Land activists say they won't give up

The Landless People's Movement has indicated its intention to approach the ombudsman to compel the land reform ministry to release its version of the resettlement programme beneficiaries list.According to LPM member Olsen Kahiriri, the list in the movement's possession would bring “disaster” if it was misinterpreted, hence their decision to hold onto it. “We want the ministry to release their list so that we can compare it with the list we have. “However, it is important to do this in a fair and just process which is why we will approach the ombudsman,” said Kahiriri. The group recently appealed to President Hage Geingob to order lands minister Utoni Nujoma to release the list of beneficiaries of the resettlement programme. However, Kahiriri claims the ministry has adamantly refused to release the list, claiming that it would promote tribalism. At a recent press conference, Nujoma claimed that more than 70% of the people from the Hardap and //Karas regions had been resettled in the two regions.But the LPM vehemently disputes these statistics, saying the list in their possession shows a completely different picture. Lubango tacticsThe LPM says it will remain peaceful and will not give in to the “Lubango tactics employed by the government to instigate civil violence”. The group condemned Swapo secretary-general Nangolo Mbumba's remark that the Namibian nation will judge former lands minister Bernadus Swartbooi for calling his former senior an idiot in parliament. According to LPM member Kahiriri these are tactics the party used in the Lubango dungeons to sow disunity among the people, a machination used to unleash mob justice. “We know that the secretary-general is used to a command system and that Lubango tendency must stop as you cannot control people to the extent of even supervising the air they breathe. The shooting of our people in Grootfontein on 17 February 2017 holding a peaceful demonstration by the police is a clear sign of dictatorship tendency of the tacticians of Lubango,” he said. Last week, some Grootfontein residents ended up in hospital after they were shot with rubber bullets and detained for grabbing land. “This will never deter us from claiming our land back. Our people are tired of the kleptocracy tendency in Namibia,” Kahiriri insisted. He said the LMP will be in Khorixas on 4 March to mobilise people, adding that the people of Khorixas have been abandoned by government for the past 27 years. “The Landless People's Movement and its members are tired of intolerance, greed, jealousy, suspicion, revenge, egotism, conceit, the tendency to reap where they have not sown and the habit of spending more than they earn of these politicians. We need leaders who have practical minds.”JEMIMA BEUKES

Land activists say they won't give up

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Namibian Sun 2026-01-12

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Land activists say they won't give up

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Namibian Sun 2026-01-12

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