Hold on to your jobs: Pohamba

PRESIDENT Hifikepunye Pohamba advised fisheries workers to ‘keep their jobs’ because they might ‘not be able to get a job again’ in the current global economic crisis.

Speaking at the opening of a new fish-processing factory at Walvis Bay last week, he said: ‘the global economic crises that is affecting the world, is also affecting our economy. Businesses are closing and people are losing their jobs. People are saying they don’t have money anymore.’ Pohamba said the loss of a job has far reaching consequences in that ‘one man’s job feeds about three dependents or more’.He urged workers at fishing companies and managements to ‘avoid strikes’ by continuing with open discussions around production and productivity.Pohamba said fishing company managements should not now ‘threaten’ workers by saying ‘keep the work or lose the job’.’We must rather continue nurturing healthy and co-operative relationships with all the stakeholders (including the workers),’ he said.According to the President, Namibia’s mining, tourism and fisheries sectors were hardest hit by the global economic slowdown.President Pohamba was speaking at the inauguration of Tunacor’s new N$30 million fish processing plant.Earlier this year, Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Dr Abraham Iyambo, had to step into a liquidation saga at Cadilu Fishing at Walvis Bay, which threatened to leave about 700 workers jobless.adam@namibian.com.na