SHE did not expect such a rousing welcome and Dr Helena Ndume burst into tears when she arrived at the Hosea Kutako International Airport to a surprise welcome back reception yesterday.
Dr Ndume was returning from New York where she received the United Nations Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela Prize for her sight-restoring work that has made such a difference to many poor Namibians.
Sporting a black T-shirt with an imprint of the smiling face of the late Mandela, Dr Ndume wiped away the tears that welled up in her eyes.
Addressing the people who converged at the airport to welcome her, Dr Ndume said the award belongs to Namibia. She told the people that it was a humbling experience to stand in front of the whole world and accept an award on behalf of Namibia.
“This is not a Helena Ndume award. It belongs to Namibia,” she said as more tears welled up in her eyes. “We should not leave our people and leave them to be blind. It is not their fault that they are blind. I cannot lock myself in my practice when the nation needs me.”
She thanked the government for the role it played in educating her and her family as well as everyone for the support she received.
A choir from the Office of the Prime Minister and the wellness committee organised a surprise reception for Dr Ndume whom they referred to as a public servant colleague.
Led by choir leader Karen Amukugo and floating balloons and Namibian flags aloft, the group sang as they rejoiced that Ndume has raised the Namibian flag once more.
Amukugo said they are impressed and grateful for Ndume’s selfless services to humanity and her dedication to restore the sight and dignity of fellow human beings, especially the elderly.
“Her charitable work did not only put smiles on the faces of the beneficiaries of her service but also on the faces of the entire nation. Your achievements should encourage every young woman who wishes to embark on the road to success,” Amukugo said.
Ndume has restored the sight of more than 30 000 Namibians. She left Namibia for exile at age 15. She lived in Zambia and Gambia where she completed secondary school, and Angola, before going to Germany to study medicine.
When she returned to Namibia in 1989, she did her medical internship at Katutura Intermediate and Windhoek Central hospitals.
Growing up, she wanted to be a fashion designer. On her not-pursued fashion dream, she said.
“Yes, I wanted to be a fashion designer but the Swapo secretary of education in our refugee camp (former Prime Minister Nahas Angula) said ‘No ways! We do not need fashion designers in an independent Namibia. To come make clothes for who? We need doctors and I want you to be a doctor’,” she said.
Ndume has a 30-year-old son and is married to Zimbabwean Solomon Guramatunhu, who is also an eye specialist and has been instrumental in introducing her to surgical eye expeditions.
During an interview she had with The Namibian last month, Ndume encouraged young girls to learn how to be independent.
“You need to be independent as a woman. Instead of depending on a man and then he uses you and you end up being treated like toilet paper, you need to work for yourself.”
