On Game Smuggling

I WOULD like to air my views on the recent news from the NBC newsdesk. It is surprising the culprits were caught red-handed stealing game (antelopes) from the game park. Surely this must have been pure collaboration between officials in the Ministry and the thieves?

Waterberg Plateau Park was declared with the aim to encourage the population growth of some of the endangered game species in Namibia. The Park is one of the good tourism attractions in the country by virtue of endangered game abundance.It is so interesting to learn through the media that those who were apprehended are from the previously advantaged group. Let me bring this to the attention of this nation. The Ministry of Environment and Tourism is given custody of the game as a natural resource in this our beloved country, but the same Ministry is weak because of high concentration on corruption by some (if not one only) senior managers who are collaborating with the ‘game smugglers’. It is not the first time that game has been stolen by using this method in the Park. In the ’90s, staff members encountered this when a certain park warden collaborated with the farmers and stole game of high value, in fact staff members could not report this as they were treated in an apartheid fashion in an independent Namibia.When supervisors became aware that their ‘friend’ might be reported, they transferred him out of the national park to prevent him from being fired from the public service. We are aware of these situations and conditions in this Ministry and for sure only the previously disadvantaged Namibians are trying to lead the Ministry with dedication. There are still individuals who are in the Ministry of Environment and Tourism to enrich themselves.Let me inform the officials who are collaborating with those stealing game not only in Waterberg but also in other national parks to start packing their bags before they face the court of law, because we are busy collecting all the evidence to report them to the Anti-Corruption Commission. Remember, the same Ministry is where Sackey Namugongo ‘lost’ his job because of alleged self-enrichment, it is time for others to follow. Ek wali 4kolVia e-mail