SMS for Friday 19 JUNE 2009

I SALUTE CCN for an earnest appeal to all political parties to hold peaceful and non-violent election campaigns and allow citizens to vote for parties of their choice.

Food For Thought * GOODBYE Von Bach! Thanks for all the good times we had with your excellent water quality. We will certainly miss you as our Windhoek water becomes rapidly polluted. This will occur with the building of the new settlers’ houses around Von Bach and all the freely flowing effluent into our drinking water. What exactly is NWR trying to promote? Dam For Sale?* IT’S about time that somebody went into this story about NWR. ACC should actually investigate!Bouquets And Brickbats* THANKS to the City Police for responding so quickly to a car stopped outside our house in Olympia at 01h30 in the morning.* CONGRATS to Vickson Hangula and cast for a superb play. Thanks LAC for making it happen. Encore! Encore! * THANK you Gretchen Mendes of the Ministry of Trade and industry, for your efficient work, friendliness and top-notch customer service. Keep it up and we need more of you in this country.* SHAME on you ACC for sitting on forensic reports on NamPort and doing nothing to date. Why the wait?* WHY should someone be dismissed for just saying ‘skat’ to a woman? Is it not the same as saying ‘dear’ in Afrikaans? Or is it because security workers are just not considered humans?* ON the draft Child Care Protection Act, I commend the Unicef, LAC and the Ministry of Gender Equality & Child Welfare for their joint brilliant initiative. We need to join hands to save children. Our opinions are on the way. Namibia is fully behind you. We hope to see the Bill being tabled in Parliament soon. What an excellent move!* A LONG life MTC and NBC! Thanks very much MTC and NBC for bringing Confederations Cup matches live to us everyday. We salute you. Keep it up. Excellent work.- Kawaya Gabriel* WHAT happened to NBC TV News presenter Raymond Thikukutu? Did the NBC let go of such a broadcast talent?* I WOULD encourage those who understand Damara/Nama language not to miss the educational programme aired on Sundays between 20h00 and 21h00. On Sunday June 7 there was another educative, well prepared programme on alcohol abuse and the consequences. That’s what I call proper alcohol abuse counselling. Namibians let’s join hands and take action. Keep it up Pastor!Politics
* REV Martin Khoaseb, your e-mail letter is misleading. Also, Pres (Sam) Nujoma is not a founding father but a founding president and the Father of the Nation. You cannot build the future without the past. There are some churches which are targeting our children, young ones and cause confusion as well as making money out of them. Please the nation, be vigilant.* MCHENRY Venaani: It is an intense pleasure to watch you speak and bring out your views eloquently – you represent the embodiment of the new Namibian political spirit. Keep up the good work and know that you have very strong support among the youth but please do not fall into scandal like so many of our politicians. You have a very bright future* OOPS! What a selfish lot among our political parties namely the former opposition DTA and our ruling Swapo. Why don’t they have web addresses for us to scrutinise them. Please set an example because you have been in the driving seats for too but up to date no proper information. At least we can log into Swanu and RDP websites.Spy Bill
* SINCE the Spy Bill is a thorn in the flesh of the majority, why is it not referred to the public for a referendum? We need democracy in full.* IT is most alarming that the opposition has lost its voice. Where are you CoD, DTA? RDP you have become a ‘has-been’ before you have even begun! Spy Bill, State House, Avid, RED, Air Namibia, NWR, Air Force, Navy …* SPY Bills, farm murders, cops on trail for murder, cops prescribing to the media, while the Government tries to muzzle free speech… The list goes on. Forget about Vision 2030 people! We first need to liberate our country from the oppression we find ourselves in. We need a new government. Our current political dinosaur (Swapo) has outlived its usefulness!- Theo* THANK you Robert Binneman for the excellent article on some aspects of the new ‘Spy Bill’ in last Friday’s The Namibian. I had no idea of just how extensive and vital the role that encryption plays in our everyday lives was. I wonder who is giving our government advice on these issues if at all. As more and more information becomes available on this matter I am becoming increasingly suspicious that the motives are not in the public interest, there seems to be a hidden agenda here, as shocking as that may sound. The personal infringements on our privacy with the obvious consequences are devastating and I don’t believe that anybody who understands the implications could sanction this legislation. Government must reconsider this bill radically in the interest of all Namibians.- Stefan* ON reading the Communications Act I can’t see anything about banning encryption. The word was not mentioned. Only thing is that transmitter may be required to provide key for decryption (key escrow) as in the US. Another example of ignorant misleading reporting from The Namibian?- In a nutshell, it’s the same as locking your house but giving everybody a key! You don’t have to agree with us, we don’t expect that. But ignorant and misleading definitely not. – News Editor* ALL communication networks companies in Namibia should expect a fall in market shares, probably in the economy itself as well, if the GRN Spy Bill is implemented. Because people might just cut on usage of these networks.- Shati Response On Select Cars Competition
