Renthia Kaimbi
The minister of Urban and Rural Development, James Sankwasa, has slammed the Katima Mulilo town, calling it “a total mess” after a fire gutted the council’s town planning and land management building and revealed deeper governance problems within the institution.
The fire broke out shortly after midnight last Friday and severely damaged the building.
The Katima Mulilo Fire Brigade managed to contain the fire but when council officials tried to report the incident, they faced resistance from the police.
Sankwasa said the fire was deliberate, adding that police officers refused to open a case until the intervention of deputy commissioner Joseph Nehemia.
“They went to report a case [of arson], but the police refused to open the case until the involvement of deputy commissioner Nehemia. Now ask yourself, is it a government building that burnt down? These are government employees who are employed in the police force, but they refused to open and investigate the case. This incident shows a rot in the police force. There is a police rot in the Katima police force. It requires a total overhaul,” Sankwasa said.
He said this was not an isolated incident, pointing to two previous cases that remain unresolved, including a break-in at the council’s human resources office.
“The matter was reported, until now, the police never investigated. This is the third case… Now, who are they working for?” he asked.
The fire and the police response have drawn attention to a separate controversy involving an illegal storeroom built on council grounds by Diamond Factory Company CC.
The structure appeared behind the main council offices in May 2025 after the company delivered a large consignment of water pipes without a purchase order or official documents.
In September, the supplier allegedly submitted an invoice and delivery note for payment even though the council had not ordered the materials. Senior officials, including chief executive officer Raphael Liswaniso, denied any knowledge of the storeroom.
When Sankwasa made a surprise inspection in late September, he ordered the storeroom unlocked and instructed the police to guard it and open a formal investigation.
“I am aware of that storage. There are private sanitation construction materials that are stored on the council premises, where it was alleged that it was in cahoots with staff members of the town council. A police case was opened for trespassing and damaging property because this storeroom was connected to the government building and caused damage to its wall. Police never came to investigate, and I don’t think they are going to investigate,” said Sankwasa.
Council employees working in nearby offices said the structure blocks their windows and creates poor working conditions. One staff member said, “Where we operate is like a prison cell.”
Documents seen by the Windhoek Observer show that the materials were brought onto the council premises soon after the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development released funds for sanitation and water supply in Katima. This happened before any tenders were advertised.
The company’s supply contract expired on 30 October 2023 but was extended on 25 April 2024 for another five years, until 30 April 2029, allegedly without proper procurement procedures.
“That is something that the auditors are busy with, because they have to go through every transaction. But I tell you that Katima Mulilo is a total mess. Total mess!” said Sankwasa.
