Okahandja as residents question Mayor’s silence
Frustration is mounting among residents of Okahandja, who claim that since the swearing-in of Mayor Ileni Mutumbulwa on 12 December 2025, there has been little to no visible engagement or progress in addressing pressing community concerns. During the Easter weekend, Network Media Hub visited several informal settlements in and around the town, where residents expressed deep disappointment over what they describe as an absence of leadership and communication from the Mayor’s office. One resident, who preferred to remain anonymous, voiced confusion and disconnection from local leadership: “My daughter, I do not even know who the new mayor is.” Another resident, speaking out in visible distress, added: “Other mayors in other towns are busy, but the one from Okahandja is like a ghost. We do not want to compare, but for how long must we suffer because of our leader?”
Many residents highlighted the lack of community meetings with the mayor, particularly in informal settlements, where living conditions remain dire. Community members say they have not been given a platform to engage directly with the Mayor or raise their concerns. Social commentator Jakob Naomab also took to social media, expressing what he described as a “deep sense of urgency and growing frustration” among the electorate. In his statement, he reminded the town’s leadership of the promises made during the election period. “We entrusted you with leadership, believing in your promises of change, development and improved living conditions. Yet today, that hope is fading,” Naomab wrote.
He pointed to ongoing service delivery failures, including deteriorating road conditions marked by potholes, blocked and overflowing sewage systems, persistent foul odours in residential areas, and non-functional street lights that leave communities vulnerable at night. “These are not new problems, but they are problems you committed to addressing,” he emphasised. “Leadership is not a title, it is a responsibility. Silence and inaction in the face of these challenges are unacceptable.” Residents stressed these sentiments, stressing that issues such as waste accumulation, sewage spillages and infrastructure decay have worsened over the past years. Promises such as the writing off of pensioners’ water bills have, according to community members, failed to materialise while in other towns it did materlise.
Criticism has also been directed at local councillors, with some residents alleging a lack of concrete plans to address the town’s challenges. Others have expressed cynicism about political motivations, suggesting that campaign promises have given way to self-interest. “Right now, politics feels like a game of survival for those in power, not service to the people,” said one resident. “What we see is not what we were promised.”
Efforts by Network Media Hub to obtain the event calendar for the mayor with the community from the Okahandja Municipality have so far been unsuccessful as well as reaching out to the mayor herself. Requests made to the municipality’s Public Relations Office for information on the Mayor’s planned engagements or community outreach initiatives have not received a response. As dissatisfaction grows, residents are calling for greater visibility, accountability and urgent intervention from those elected to lead.
The residents say that the time for promises has long passed, and what is now needed from the mayor and her council team is action to restore Okahandja to its “Garden Town” title.
