Legal battle lines are drawn between the lawyers of the alleged illegal settlers in Omatando no 1, 2, 3 and the Ongwediva Town Council (OTC) following their botched meeting on 14 February.

The failed meeting which was called to hammer out an amicable negotiated settlement between the opposing parties ended in a deadlock because all parties refused to concede any of their demands.
Chaired by mayor Jason Asino who was flanked by Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Damian Egumbo and PR officer Andreas Uutoni, the meeting ended in disarray as the OTC insisted that the 15-member Residents Committee should advise the settlers to stop building. The Committee refused to take the message to the people without any written commitment from the OTC that it will stop its imminent demolition campaign scheduled to kick off on 27 February.
The Committee presented a three point document drafted by the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) in which they demand answers. These are for the town council to explain as to under what authority it proposes to demolish the buildings and evict residents, to explain under which government Gazette issue and date Omatando no.1, 2 and 3 have been proclaimed as local authority territory and to show when was compensation paid to customary right holders of the lands in question as required by the Communal Land Reform Act.
Mayor Asino declined to answer the questions. Instead, he referred the committee to the OTC legal representatives Conradie and Damaseb who had already been served with the demands.
In a letter dated 9 February 2012 written to the CEO of Ongwediva the local authority was requested to present copies of agreements in terms of the formalities in respect of contracts of the sale of land Act 71 between headmen and the OTC regarding the villages that were taken over by the council. They were given three days to respond, failing which the LAC may apply for a court interdict to restrain the OTC from their envisaged demolition campaign.
Another meeting between the two parties is scheduled for 20 February at the offices of the Ongwediva Town Council.