Martin Endjala
The Windhoek High Court has ruled that the suspension of the entire Karasburg Town Council, imposed in March by Urban and Rural Development Minister Erastus Uutoni, was unlawful.
The court’s decision, delivered last week, effectively reinstates the council members, who had been removed from office earlier this year.
Presiding Judge Beatrix de Jager declared the minister’s decision null and void.
The notice: “I declare that all powers, duties and functions of the Town Council of Karasburg vested in me; suspend, without remuneration or allowances, all the members of the Town Council of Karasburg from office, with effect from the date of publication of this notice in the Government Gazette” was declared unlawful, null and void ab initio, reviewed and set aside.
Judge de Jager stated that the matter had been finalised and removed from the roll.
The suspended council members included Maria Veldskoen, Elia Hauwanga, Gregorius Ruhl, Frieda Amutenya, Nesmus Mupiya, Josef Witbooi, and Fransiskus Skeyer. Of these, four represented the Landless People’s Movement (LPM), while Swapo and the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) had two and one representative, respectively.
The suspension followed allegations of mismanagement within the Karasburg Town Council. Uutoni had expressed concerns over several issues, including the illegal changing of banking signatory powers, unauthorised appointments, misuse of a council vehicle assigned to Veldskoen, and involvement of council members in awarding tenders.
He revealed that payments exceeding N$900 000 had been made from the council’s accounts without proper authorization. Uutoni directed the council to reverse these actions and restore the rightful signatory powers.
In October 2023, Uutoni reiterated his frustration with the council, threatening to exercise his authority as Namibia’s custodian of local authorities.
He described his decision as a final attempt to address the council’s disregard for his office’s directives.
Over the weekend, LPM spokesperson Lifalaza Simaata told the Windhoek Observer that the ruling is a sign that the ruling party, which attempted to demonstrate its power by suspending the council on baseless corruption charges, will not intimidate LPM.
“When LPM won the case, the ministry didn’t even bother coming to court as they had no case. Legally, we once again show that we will not be bullied by SWAPO,” he stated.
Simaata said the councillors need to catch up on their work and assess the current situation in Karasburg, balancing urgent matters with aligned goals.
According to MURD executive director Daniel Nghidinua, the ministry would consult its lawyers on the court ruling to determine their response.
During the suspension, the minister appointed Elize Laubscher, the former chief executive officer of the Aroab Village Council, as administrator to head the council’s affairs in the interim.
Internal power struggles have marked the town’s situation, including the controversial appointment of Hansina Isaaks as acting CEO while Nico Titus, the substantive CEO, remained in office.
This angered a lot of residents, who cited the move by the council as a waste of money that could have been used to tackle more pressing community issues.
The Karasburg Town Council is now expected to resume operations following the court’s decision, though questions remain about how the town’s leadership will address ongoing governance challenges.
The mayor of Karasburg, Maria Veldskoen, told the Windhoek Observer on Sunday that they were in a meeting to determine the way forward and the day for which all of them will be back in office.
