Placido Hilukilwa
THERE has been no noticeable decrease in people’s movements in the Omusati Region ever since a countrywide lockdown was implemented, lasting from 17 April to 4 May.
As result, the Namibian police in the region has now implemented additional measures, which include completely sealing off towns and other populated centres to prevent people’s movements from rural villages to towns and vice versa.
According to police spokesperson, Inspector Lineekela Shikongo, people were travelling to and from towns without apparent reasons or freely roaming the towns, utterly ignoring the lockdown regulations.
“We have now decided to completely seal off the towns. We will no longer allow people to leave or enter the towns without valid reason. Everyone travelling to or from one place to another must explain the reasons for his or her journey,” he said.
Shikongo also lamented the fact that people are still freely roaming the streets as if there is no lockdown and said that the police will now act more decisively to fully enforce the lockdown within towns.
Omusati Region has four towns – Okahao, Oshikuku, Outapi and Ruacana – and other important population centres such as Tsandi, Onesi and Onandjaba.
He also said that there are signs that border residents are still crossing into Angola illegally, mostly herders looking for their cattle that occasionally stray into the neighbouring country.
“If caught, such people would be quarantined for 14 days because they can easily carry the coronavirus across the border into Namibia,” he said.
Angola now has 27 confirmed cases of coronavirus, compared to Namibia’s 16.
