Rehoboth residents want better services amid N$261m budget

… Town wants N$51m for capital projects

Disgruntled Rehoboth residents are demanding better service delivery, while the Rehoboth Town Council tables a N$51 million development budget for capital projects.

In total the town council tabled a total budget of N$261 million for the 2024/2025 financial year.

Rehoboth-based community activist Loretta Smith on Sunday said residents have lost confidence in their regional leadership as several attempts to get feedback on crucial development aspects, such as the connection of electricity, have been met with silence.

The affected areas are: Karanas, Naris, Tsumis College, Tsumispark, Duineveld, Schlip, Groendraai, Khauxas, Klipgat, Kalkrand, Rietoog, Omamas and Klein Aub.

“Failure to provide these villages/settlements with electricity has kept the residents of these areas behind in terms of communication, safety and progress after 34 years of the independence of Namibia. We remain primitive and traditional and are plagued by societal evils such as crime and substance abuse,” Smith said.

Smith further said these areas have no active community development committees.

“Decentralisation is not applied, making it difficult to believe the validation of reports escalated to top management,” Smith said.

Community members have petitioned rural and urban development minister Erastus Uutoni regarding their concerns.

However, Uutoni has not yet responded to queries sent to him last week.

The petition, signed by over 700 residents, raises the need for reliable electrification, secure water and sanitation services, improved health and safety services and active community development committees.

It also highlights issues with road infrastructure, education and local tender processes, as well as the absence of new micro projects in the last three years.

BUDGET FOR SERVICE DELIVERY

Meanwhile, Rehoboth acting chief executive Ronald Windswaai on Monday confirmed that the council’s N$51,4 million development budget will focus on service delivery.

“Our funding capital projects amounting to N$37 516, 60 are earmarked for the following priority areas: lay-out of new extensions, prepaid meter replacement for both water and electricity, two recreational parks, construction of open markets in Block E and B, streetlights, upgrading of information and communications technology infrastructure and transformer replacement, among other intended developments,” the council noted in a recent media statement.

During a community meeting last week, the council’s finance manager Zeino Theron said their expenditure budget decreased by 5%, compared to last year’s budget.

“However, it makes provisions for staff expenses N$72 965 563, general expenses N$110 034 153, repair and maintenance N$13 535 510, as well as capital expenditure N$64 996 920,” Theron said.

Theron noted, however, that there won’t be any increment of tariffs for the next financial year.

About N$14,5 million of the council’s budget will be from the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development and the Road Fund Administration (RFA).

“Regarding the external funding of the budget, the council has been allocated N$3 525 903 for construction of services and an additional N$7 000 000 for the rehabilitation of oxidation ponds from the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development,” noted Rehoboth Town Council spokesperson Desire Pieters.

The RFA further made N$4 033 500 available for the maintenance and construction of roads,” Pieters said.

In her remarks, Rehoboth mayor Amanda Groenewaldt noted: “As part of our efforts to remain transparent and to be held accountable by the electorate, this initiative is a necessary and required process of measuring our performance in the delivery of services and revenue collection, therefore holding management, as well as the political representatives, accountable for their day-to-day performances.”

Although the meeting was highly engaging and informative, the turnout by Rehoboth residents was disappointingly poor.