Martin Endjala
The National Unity Democratic Organisation’s (NUDO) secretary general and member of parliament, Joseph Kauandenge, says he is disheartened to note that the Swapo-led delimitation commission is targeting the Zambezi region again.
He said that for over 34 years of independence, the Swapo party had overlooked and disadvantaged the region.
“If one takes into account the proposed regional boundaries in the Kavango Region, it is clear that they want to divide this region into smaller constituencies not to make it easier to serve the residents there but to make it easier to control them and to impoverish them even further,” he said.
Kauandenge responded to questions sent to him by this publication on Monday, following concerns raised by Blessing Manda, the chairperson and leader of the Zambezi Development Association committee.
Kauandenge said it is time to tell the Swapo-led delimitation commission that they must not use the commission body for political experience or to advance the Swapo agenda of divide and rule.
He urged the inhabitants of Kavango to resist the Swapo-led government’s encroachment on their territory.
He urged the locals to reject the newly proposed boundaries for the Kavango Region.
Blessing Manda said every political party must give answers to the people of Zambezi before the 2024 elections and before collecting votes from affected and disturbed voters in Zambezi.
Manda said that no political party has come to the Zambezi people’s aid, leaving them to fight for themselves, and that they only know how to win votes rather than care for the people’s well-being.
“The Zambezi Region is smaller, one of the poorest and least developed regions in Namibia. It is faced with the fear of extinction because Botswana keeps expanding into the region despite the 2018 Treaty, which the people of Zambezi are not happy with.
“Kavango Region is also expanding into the Zambezi Region without proper consultation or joining regional meetings for peaceful information and agreement.
Surprisingly, inside our own country, we vote for our own trusted Swapo-led government to expand the Kavango Region into a smaller Zambezi Region,” he argued.
He said the Zambezi people don’t trust the delimitation commission and are unhappy. In addition, Manda argues that the Swapo government is dividing the Kavango Region into three regions: Kavango West, Kavango Central, and Kavango East.
Expanding again into the Zambezi Region while avoiding expanding Kavango into Ohangwena, Oshikoto, and Otjozondjupa, which is bigger than the Zambezi Region.
He further stated that opposition parties are also involved in approving the unfair treatment of the people of Zambezi.
According to him, Kavango has submitted a proposal to the government to divide Kavango into three regions with the aim of accelerating development while reducing Zambezi.
He accuses the government of denying the region’s people the ability to create two regions for Zambezi East and Zambezi West to speed up development, control regional diseases or outbreaks, and create employment.
“Botswana, despite being given Kasikili and more land in the 2018 Treaty BDF, still threatens people on new boundaries, and our own government is busy expanding Kavango into the Zambezi region. We want to remain in the 1992 delimitation commission,” said Manda.
He is demanding political parties answer and attend the Zambezi Regional Conference 2024 on national and regional boundaries on 30 September 2024.
