Renthia Kaimbi
Minister of Urban and Rural Development James Sankwasa has raised concerns over what he describes as a rapid and unverified increase in the number of traditional authorities across Namibia, warning that overlapping jurisdictions are creating confusion over the administration of communal land.
Speaking to the Windhoek Observer yesterday following a week-long consultation meeting with traditional authorities held in Otjiwarongo last month, Sankwasa said his ministry has asked traditional chiefs to prove their lineage to the throne.
The move, he explained, is intended to help the ministry better amend the Communal Land Act, as there are currently too many custodians of communal land within the same area.
“Each traditional authority must give traditional perspective. If you are a chief, who did you inherit from. Because, we have a mushrooming of chiefs,” said Sankwasa.
According to the minister, in 1998 there were only 34 recognised traditional authorities, a number that has since increased to over 50 today, with many others awaiting recognition.
He said his ministry requested chiefs to provide proof of their lineage in terms of areas of jurisdiction due to existing conflicts, noting that some chiefs are currently recognised in areas where there are already recognised traditional leaders.
“If you have an overlap of three traditional authorities in one area, how do they administer the Communal Land Act? To who should the people go? That is the basis of what we want to know,” he said.
Sankwasa stressed that the effort to establish lineage and history does not mean any traditional authority will be degazetted.
He said the consultation in Otjiwarongo is part of a broader process to amend the Traditional Authorities Act and the Council of Traditional Leaders Act.
“We have to involve them in that before it is tabled in parliament. They need to also have an input in that. There are too many chiefs. Now, where do all these other chiefs come from?” said Sankwasa.
He questioned how one tribe with a single language could have three to five different chiefs who were not present even before independence.
“That’s the problem,” he said, adding that the current state of the Traditional Authorities Act makes administration very difficult.
Sankwasa argued that these contradictions hinder government’s ability to enforce areas of jurisdiction and the act itself.
“Who is in charge of that communal land when there are three chiefs responsible for that communal area?” he asserted.
He cited the Damara tribe as an example, noting that they are traditionally meant to have a Gaob (paramount chief) and were initially represented by Gaob Justus Garoëb.
“Just like any other tribe in Namibia, they have a Gaob. The Gaob is traditionally the paramount chief. Then under that Gaob, there are various district Dana-khoebs (headmen). So, right now, we don’t have any Dana-khoebs in Namibia. Every district is having a chief. Now, who is going to be a chief and who is going to be a Dana-khoeb?” Sankwasa asserted.
He explained that below Justus Garoëb there were headmen whom Garoëb had appointed, but currently Garoëb has no area of jurisdiction and is no longer recognised anywhere.
“The people that he was in charge of, are now recognised. That’s what I found at the ministry. How do you administer that as a minister?” he stated.
Sankwasa made it clear that chiefs who cannot prove their lineage to royal bloodlines must return to serving as district headmen.
“Then it means they are not a chief and they must go back to the level where they are district headmen. Because you cannot just start a new traditional authority. How?” he questioned.
He further explained that establishing a new traditional authority requires an area of jurisdiction and demarcation.
“And who is going to demarcate that boundary? Is it government or who? At the moment, we have a lot of traditional authorities, because they are recognised without land and recognised even without any territory.”
The minister criticised the system he inherited, saying government had been recognising chiefs without the responsibility of demarcating territories for them.
“Government was just recognising them and leaving them to go and fight. That’s why there is a conflict in the community, because now, they are recognised and left to fight for land themselves,” he said.
He warned that nearly every area now wants a traditional authority.
“And where is Namibia going to end up, because this is creating disunity. Total disunity and a lot of conflict. If we think we have a stable Namibia, very soon, we’re going to have an unstable country.”
Sankwasa also noted that unrecognised chiefs have fallen prey to people seeking to occupy communal land.
He maintained that district headmen who previously served under chiefs do not qualify to become chiefs.
