SMSes for Friday 01 March 2013
SMS Of The Day *WHOEVER saying the N$600 grants for senior citizens is not enough must think twice. At least government is doing something for them. What about you? When are you going to play your part? Most old aged people have children and grandchildren who are earning an income. People should start taking care of their families to supplement the government’s effort. The government is playing its part, you should also play yours.
Food for Thought
*POVERTY is a social crisis that creates different situations among the citizens, including prostitution.
*IT IS about time that those responsible for the failings of public systems in Namibia are forced to use these systems. Show me a parliamentarian who flies Air Namibia, sends their kids to public schools, goes to public hospitals and doesn’t use a private security company (such as G4S) to guard their house. Government services are “good enough” for the electorate, but not the elected. Shameful.
Bouquets and Brickbats
*NBC TV you are so boring. Please bring back ‘Generations’. It was the only entertaining soap opera.
*ALL we do is complain and complain, some of you should start being grateful for what the government has done and is doing. Other developing countries don’t have half of what we have. Give credit where it is due.
*I FEEL like dying, if the story in your paper is true that the government bankrolled N$2 million to the Nestor ‘Sunshine’ Tobias Academy. It is already questionable that MTC is chosen to be the sponsor of one academy. Do the boxing academies have more power than their mother body?
*JEAN Sutherland, thank you for the daily medicine of laughter which you and your tweeps provide in ‘Twittersphere’.
*THE people who are always speeding should be patient with us who are keeping to the speed limit. We are a civilised nation so the stupid middle finger pointing should please stop.
*IS the government investing N$2 million into Paulus ‘The Rock’ Ambunda while people are starving? What can the government gain from his win? I am against the ‘struggle kids’ but government could have given each one of them a thousand dollars so that they can use it to go back wherever they came from and buy a bit of food or they could use it on the San people who are starving.
*IT IS good that the army is advanced with such good medical equipment, thanks to the German government.
*HOW does one win Moola Mobile? Is there no other way that the draw can be conducted in a way we can all trust?
*NAMIBIA will be on the world map again on Saturday and we are ready to produce our third world champion after Harry Simon and Paulus ‘The Hitman’ Moses. We are confident that Paulus Ambunda will become the new world champion.
*FOR the second time in less than a week I have had to drop people at the airport for Air Namibia flights that have been delayed. The first was Friday night’s Frankfurt flight which was delayed for over 24 hours, with no explanation or warning until we arrived at the airport. The second was Wednesday’s Cape Town flight which was delayed twice, a total of five hours. It must be said that Air Namibia is useless, and getting worse, if that is even possible. Theo Namases is a coward, unwilling to face the hoards of irate passengers dealing with the frustrations of her abysmal airline. Instead, poor front line staff get given a hard time all day by these frustrated passengers. Namases needs to leave her office and face the public on her failings.
Service Please
*THE Wimpy at Wernhil should do something about their service. Customers have to sit for up to 20 minutes before they get help. What are you there for?
*MINISTER of War Veterans and your Permanent Secretary are always on the news telling war vets to apply for projects to be assisted by the government. Many people who have applied have their applications gathering dust in your ministry. What is the matter? Please do something.
*TO the Ministry of Home Affairs in Tsumeb, my wife changed her surname on her Namibian ID on May 15 2012. We have waited up to now with no assistance. We stay outside of Tsumeb. Please, she needs her Namibian ID.
*IUM examination department, why are you taking so long with printing out our Academic records? I applied for my academic records on January 16 and every time I come to look for it, I am sent away and told to wait for an SMS but still nothing.
*I WAITED two and half hours to be helped at Standard Bank. Not only are the consultants losing clients’ applications, they are more interested in their personal business than their work. Also the receptionist has no manners.
*NEDBANK wake up, please come up with cellphone banking. Otherwise you will lose your customers.