* OUR advertising department investigated and reports that all puzzle pieces were published and that the results also appeared once the competition closed.Running The Show
* SHAME on the staff of the Ministry of Trade and Industry specifically those dealing with business registration. They make it difficult for people wanting to register their business. They prolong the whole process. Even a simple thing like name reservation takes three weeks to be processed. And if your name is not approved is not approved they post the forms which sometimes never reach the applicant. This causes a lot frustration. Please improve your service!* GOVERNMENT should consider subsidising communal farmers to enable them to become equal employers with commercial farmers.Road Hogs
* ON Sunday around 19h05 some 15-20 km towards the Omatako mountains an Iveco (bus) en route to Okahandja dangerously overtook a yellow bus despite an oncoming bakkie. A horrific accident almost occurred had the oncoming driver not calmly slowed and driven on the road shoulder. This would’ve compounded a sad statistic: Namibia’s highly unsafe roads, endless loss of innocent lives! Warning: this individual is out there, a threat to the public, transport industry and indeed the nation! Witnesses, NamPol, MVA Fund, stakeholders let’s find this perpetrator and bring him/her to task. Yes we can, and Namibia deserves much better! * THE owner of the white bakkie (N number provided W) did you buy your licence or what? How come when you come to a four-way stop, you don’t stop? This nearly cost me and my two boys our lives. It happened at Otjomuise’s four-way stop near Ramatex. Please let’s not be selfish on the road. We’ve got to learn to drive safely. Next time stop and don’t speed like that.- The driver of a white GolfGeneral* THE Prowealth Group of companies was created solely with the purpose to defraud investors from the inception of the group and even prior to that. These sister companies were created simply to be used as conduits to channel stolen money to different beneficiaries. These companies own nothing. Prowealth Consult, which is on the list as fourth respondent, was the company that distributed the funds. The law is taking its course. The lawmakers and those who point fingers must legislate to eliminate the shortcomings in the law. Namfisa can only do what the law allows it to do so do not blame Namfisa. – Conradie* BEING part of the larger community, I feel the anger and frustration of not being able to protect myself against crime. How about public opinion on the death penalty? This is described as inhuman to the offender but where did they obtain the right to treat their victims in degrading humiliating and fearful manner?* I’M shocked to read that the current acting CEO or Board of TransNamib has advertised an expression of interest for a ‘strategic plan’ in newspapers. Why not wait for whoever is coming as CEO, because he might change that. Did you consult your workers? Don’t waste the taxpayers’ money. What have you been doing for the whole year?* ON Miss Namibia not being screened on NBC – blame the organisers who sold the rights to One Africa TV. NBC has no right to broadcast it. So do not blame NBC for everything. Ask Connie Maritz why she gave the rights to One Africa TV. Also note that Miss Namibia is a private company belonging to Ms Maritz and she can do whatever she feels with it. * I WANT to pose this question to the SMS writer who wants historians to write an article about the Ovaherero dressing code. Writer you forget something, what is your dressing code and where is it coming from? Yes you never thought about it. Okay leave us alone please. – Job Kauvi Kaaronda- The writer is trying to find out what is behind the tradition. Would it not be a good idea to learn about and better understand each other’s traditions? – News Desk* CAN the spokesperson of the ‘Children of the Struggle’ tell the nation who will take care of the unplanned babies they are producing? In And From the Regions
* What has Uis Council done with the bricks, cement and roofing meant for the houses for the aged? * ALLOW me a space in your newspaper to ask the Ministry of Home Affairs in Swakopmund how many months it will take for the collection of a new identity document (ID)? Since November last year until today they always say come again at the end of the month, but now it’s almost eight months. We want our IDs please.