Villagers In Namibian Village Demand Halt In Sand Mining Activity

Villagers of Ondado C in Oniipa are demanding a complete halt to the sand mining activities in the area.

The community has further lashed out at the Ondonga Traditional Authority as well as environment minister Pohamba Shifeta after an appeal meeting on the sand mining activities was postponed at the eleventh hour.

This is the second time that the meeting is suddenly postponed. The meeting sought to iron out a long standing conflict between the OTA that was granted a mining licence to extract sand at Ondado C against the wishes of the community.

In June, that licence was revoked following complaints from the community, of which the environmental commissioner Timoteus Mufeti found that the OTA has transgressed after the extraction activities interfered with underground water.

The OTA was then given until August 30 to rectify the issue. However, this was not done, forcing the line minister to intervene and mediate in seeking a lasting solution. The first meeting a few months ago also failed to materialise after none of the representatives from the OTA turned up. The latest meeting was postponed