*GIPF is not realistic with its services. Many people lost thousands of dollars because they didn’t have the first three pay slips. How long will GIPF continue to rob us? It’s better to be given other choices to invest our pensions. Why is it difficult to be registered with GIPF, when it is easy for them to receive public servants contributions and lend it to companies who misuse it. Which track records does GIPF keep to prove that one has contributed apart from asking for pay slips which may be difficult to have.
Suggestion Box
*THE military field hospital must be located every December between the towns of Okahandja and Otjiwarongo, it will save a lot of lives.
*PRESIDENT Lukas Pohamba, could you please consider exempting pensioners from paying income tax? As civil servants we have paid taxes since day one, now with our health having deteriorated, we have to find jobs otherwise we’ll have to join our brothers and sisters at the dump sites. Please listen to the people’s plea.
*THE Namibian news team, can you please provide us with a picture of the ‘Lazarus tree’? The thorn tree that stood up in Kavango.
*UNAM library is not accesible for people with disabilities, we also pay library fees. There is no entrance for people with disabilities. It has been years now. Hear us out Unam Vice Chancellor and allow us in the library.
Budget Notes
*WHAT is the current rate for the transfer duty on properties? The budget did not address NHE building more houses.
*I WOULD like to thank Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila for the budget she introduced this year. I am very impressed by the tax exemption, pensioner’s adjustment as well as the tax reduction. I am also glad that the nation has been relieved a bit from the hardships of the high cost of living. Well done, you prove that you have the nation at heart and may God bless you in your endeavours. Keep it up.
*ONE can just imagine the Minister agonising over the N$50 pension increase. It must have been like pulling teeth!
*THE government is stingy, how can you only add N$50 for the pensioners and call that an increase meanwhile you increase government spending up to 19 percent. Sometimes I think you don’t have parents because you will not tell me you give them N$600 per month?
*THANK you government for the tax cuts. I will now be able to feed my family properly. God bless you.
*SAARA Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, you are a philanthropist by lowering the income tax brackets for individual taxpayers. That is a sound financial budget for providing a decent living standard to our nation. You are so smart and a heroine to the entire Namibia. Let us all enjoy the cake of freedom that we all fought for.
City Fathers
*CITY of Windhoek, we need water and toilets at Havana. We are suffering.
*CITY of Windhoek please start charging rates and taxes on unit owners water bill so that the unit owner must only contribute common costs to the body corporate. Why can’t you charge them water and electricity separately? The same as rates and taxes.
Education
*THE Minister of Education should know that we don’t have any Afrikaans teachers at Highline Secondary School. The Grade 9 and 10 Afrikaans teacher retired in January, but taught us until mid February. The school had to let him go because he can only be appointed temporarily after three months. Must we suffer on, please tell the Khomas education office to appoint our retired teacher and bring him back as soon as possible, why should he sit at home and we without a teacher. Please sir, please.
*THE Minister of Education should please help us here in Okahandja. There is only one Namcol centre, and there are already no spaces for Grade 10 subjects. Our children are not yet registered and the due date is Friday. Can the ministry please send books for all the subject again to increase the number.
*MINISTER David Namwandi please introduce St Boniface’s rules at government schools so that pupils are forced to wear long dresses or skirts, have short hair and no cellphone. I think that these rules will help our children behave better.
*IT IS weird to see the SMS that starts, ‘David Namwandi, please come to so and so primary school’ when it used to be the late minister’s name. It’s really sinking in. He is gone and has been replaced. Sad.
*THE Ministry of Education should do something to the Okakarara Vocational Training Centre. We need another hostel because the one we are using is too small and it can not take the 300 students.
*I AM a Unam student with an outstanding study loan account from last year. I don’t understand why the Ministry of Education and the NSFAF are not paying our accounts when it has repaid registration fees of N$2 200 for final year students who are repeating subjects. Shouldn’t they have paid our outstanding accounts first before repaying registration fees for those who are repeating? This matter needs serious investigation.
Health
*CAN Minister Richard Kamwi tell the nation the total percentage of the MHOSS budget being allocated to mission hospitals as a subsidy each year, specifically for each hospital? What are the controlling measures and how is accountability ensured?
