Omaheke San Trust fights to keep properties
The Omaheke San Trust (OST) has reported a case of forgery with the Namibian police against illegal occupants of two properties in Gobabis that were given to the San community in the region for development purposes.
A development worker of the OST, Manfred Jacob, on 21 April claimed that the illegal occupants had falsified a document to give the impression that the OST intends to sell the properties at erven 217 and 218 on Roosevelt Street in Gobabis in an attempt to cover municipal debt of N$184 000 that has piled up over years.
Jacob said the OST has leased out the properties to Natasha Haufiku and Brigitte Konjore who in turn rented out the properties.
The Gobabis Magistrate's Court in October last year, however, ordered Haufiku and Konjore to vacate the premises. Jacob said the occupants refuse to leave and now purport to have reached an agreement with the chief, Frederick Langman of the #Kao-//'aesi Traditional Authority that the properties be sold.
According to a document entitled 'agreement of memo from the board of trustees', the “founding” board members have agreed to sell the houses because the OST is “unable to pay debts at the municipality”.
This document further states that the OST “does not exist anymore” and there are therefore no funds available to maintain the houses.
The document was signed by six board members on 23 February. However, former trustee member Willem Ryperd's signature is also on this document. But according to a death certificate issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration, Ryperd died in October 2002 of acute respiratory and circulatory failure.
“The illegal occupants have clearly falsified the document because they want to sell the houses to cover their debts, which they wanted to transfer onto the OST,” said Jacob.
Another 'agreement of memo' signed in March by allegedly two-thirds of the board members states that a “group of people” claiming to be “new” board members should “stay away” from the properties on Roosevelt Street and that “caretakers” Konjore and Joe Haufiku “be allowed to stay” there until such time that they are asked to vacate the premises.
Chief Langman, Jacob and other senior councillors at the end of March wrote a letter to the Omaheke governor Festus Ueitele in which they request that the governor intervenes and assists the San community to get rid of the illegal occupants.
“It is a known fact the San people are law-abiding citizens and do not want to take the law into their own hands, and thus want the regional leadership to intervene and rescue their properties,” they requested.
Catherine Sasman
A development worker of the OST, Manfred Jacob, on 21 April claimed that the illegal occupants had falsified a document to give the impression that the OST intends to sell the properties at erven 217 and 218 on Roosevelt Street in Gobabis in an attempt to cover municipal debt of N$184 000 that has piled up over years.
Jacob said the OST has leased out the properties to Natasha Haufiku and Brigitte Konjore who in turn rented out the properties.
The Gobabis Magistrate's Court in October last year, however, ordered Haufiku and Konjore to vacate the premises. Jacob said the occupants refuse to leave and now purport to have reached an agreement with the chief, Frederick Langman of the #Kao-//'aesi Traditional Authority that the properties be sold.
According to a document entitled 'agreement of memo from the board of trustees', the “founding” board members have agreed to sell the houses because the OST is “unable to pay debts at the municipality”.
This document further states that the OST “does not exist anymore” and there are therefore no funds available to maintain the houses.
The document was signed by six board members on 23 February. However, former trustee member Willem Ryperd's signature is also on this document. But according to a death certificate issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration, Ryperd died in October 2002 of acute respiratory and circulatory failure.
“The illegal occupants have clearly falsified the document because they want to sell the houses to cover their debts, which they wanted to transfer onto the OST,” said Jacob.
Another 'agreement of memo' signed in March by allegedly two-thirds of the board members states that a “group of people” claiming to be “new” board members should “stay away” from the properties on Roosevelt Street and that “caretakers” Konjore and Joe Haufiku “be allowed to stay” there until such time that they are asked to vacate the premises.
Chief Langman, Jacob and other senior councillors at the end of March wrote a letter to the Omaheke governor Festus Ueitele in which they request that the governor intervenes and assists the San community to get rid of the illegal occupants.
“It is a known fact the San people are law-abiding citizens and do not want to take the law into their own hands, and thus want the regional leadership to intervene and rescue their properties,” they requested.
Catherine Sasman
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