WHO is responsible for development in Gibeon? Is it the Witbooi Traditional Authority (WTA), Gibeon Village Council (GVC), Gibeon Constituency Council (GCC), Hardap Regional Council (HRC) or the Central Government of the Republic of Namibia (GRN)? Recently, a Parliamentary Standing Committee visited the impoverished village and met relevant stakeholders and residents to discuss issues pertaining this village.
However, these meetings end up in the responsible authorities having too many excuses about the state of the village and I believe that no definite answers could be given to the inhabitants.Currently, the sports stadium, community hall, cemetery, zebra fountain, old prison, most teachers’ houses, to name but a few, are in a doleful state. The various ‘responsible’ authorities blame each other on who should do what.A ‘new’ sewerage system was installed but it looks as if it is worse than the old bucket system. Streets are virtually non-existent. Graves at the new cemetery are not deep enough and as a result, people are faced with unpleasant smells. Prospective investors who tried to bring a new petrol station and shops were turned away.The village is known to be the capital of the Witbooi Traditional Authority but they are currently renting an old building as their office. Many Traditional Authorities throughout the country erected new offices with the kind assistance of the Central GRN. To my surprise this assistance is not visible in Gibeon. The old cemetery, which was declared as a National Shrine by GRN is in a disgraceful state.Gibeon, in my opinion, should have looked like Oshakati today if one looks at the liberation history of the town and surroundings from middle 19th century until 1989. I, personally blame the WTA, GVC and GCC for the lack of development in the village. Everybody is sleeping and when they are awake, they only think of their own bellies – they forget completely about their subjects and those who elected them into power. Election promises are kept in the dustbin until the next election. The Central GRN acknowledged the contribution by the Witboois during the liberation struggle by choosing Kaptein Hendrik Witbooi to appear on the Namibian Dollar Notes, erecting a memorial shrine at the Heroes Acre, erecting an image of Captain Hendrik Samuel Witbooi in front of the Parliament building, naming streets throughout the country to the Witboois, keeping valuable documents of the Witboois in the National Archive, conferring a heroes funeral on our late Captain Reverend Hendrik Witbooi and declaring his grave a National Shrine, etc. What are we waiting for? Let’s stand up, forget about our differences, stop with self-enrichment at the expense of the majority of the villagers who live in paucity and DO something for our beloved Gibeon village! We have always blamed the opposition parties who governed the village in the past. The Swapo party, of which most of us are members, are now governing the village. NO EXCUSES. The Central GRN has done its part and can still do. We must just wake-up, get-up and initiate programmes and projects. It is only when we try to help ourselves that we can be helped by those who want to help. Long Live Gibeon (Khaxatsus),Concerned Gibeon Resident, Via the website
