Staff Reporter
THE passerby Southern hamlet of Kalkrand can be the world record holder of a drug bust in which the police confiscated drugs worth more than N$2-million in two separate incidents which is five times more than the N$168 000 the whole of the Hardap Regional Council was allocated from Government for development projects.
In an ironic twist of fortune the N$2-million drug seizures by the police was made possible by information from the public in the same week that Keetmanshoop residents protested police brutality during the arrest that lead to the death of a suspected drug user in Keetmanshoop.
Over the years the small town of Kalkrand has devolved into a passerby town, with little to no economic activity to raise its population out of poverty.
However, the town recently made headlines after the Namibian Police arrested two men in two separate incidents for possession of mandrax and cannabis.
According to the Namibian Police, at about 14:00 on Tuesday 23 January, a 36-year-old Namibian man was caught with drugs at Tea Garden portion 7 and 8.
It’s alleged that during routine police operations, 25 parcels of skunk cannabis, weighing in at 31,755g and valued at N$1,587,750 was recovered and confiscated with public help.
The suspect has been detained and will be arraigned before a Mariental magistrate. In the second case, a 37-year-old Namibian man was nabbed on the B1 road with drugs and mandrax. It’s alleged that the suspect was apprehended during routine police clean-up operations, and a total of 4058 mandrax tablets, valued at N$486,960 was confiscated from the suspect with the help of the public.
Altogether, the drugs are worth N$2 million, more than five times the amount allocated for the Hardap Regional Council, under which the Kalkrand Village Town Council falls. According to the Ministry of Finance’s Development Programmes Estimates of Expenditure Medium Term Expenditure Frame for 2022/23 – 2024/25, the Hardap Regional Council was allocated N$186,948 for development out of state revenue.
According to Deputy Commissioner Kauna Shikwambi of the Namibian Police, it’s common sense to note that the alleged drug dealers have moved out of big towns to farm areas. She said that the Namibian Police will leave no stone unturned to combat these crimes against the community.
“Drugs are dangerous to human health and our society at large. “We call on communities to root out these evils by collaborating and reporting those involved to the police as soon as possible,” she said.
The Kalkrand Village Council, is one of over 10 local authorities in the Hardap and //Kharas regions that have been without Chief Executive Officers. This is after the village council’s CEO, Johannes Kaulihowa, had his employment contract terminated last year. However, calls to the village council about the growing drug problem were not answered.
