Africa-Press – Namibia. MORE than 3 000 residents of Endombo at Tsumeb face eviction after they have been served with an eviction order last week.
The residents, who are mainly low-income earners and unemployed youths, claim Christo Groenewald served them an old notice of eviction.
The Namibian yesterday spoke to some Endombo residents who claim Groenewald increases the rent by 10% in April each year.
They say this makes their lives difficult.
One of the residents, Martin Martinus, who has been living at Endombo since 2004, says he and other residents were brought to the compound by Groenewald, and they signed a contract with him.
Martinus says since 2007, his rent was increased by 10% each April.
“Houses differ, same with the rental fees. Some people pay N$800 and some pay N$1 000 per month. It became hard for us, and in 2017 we decided to stop paying rent,” Martinus says.
According to Martinus, residents asked Groenewald to provide them with a title deed proving that he owns the land, which turned out to be fake.
“He gave us a paper of ownership with a number 3258/2006. When we called the Deeds Office, they told us that the title deed belongs to someone at Katima Mulilo, which means he has fake documents.”
Martinus says Groenewald took the residents to the High Court and won the case.
“We appealed the case and took it to the Supreme Court, which said no one should be evicted until the case is finalised, but Groenewald decided to issue a notice of eviction,” Martinus says.
The eviction notice was served to residents last Friday by the messenger of the court.
“They said they will come back tomorrow (Tuesday) to evict us but we are waiting for them. This is an old hostel. Where did he find those fake documents? He is not the owner,” says Martinus.
Another resident, Simon Eiseb, lived at Endombo since 2000.
“The authorities are saying the compound belongs to him [Groenewald]. There are a lot of people living here. There are unemployed people, old people and small children,” Eiseb says.
“I have been here for 22 years. Where will we go? We are over 4 000 residents staying in this compound.”
Contacted for comment, former information and communication technology deputy minister Engel Nawatiseb says Groenewald asked him to find a buyer for the compound five months ago.
Nawatiseb says when he realised there was trouble between Groenewald and the residents, he decided to withdraw from the matter.
“I am not a police officer to evict people. It is not my business to do that. There is a court order that instructs people to be evicted with the aid of the police. Not me,” Nawatiseb says.
Malasa Elifas, a member of the Tsumeb Community Concerned Group, told The Namibian that the Tsumeb municipality and the regional council assert that the compound belongs to Groenewald.
Elifas says Groenewald, the Tsumeb municipality and the regional council do not have evidence to prove who the rightful owner of the compound is.
“The erf number given by Groenewald is not his. After consulting the Deeds Office, it came out that the erf number belongs to someone at Katima Mulilo and is not under Groenewald’s name,” says Elifas.
Elifas says the property is not owned by anyone, but belongs to the former Ongopolo Mine.
“We want to know the person who owns the property so that we can find an amicable solution.”
Elifas says the town’s mayor assured residents that the eviction would not take place today.
Meanwhile, Tsumeb mayor Matheus Hangula says Groenewald is the rightful owner of the compound.
Hangula says he was informed that Groenewald acquired the compound from the Ongopolo Mine.
When contacted for comment, Groenewald confirmed his intent to evict the Endombo residents.
He says the court order was issued in 2017 and he only reinstated it.
“Politicians are meddling in the issues, making it become a long process. The minister of urban and rural development was here last August, and told me that the government is not responsible for buying properties from people,” Groenewald says.
He told The Namibian that Erastus Uutoni instructed the municipality to find alternative land for the residents.
“The people refused to move out of the land. Today, the mayor told me that he is waiting for a letter from the minister on the way forward,” he says.
Asked whether he worked with Nawatiseb, Groenewald says he only approached Nawatiseb because he owns an agency that seeks buyers for property.
“I had an intention to sell that property, but due to this problem, now I can’t. The property ownership was proven in court but they keep carrying on with the issue,” Groenewald says.
In March 2020, Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) leader McHenry Venaani tabled a motion in parliament for Endombo to be expropriated for fair compensation.
He proposed that the land be expropriated to establish decent housing for the residents.
Endombo has been a bone of contention since 2017, when Groenewald first wanted to evict defaulting tenants.
Speaking to The Namibian yesterday, Affirmative Repositioning movement (AR) activist Johannes Johannes said Groenewald claims to own Endombo.
“What is worrying is that there is no evidence that there was an advert to invite applicants to buy the compound. However, he took the residents to court and the court gave him the go-ahead to evict the residents,” says Johannes.
He says the residents stopped paying rent to Groenewald after they requested that he provide proof that he is the rightful owner.
“This compound has about 4 000 residents. Groenewald is now requesting the former mayor of Tsumeb, Engel Nawatiseb, to do the eviction on his behalf,” says Johannes.
He believes Groenewald simply wants to use Nawatiseb rather than confront residents himself.
“The whole thing is Groenewald wants to make money from Endombo, but without upgrading the houses. The compound is dirty and life threatening,” Johannes says.
He says Groenewald has not made any effort to renovate at Endombo, yet he is increasing rental fees.
“We will not allow the people to be evicted with no alternatives. The minister must come on board and give directions on what is going to happen.”
For More News And Analysis About Namibia Follow Africa-Press