Labour
*THE Ministry of Home Affairs is really sleeping. So many foreign nationals are getting permits to work in fields where we have thousands of qualified Namibians. Sad indeed.
*TO the Prime Minister, why do we have to wait five months for a government post interview? While private companies only take three weeks. Are you aware that it takes this long, this is where corruption takes place?
*NAMWATER CEO Vaino Shiivute should please do something. We are tired of working as qualified artisans on contract for more than five years but we are only getting paid N$2 500 with no benefits, is that fair?
*PEOPLE who failed Grade 12 and are unemployed are always advised to apply to work for the Electoral Commission but when the names come out, you will find people with jobs were selected. Why can’t you just recruit new people and train them.
*SO, government implemented the regrading and re-evaluation of salaries of civil servants unilaterally. Nantu and Napwu, how long will you mislead your members? Comrade, comrade, comrade never works when employers and employees negotiate.
*THE SME Bank is already fully staffed. Were all these positions ever advertised? In which newspapers?
Response to Previous SMSes
SMS
*IF only us women could rise up in numbers and demonstrate against baby dumping, like with the miniskirts. Namibia would be a better place.
Response
The Legal Assistance Centre is pleased to announce the launch of a new initiative to help prevent babydumping. The LAC is creating a series of posters with information about what to do if you are pregnant and do not want the baby. Each of the posters has a photo of a baby whose parents support our drive to prevent babydumping. The photos come from staff working at the LAC and from members of the community. The idea of the project is that we send an electronic version of the poster to the parents who then circulate it amongst their friends and family to spread the message throughout Namibia in a way that standard mechanisms of communication cannot achieve. Each poster is accompanied by a Facebook banner to increase the exposure of the message. We hope that this social media initiatve goes some way in helping to prevent the incidence of babydumping in Namibia. If you would like to be involved, please send pictures of your baby to rcoomer@lac.org.na. By sending a photo you give permission for us to use the photo in poster and banner format and to circulate the posters. The LAC will keep name and identity of yourself and your child private.
SMS complaint
*STANDARD BANK should close their doors as a bank, their home loan department has a system where you are issued a ticket to wait for a consultant. This really does not work at all. What are we, livestock? Even the reception ladies in front at the home loan department are very unfriendly, home loan administration department takes forever to send out instructions to lawyers. Please close your doors or employ capable staff especially in your home loan departments in general
Response
THANK you for raising your issue. Standard Bank Namibia is open to diverse views from the public. With regards to the issue raised on Home Loans our response is as follows:-
The Queue Management System was recently implemented within the Home Loans Division of Standard Bank Namibia, after a well researched exercise was conducted to expedite the management of queues upon customers’ requests.
We are pleased to mention that this is the latest technology implemented around the world.
Our receptionists are trained in customer service to enhance good customer experience at all times. However, we want to assure the public that if the above is not met they are welcome to bring it to the attention of the relevant Head of Home Loans, Elmien Oelofse at telephone number 061-2942284.
Lost and Found
*I Haikali Teofilus N lost my wallet in Rehoboth with my ID, bank card, Bandits staff card and social security card. If found, call or SMS me on 081 639 7878.
*LAST Saturday I found a cellphone at Windhoek Cash and Carry, later the owner made a call and I told him that I live at Havana in Outapi but he never came to collect his cellphone. Please call Nghishililwa at 081431667 or Beata at 0816746635.
*I LOST my black laptop in a Corolla that came from Tsumeb and dropped me in Ondangwa at Omwandi on February 4. If you know anything, please contact 0813519663.
*I, SG Gawiseb lost my brown wallet with all my documents in it. If found please contact me on 0812366230.
*I, Veronika Nduulinai Hamunyela, born on May 2, 1993 lost my full birth certificate at Oshela in the location of Okongo. If found please call 0816156735 or 0817493060.
*I HAVE the ID of Hallw Liswaniso Caroline Iimanga, please contact me on 0816700027.