Questions over land conference remain
A pressure group claims that the president's decision to put the prime minister's office in charge of organising the second national land conference shows that he has lost confidence in his lands minister.
The Landless People's Movement (LPM) says President Hage Geingob's decision to move the responsibility of organising the country's much-anticipated second land conference to the prime minister's office showed that he has lost confidence in lands minister Utoni Nujoma.
According to LPM leader Clinton Swartbooi, who had previously served as Nujoma's deputy, before a public spat with his senior over the country's land resettlement process cost him his post, Geingob had essentially appointed prime minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila as the country's lands minister.
This, Swartbooi said, was because the person organising the conference will ultimately be responsible for the implementation of any resolutions taken.
While announcing several changes to his cabinet last Thursday, Geingob took the opportunity to disclose that he had moved the responsibility to organise the land conference to Kuugongelwa-Amadhila's office, in order to ensure inclusivity. He also announced that the conference, which was delayed indefinitely last year, would take place this year.
“When you have a substantive minster running a ministry and you take away some of the tasks assigned to him, then you essentially say you cannot entrust him with these tasks. It is a declaration of no confidence. Why is Utoni still there? He is given a free cheque every month,” Swartbooi said this week in response to the president's announcement.
He further questioned Kuugongelwa-Amadhila's capabilities, saying that despite her being the country's longest-serving prime minister, she has failed to transform the public sector and would therefore not be up to this new task.
“[In fact] we do not think government is mature and we are not confident that government can deal with the issue of ancestral land and urban land, in order to address the informal settlement crisis. I do not think government is mature enough and has the capacity of willingness to address this at all,” he said.
The second land conference was postponed by Geingob last year to allow for more consultations.
It is set to review about 24 resolutions taken by the first national land conference that was held in 1991, in an attempt to find solutions to the burning and emotive land issue.
One of biggest issues with which the upcoming conference will be grapple with is that of ancestral land, which has been raised by a number of opposition parties, many whom have threatened to host their own land conferences.
Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) leader McHenry Venaani welcomed Geingob's announcement that the prime minister will now carry the weight of the responsibility to organise the land conference, as this raises the urgency of the matter.
He added that the PDM was yet to hold its own land conference, at which it will seek to offer a “contemporary approach”.
Uhuru Dempers from the Civil Society Working Group on Land Reform said Geingob had in fact announced what they had asked for.
“We have been writing letters to the president, asking him to host the land conference under the PM's office and that of the president, because we believe that would allow for input from more people,” he said.
JEMIMA BEUKES
According to LPM leader Clinton Swartbooi, who had previously served as Nujoma's deputy, before a public spat with his senior over the country's land resettlement process cost him his post, Geingob had essentially appointed prime minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila as the country's lands minister.
This, Swartbooi said, was because the person organising the conference will ultimately be responsible for the implementation of any resolutions taken.
While announcing several changes to his cabinet last Thursday, Geingob took the opportunity to disclose that he had moved the responsibility to organise the land conference to Kuugongelwa-Amadhila's office, in order to ensure inclusivity. He also announced that the conference, which was delayed indefinitely last year, would take place this year.
“When you have a substantive minster running a ministry and you take away some of the tasks assigned to him, then you essentially say you cannot entrust him with these tasks. It is a declaration of no confidence. Why is Utoni still there? He is given a free cheque every month,” Swartbooi said this week in response to the president's announcement.
He further questioned Kuugongelwa-Amadhila's capabilities, saying that despite her being the country's longest-serving prime minister, she has failed to transform the public sector and would therefore not be up to this new task.
“[In fact] we do not think government is mature and we are not confident that government can deal with the issue of ancestral land and urban land, in order to address the informal settlement crisis. I do not think government is mature enough and has the capacity of willingness to address this at all,” he said.
The second land conference was postponed by Geingob last year to allow for more consultations.
It is set to review about 24 resolutions taken by the first national land conference that was held in 1991, in an attempt to find solutions to the burning and emotive land issue.
One of biggest issues with which the upcoming conference will be grapple with is that of ancestral land, which has been raised by a number of opposition parties, many whom have threatened to host their own land conferences.
Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) leader McHenry Venaani welcomed Geingob's announcement that the prime minister will now carry the weight of the responsibility to organise the land conference, as this raises the urgency of the matter.
He added that the PDM was yet to hold its own land conference, at which it will seek to offer a “contemporary approach”.
Uhuru Dempers from the Civil Society Working Group on Land Reform said Geingob had in fact announced what they had asked for.
“We have been writing letters to the president, asking him to host the land conference under the PM's office and that of the president, because we believe that would allow for input from more people,” he said.
JEMIMA BEUKES
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