Windhoek Municipality opens case against street vendor
Windhoek City Police officers opened a case of assault against a street vendor who “attacked and further assaulted one of the officers” after she was found in contravention of the informal trading bylaw.
Over the weekend, a video where a woman was intercepted by City Police officers while trading in the Ausspannplatz area, outside of her allocated trading spot made rounds on social media.
According to the City of Windhoek, the woman in the video was identified as a registered street vendor who is allocated a trading space at the Shoprite taxi rank, alongside Werner List Street.
City of Windhoek Communications Manager Harold Akwenye said the woman was instructed by the City Police officers to cease operations and return to her trading area, however, she refused to comply with lawful instructions of the officers.
“We have it on record that this is not the first time that this vendor is contravening the informal trading bylaw. The City Police have issued her with numerous warnings for trading outside her designated spot but she continued to violate orders and directives given under those warnings,” Akwenye said.
Akwenye said street vendors are allowed to sell their products; however, they should only do so at specific areas as designated by their permits.
“Street vending outside designated boundaries is not permitted, and more so, now that we are doing everything in our power to contain and prevent the spread of COVID-19, it is essential for street vendors to comply with the laws. It is our wish that vendors operate within designated areas, where control measures and all safety procedures for COVID-19 are being observed,” he said.
Caption: The incident was recorded on Saturday, 28 August 2020 in Ausspannplatz and circulated on social media.
