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Anna Shiweda, deputy minister at the Ministry of Water, said that those who dug traditional wells in search of water in many parts of the country were doing so to avoid paying for drinking water provided by the government.
Mr. Shiweda made these remarks at the National Assembly on Tuesday while explaining the recent incident in which two people tragically lost their lives when a traditional well that they were digging in it's collapsed.
The two people were identified as Kashima Juniors Hauwanga, 29, and Jacob Hangula, 36, from Okatope Village, in Ohangwena constituency.
In his statement, Shiweda added that both were hired to dig the well by the owner of the family property where the well is located.
"Although the deceased died while he was looking for water, we wish to confirm that there is no water crisis in the village. Okatope, "she said.
According to her, there are about six water points in the village of Okatope whose "two of them are near the farm where the incident occurred" . She clarified that there were two water points, one within a radius of 900 meters and the other within a radius of one kilometer, of said homestead, which are equipped with a cattle trough.
"This indicates that the village of Okatope is within the 2.5 km radius set by the ministry," she said.
The deputy minister, however, hinted that the current drought had favored the digging of wells in several parts of the country, particularly in the village of Okatope, because the villagers wanted to "provide water to their homes. animals from other activities instead of using running water, which is considered expensive. "
She added that it was not necessary for the deceased to dig the traditional well when water points were available in this area.
"I can not tell you why they did not use the water provided by the government, located 900 meters from this farm. One of the reasons may be that running water can be considered expensive and that water has to be obtained. [underground water] to use for construction or for other purposes. So they did what they had to do because they had been hired, but they did not need to dig that well, because the water points were available, "she said. .
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