Usakos stand-off haunts children

THE seizure of the Hakhaseb multi-purpose community centre-kindergarten at Usakos on Monday has left many children and their family members traumatised.

Usakos Municipal personnel, accompanied by armed Police officers, stormed the centre on Monday and locked the complex. Angry mothers told The Namibian yesterday that their children were having nightmares and anxiety attacks during the night.”The children are scared that the Police will come and lock them up,” said Fielie Walda, whose one-year-old daughter attends the kindergarten.”The children are asking if they have to go to prison.They do not understand what happened.They are scared of the guns,” said two mothers, Belinda Guriras and Alencia Tsuses.Magnus Uirirab, a young man whose little nephew attends the kindergarten, remarked that even he was scared when he saw the Police in camouflage uniforms armed with AK47s and pistols.The centre, where leader of the Concerned Group (CG) Daniel Stramiss works as an administrative officer, has become a point of dispute in the drawn-out battle between the community and the Town Council.Since the CG has expressed concern over a N$15 000 study loan granted to Municipal Treasurer, Chris Shivolo earlier this year, the Municipality has appeared intent on taking away the keys of the centre.A large crowd of community members gathered outside the centre yesterday to protest the action taken by the Municipality.They became angry and aggressive as they voiced their opposition.”It is extremely unfair to send the Police here,” said Magdalena Kwandjomudi, the teacher who founded the kindergarten in 1991.”We approached the donor agency, Council donated the land and today they want to kick us out.”The kindergarten cannot be drawn into politics.We have children here of all races.”Kwandjomudi said she had had it with the Police.”Two weeks ago eight bontpakke (Police in camouflage uniforms) came to my house with guns looking for Stramiss.They broke down doors, overturned beds and emptied my fridge and cupboards without a court order.”Other people said they could not understand why Council was acting this way.”The Prime Minister came to open the centre.The whole Council was present in support.So why are they doing this? It is very unfair,” said Cecilia Garises.The crowd’s level of agitation increased when Mayor Michael Goreseb drove past in his Mercedes Benz just after 13h00.Several woman ran after him, trying to stop him, but to no avail.”You see what we mean.They do not want to talk to us,” said a mother, Nicolene Keis.A former Mayor of Usakos, Abius Uirab, who took part in the demonstration, expressed a sentiment shared by many other community members:”They [Stramiss and Shivolo] have to sit down and talk.”Many people felt it was a personal matter that has now become a battle fought in the newspapers.The stand-off between the two parties continued yesterday.The locks remained on the gates of the centre, and the complex was left without power and water.Women were making pap on a fire outside for the children.In the afternoon, the Mayor agreed to meet with the kindergarten committee, parents and community members on Tuesday, but said the Council resolution would stand until the problem was solved.According to him, Council had been left with no option but to lock the gates and cut the services,as the kindergarten staff had refused to meet with them.He claimed the motivation for the Council resolution was to address alleged “corruption” at the centre.”The hall is rented out without our knowledge and no record is kept of the money.We have to stop this practice as we want proper control of Municipal assets.”Stramiss said it had been agreed that the kindergarten could rent out the hall as a means to raise funds for the school.”The school fee is only N$25 a month for parents who can afford it.We need additional funds to keep it running.”He said the hall had only been rented out a couple of times and they had not collected more than N$450 for the kindergarten.Shivolo claimed the Police were called on Monday because they “expected resistance as some people are violent”.He did not see a problem with the Police being armed, saying that was the way they operated.Angry mothers told The Namibian yesterday that their children were having nightmares and anxiety attacks during the night.”The children are scared that the Police will come and lock them up,” said Fielie Walda, whose one-year-old daughter attends the kindergarten.”The children are asking if they have to go to prison.They do not understand what happened.They are scared of the guns,” said two mothers, Belinda Guriras and Alencia Tsuses.Magnus Uirirab, a young man whose little nephew attends the kindergarten, remarked that even he was scared when he saw the Police in camouflage uniforms armed with AK47s and pistols.The centre, where leader of the Concerned Group (CG) Daniel Stramiss works as an administrative officer, has become a point of dispute in the drawn-out battle between the community and the Town Council.Since the CG has expressed concern over a N$15 000 study loan granted to Municipal Treasurer, Chris Shivolo earlier this year, the Municipality has appeared intent on taking away the keys of the centre.A large crowd of community members gathered outside the centre yesterday to protest the action taken by the Municipality.They became angry and aggressive as they voiced their opposition.”It is extremely unfair to send the Police here,” said Magdalena Kwandjomudi, the teacher who founded the kindergarten in 1991.”We approached the donor agency, Council donated the land and today they want to kick us out.”The kindergarten cannot be drawn into politics.We have children here of all races.”Kwandjomudi said she had had it with the Police.”Two weeks ago eight bontpakke (Police in camouflage uniforms) came to my house with guns looking for Stramiss.They broke down doors, overturned beds and emptied my fridge and cupboards without a court order.”Other people said they could not understand why Council was acting this way.”The Prime Minister came to open the centre.The whole Council was present in support.So why are they doing this? It is very unfair,” said Cecilia Garises.The crowd’s level of agitation increased when Mayor Michael Goreseb drove past in his Mercedes Benz just after 13h00.Several woman ran after him, trying to stop him, but to no avail.”You see what we mean.They do not want to talk to us,” said a mother, Nicolene Keis.A former Mayor of Usakos, Abius Uirab, who took part in the demonstration, expressed a sentiment shared by many other community members:”They [Stramiss and Shivolo] have to sit down and talk.”Many people felt it was a personal matter that has now become a battle fought in the newspapers.The stand-off between the two parties continued yesterday.The locks remained on the gates of the centre, and the complex was left without power and water.Women were making pap on a fire outside for the children.In the afternoon, the Mayor agreed to meet with the kindergarten committee, parents and community members on Tuesday, but said the Council resolution would stand until the problem was solved.According to him, Council had been left with no option but to lock the gates and cut the services,as the kindergarten staff had refused to meet with them.He claimed the motivation for the Council resolution was to address alleged “corruption” at the centre.”The hall is rented out without our knowledge and no record is kept of the money.We have to stop this practice as we want proper control of Municipal assets.”Stramiss said it had been agreed that the kindergarten could rent out the hall as a means to raise funds for the school.”The school fee is only N$25 a month for parents who can afford it.We need additional funds to keep it running.”He said the hall had only been rented out a couple of times and they had not collected more than N$450 for the kindergarten.Shivolo claimed the Police were called on Monday because they “expected resistance as some people are violent”.He did not see a problem with the Police being armed, saying that was the way they operated.