Africa-Press – Namibia. Gravel, dust, and uncertain navigation make the road to farm Eendrag an unpleasant one.
This road leads to the place where, just a month ago, a dagga (cannabis) plantation valued at more than N$52 million was uncovered on 29 May.
Before the discovery, trucks loaded with parcels of cannabis bound for Windhoek and Okahandja passed through the metal gates of the 1.55 hectare plantation on a daily basis.
To passers-by, farm Eendrag was just another of the many commercial farms near the sleepy settlement of Hochfeld.
Nothing seemed to indicate that on the other side of the fence, something more than sorghum was being planted.
Hitchhikers offer directions after we miss a turn-off and end up in Otjozondu instead.
“Pay attention to the turn that leads to the farm,” one hitchhiker familiar with the area offers.
We finally arrive at one of farm Eendrag’s first gates at 12h40. A worker unlocks the gate and allows our team to proceed to a second gate.
Here, three armed security officers are guarding the property.
Their job is to secure the plantation for the duration of an ongoing police investigation of farmowner and South African national David Strauss van der Linden (43).
Van der Linden was arrested on the day of the discovery alongside his co-accused Armand Carel Schultz (27) and Johannes Kamati (61).
The three are facing two charges: dealing in dependence-producing substances and the possession of drug-producing substances.
‘HE KNOWS THE LAW’
Since Van der Linden’s arrest, his 14 workers at Eendrag, a farm on the Hochfeld C30 road about 64km outside Osire, have been worried about what’s next for them.
One worker has been working here for the past 27 years.
When Van der Linden bought the farm from the previous owner eight years ago, he and some other workers stayed on.
The farm is home to him, his girlfriend, and their six children. He and other workers were last paid in June. The workers are now worried about getting paid for July.
“The wife [of Van der Linden] paid us our salaries for last month and left with the children to go to South Africa. We tried reaching them, but their phone is offline,” the worker says.
Van der Linden first started farming with cows, but decided to start a dagga plantation in December last year, he says.
A conversation with one of the other workers suggests there may have been a whistle-blower who acted out of revenge over unpaid wages.
“We tried to tell him that in Namibia, dagga plantations were not allowed, but he told us he knows the law,” another says.
Some say they have even been threatened.
The workers say they had a good relationship with their previous boss.
They have been working for Van der Linden for about eight years now.
“Van der Linden used to transport the dagga in the truck he used to take cows to different towns, such as Okahandja, Gobabis, Otjiwarongo, and Rundu.
“He hid the plantation from the wife, and when she found out about it she was not happy. But Van der Linden told her he knows the law,” one of the workers says.
One of the guards looking after the plantation says they have been working at the farm for a month and getting a salary of N$1 000.
The workers say regardless of his alleged dirty dealings Van der Linden was paying his employees, with the lowest-paid workers being paid N$2 500 a month.
A FAMILY TORN APART
Meanwhile, after Van der Linden’s driver, Johannes Kamati, was arrested with his boss, his wife’s life changed overnight.
The couple has been together for 24 years and married for eight. She now juggles raising five children along with two more from the extended family.
Kamati started working at farm Eendrag in 2022, initially employed as a truck driver transporting cattle.
As the cattle business began to slow down in late 2024, he became a general worker.
Despite his shift in roles, he expected that his employer would pay him for his services.
Kamati’s wife (name withheld) travelled from the farm on the night of the arrest, accompanied by their 15-year-old son.
She says the authorities found dagga worth N$2.8 million in the vehicle that day.
“As for me, I really didn’t know what he was transporting,” she says.
According to Kamati’s wife, he remains behind bars without appearing in court, as he cannot afford a lawyer.
It was only recently that she managed to secure legal counsel for him.
“My husband told the prosecutor that Van der Linden promised to get him a lawyer to represent him, but he never did. As a wife I decided to look for a lawyer for him,” she says.
Kamati’s wife is now trying to keep up with mounting legal expenses, transport to prison for visits, and maintaining her household responsibilities.
“The financial strain is heavy on my shoulders,” she says.
“Everything happened in the blink of an eye,” she says.
SHOCK, CONCERN
Meanwhile, Omatako constituency councillor Israel Hukura has expressed his shock and concern following the discovery of the alleged dagga plantation in the area.
Noting that in the past there had been occasional reports of individuals being arrested for the possession of drugs, the existence of a whole plantation was unexpected and alarming.
He urges residents of the Omatako constituency and Namibians at large to be law-abiding citizens.
“The ones being targeted will absolutely be the youth and this will have a negative impact on them mentally and psychologically,” he says.
“This is very disturbing for me, as a leader. There are so many other income-generating activities, like onion or potato farming that can be used to sustain livelihoods since we have abundance of water in the area,” Hukura says.
Otjozondjupa police spokesperson senior inspector Maureen Mbeha this week said no report has been recorded on the matter.
The Namibian also reached out to Van der Linden’s lawyer, Evert Gous, who did not reply by the time of going to print.
The farmworkers’ names are withheld to protect them against victimisation.
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