot Aub and the Namibian Police have expressed concern at the rate at which crime is escalating at the settlement. They have also expressed their unhappiness with the water situation at the settlement.
They expressed their fears during a visit by
Nampa to the Windhoek Rural constituency on Tuesday.
“There is a lot of drug and alcohol abuse in Groot Aub. Our children face a bleak future because of substance abuse, this is a big disease within my community and it needs attention,” resident Maria Bantam told Nampa.
“The young people have nothing to do. They spend the whole day smoking hubbly and other drugs which are supplied by people known within the community,” she added.
Her views were echoed by another resident who declined to be named, saying the number of small livestock theft is scary as the youth steal goats and sheep to sell at low prices to buy drugs.
“We are experiencing a rise in housebreakings as a result of unemployment. Community members protect these criminals and drug dealers; they never report them to the police. Because of these vices, most parents are afraid of their children,” she said.
Windhoek Rural constituency councillor Piet Adams of the Landless People’s Movement, concurred with the residents, saying it is high time the community members and law enforcement agencies work together to fight crime.
Contacted for comment, head of operations in the Khomas region, Deputy Commissioner Gerald Klazen confirmed to
Nampa that housebreaking and stock theft are becoming a serious concern for the police and community.
“While I do not have figures, the growing population in Groot Aub also means an increase in crime. Domestic violence and alcohol abuse were not that high, especially during the festive season,” he said.
He added that they would be meeting with the station and unit commander of Groot Aub police station soon to strategise on how they can put crime under control.
He said they would assist with the stock theft unit pending the recruitment of the reservist from the community with the help of community leaders. Klazen added that the lack of neighbourhood watch committees is also to be blamed. He also told Nampa that before the festive season started, there was an operation in Groot Aub and Rehoboth, which resulted in a reduction of some crimes.
Additionally, residents are frustrated by the restrictive measures put up by the City of Windhoek, which do not permit them to drill boreholes.
Bantam said that the biggest challenge they face is an interrupted supply of water.
“The biggest problem is the water issue because the community is too big and not everyone receives water. We get water after every three days,” Bantam said.
She said there are certain areas in Groot
Aub that have not been receiving water for the past two weeks.
According to councillor Adams, there was a reservoir set up in Groot Aub in 2006 that accommodated the needs of 6 000 people but currently, between 15 000 to 20 000 people are living in the area and the reservoir cannot address all the needs on the ground.
Adams said Windhoek municipality has set up restrictive measures that prohibit private residents in Groot Aub from creating boreholes that could benefit the community.
“Private residents want to drill their boreholes to help the community with the water crisis but are restricted,” Adams said.
According to city spokesperson Harold Akwenye, these measures were taken to ensure that Groot Aub “develops in a controlled manner”.
He said that the restriction on drilling boreholes is to prevent the possibility of water
contamination that might be experienced in Windhoek if the boreholes in Groot Aub are not made to standard.
“These measures were taken to ensure the best development for Groot Aub,” Akwenye said.
A resident who did not wish to be named said that she feels uneasy talking about the impact the city council has had on Groot Aub, but that she does feel that one of the biggest challenges they face in Groot Aub is the water crisis.
“I don’t agree with their (council) decision to take us (Groot Aub) from being a settlement to giving us a town status that falls under city council. We could have benefited more as a village,” she said.
However, Akwenye rubbished claims of water shortage saying: “I am not aware of such.”