Rehoboth: Determined to vote for change

AS he stood at the fuel station on Friday morning staring into the distance, Efraim Boeck emphasised that things were going to change in the Rehoboth administration.

Boeck said he was whiling the time away, waiting for the queues to shorten before he went to vote. Another voter was so determined to place her ballot paper that her ring accidentally landed in the box.”I must vote today,” said Boeck.”It’s about the community from Block A and B who are the privileged people.They are the people sitting on the town council.I’m from Block E.We have to vote so that we can have Zebra colours.”Boeck, who described himself as living on the backside of Rehoboth, said his area was replete with communal taps and other public amenities but short of private facilities.His vote, he said, will help change that and bring development to his area.Swapo ended up sweeping the votes, taking five out of seven seats in a place where it has struggled for a majority since Independence.Celebrations went on long into the night.Other people from his area, such as Martha Riekerts, had been waiting in the queue since long before polling started at seven o’clock and she expected to vote only after midday, but she was not to be discouraged.Eddy Beukes claimed he was voting, because if he did not, he would be disobeying God’s command.In Kalkrand, voting was almost over by noon.It later emerged that dozens of people had to be turned away as they were no longer considered part of the village area following the latest Delimitation Commission’s report.But the steady stream of voters at three polling stations in Mariental never changed until voting closed.The polling officer for this southern town, Leonard Stephanus, said he was impressed by the discipline in the queues.By the time counting started the next morning, life seemed to return to business as usual, though Lucia Basson, Swapo’s regional co-ordinator kept a close eye on her cellphone as results trickled in.Not even the imminent announcement of who would host the 2010 World Cup could entice Basson to the television.She complained that people who received services from Mariental, but effectively lived outside the town, could not vote.Nevertheless, her prediction that Swapo would get no less than five seats was confirmed a few hours later.Another voter was so determined to place her ballot paper that her ring accidentally landed in the box.”I must vote today,” said Boeck.”It’s about the community from Block A and B who are the privileged people.They are the people sitting on the town council.I’m from Block E.We have to vote so that we can have Zebra colours.”Boeck, who described himself as living on the backside of Rehoboth, said his area was replete with communal taps and other public amenities but short of private facilities.His vote, he said, will help change that and bring development to his area.Swapo ended up sweeping the votes, taking five out of seven seats in a place where it has struggled for a majority since Independence.Celebrations went on long into the night.Other people from his area, such as Martha Riekerts, had been waiting in the queue since long before polling started at seven o’clock and she expected to vote only after midday, but she was not to be discouraged.Eddy Beukes claimed he was voting, because if he did not, he would be disobeying God’s command.In Kalkrand, voting was almost over by noon.It later emerged that dozens of people had to be turned away as they were no longer considered part of the village area following the latest Delimitation Commission’s report.But the steady stream of voters at three polling stations in Mariental never changed until voting closed.The polling officer for this southern town, Leonard Stephanus, said he was impressed by the discipline in the queues.By the time counting started the next morning, life seemed to return to business as usual, though Lucia Basson, Swapo’s regional co-ordinator kept a close eye on her cellphone as results trickled in.Not even the imminent announcement of who would host the 2010 World Cup could entice Basson to the television.She complained that people who received services from Mariental, but effectively lived outside the town, could not vote.Nevertheless, her prediction that Swapo would get no less than five seats was confirmed a few hours later.