BIG is back …

THREE months after Cabinet rejected a proposal to give every Namibian below retirement age a monthly N$100 State grant, the Basic Income Grant (BIG) Coalition will meet tomorrow to explore this idea further.

Prime Minister Nahas Angula in May relayed to the Coalition Cabinet’s decision that such a grant would not be “economically prudent and affordable … given our (Namibia’s) meagre resources”.However, the group said that they did not see this as Government closing the door on negotiations.The Big Coalition consists of the Council of Churches in Namibia (CCN), the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW), the Namibian NGO Forum (Nangof) and the Namibian Network of Aids Service Organisations (Nanaso).Speaking to The Namibian yesterday, the CCN’s Reverend Dirk Haarmann said the BIG idea would now be debated not only from an economic point of view, but also from a judicial and a theological perspective.The three-day workshop starting tomorrow will include presentations by representatives from the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC), the CCN and Government’s Namibia Tax Consortium (Namtax).Namtax is credited with coming up with the initial idea of a basic income grant.Haarmann said it was still too early to speculate on any resolutions that might be made during the workshop, or whether the Coalition would submit its findings to Government for re-evaluation.given our (Namibia’s) meagre resources”.However, the group said that they did not see this as Government closing the door on negotiations.The Big Coalition consists of the Council of Churches in Namibia (CCN), the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW), the Namibian NGO Forum (Nangof) and the Namibian Network of Aids Service Organisations (Nanaso). Speaking to The Namibian yesterday, the CCN’s Reverend Dirk Haarmann said the BIG idea would now be debated not only from an economic point of view, but also from a judicial and a theological perspective.The three-day workshop starting tomorrow will include presentations by representatives from the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC), the CCN and Government’s Namibia Tax Consortium (Namtax).Namtax is credited with coming up with the initial idea of a basic income grant.Haarmann said it was still too early to speculate on any resolutions that might be made during the workshop, or whether the Coalition would submit its findings to Government for re-evaluation.