SMSes for Thursday 29 March 2012

SMS Of The Day
*RURAL-URBAN migration puts a heavy burden on towns and cities. I think the solution is simple: start developing the rural areas. Look at Dâures, it is a shame. Nothing is happening. Is it business as usual. Governors and councillors wake up, your people are suffering.

Food for Thought*IT has come to my attention just how much damage we are doing to our children’s backs expecting primary school children to carry school bags in excess of 20 per cent of their own body weight. Who will foot the medical bill when the damage is done? Teachers we ask you to get the weight out of their bags. Leave a pile of books in the corner of the class if storage is a problem, but don’t let your space problems become our spinal problems!*WE are not a banana republic – we speak Namlish therefore we are a kapana republic!
*GREAT that people cleaned up Wanaheda. It would be better if we all take care of our environment and don’t throw rubbish in the street. Be a responsible citizen and lead by example!Bouquets and Brickbats*I WANT to thank Dr Shejavali on ‘1 on 1′ for addressing, poverty, the landless and the N$100 that was supposed to be given to every Namibian. May God bless you 1000 times. These are people we need in the nation.*THANK you City of Windhoek for clearing long grass on traffic circles and sidewalks especially in Olympia. It is good to have a clear view of oncoming traffic.*IT’S to me really incomprehensible to read about leaders criticising the proposed Basic Income Grant which will benefit the poor jobless voters who put them in that position and who they had failed. And I’m still waiting for a fearless and a brave leader to criticise the war vets payment paid to ministers, opposition and former Swapo leaders in parliament, the well-off and highly paid government officials. All politicians and union leaders are just the same. They will be quiet if they are also benefiting.- Setho*I AM at my wits’ end. An application regarding sub-division of property in a municipal area has been lying on the desk of the municipal town planner since June 2011. There has been no movement whatsoever. As the transaction entails money and is the subject of a court order after a settlement two years ago, no-one understands my frustration. I was snarkily told by this official to even complain to the President’s office, the Ombudsman or their legal adviser.*WHAT’S with The Namibian splitting photos at page centre. It’s quite disturbing.Law and Order*DEAR taxi drivers could you please show some consideration to other road users in Werner List Street? It is not necessary to use all three lanes as pick-up spots and thereby bringing rush hour to a halt. Where are the traffic officers?*AGAIN and again we see Namibia Wildlife Staff (and their visitors) driving like maniacs in the Etosha Park scaring away animals and probably killing some sometimes. One even smashed a parked tourist’s car the other day. Who cares?*PLEASE people responsible people for N$1 million bail that was paid on Tuesday, see that it does not get lost. We are tired of people stealing money.A Question of Land*KATALI and town councillors should stop blaming the shortage of developed erven in towns on the Germans, but rather start doing something about the squatter camp landlords who enrich themselves by ‘owning’ hundreds of erven in squatter camps subjecting the poor to pay rentals for land that the landlords (often town councillors or working for town councils) do not own. Plus the town councillors must develop low cost erven for the poor who actually stay in town. All that the poor people who stay in towns want is a small erf that is registered in their name and not in some landlord’s name.*MINISTER Katali don’t try to twist history. No Oshiwambo-speaking community lost land ever in Namibia at the hands of the colonisers. There was only war in the North.Old Soldiers*WITH all due respect Minister Iivula-Ithana, the veteran beneficiaries are mostly unable to make good use of their ‘newfound wealth’! Just a suggestion – most ministers and high ranking government officials have quickly learned how to make money out of money, including with businesses! Share that knowledge and help them sustain their wealth! Otherwise their drinking binge will only last a few weeks, make money for the bottle stores, and the veterans will go back to their poverty and unacceptable disgraceful living conditions. They need government help!- OAP*MINISTER of Veterans Affairs we want to suggest that houses are built with the N$200 000 of those who don’t succeed with projects instead of just having them blamed for misusing money. These houses must be built wherever the person wants them, whether in town or the village. Why? This gives jobs to the builders and provides better shelter to their children and families. What does it help people to buy a car that gets damaged in one day? A house will never die. Please let’s try to think positively fellow comrades.Education*UNAM please do something about ways in which a select few members of staff are trying to position themselves at the expense of many competent academics. Just look at the selection of presenters at the induction workshop. This is too much.*MINISTRY of Education please do something at Andimba ya Toivo SSS. Our learners don’t have teachers for maths, history and biology in Grade 11. It is a few months until exams.*MINISTRY of Education please when are our children going to get the loans they applied for last year? It’s now the end of semester 1? For some of us parents, that’s our hope in our financial crises. – Desperate Parent.*WHAT’S wrong with Mariental High School? Please can the minister visit there. The teachers do not stay for a long time and the children suffer because of this. Maybe the school is on its way to close down. Why is it not possible for teachers to finish the whole year before they go.*WHY does the Ministry of Education not offer scholarships for government employees who want to pursue chartered accounting courses? We need chartered accountants in the government, especially in the auditor general’s office.- Wilka*THERE’S no education at Kai//ganaxab, the instructors are at school. Please Minister of Youth do something.*I FAIL to understand why the Ministry of Education is doing an injustice to the teachers and learners. How can a failed alcoholic principal be removed from the city to a farm were he drinks and stays away from school for days? Please director of Khomas do something. Nothing is going on at this farm school.- Concerned parentPolitics*PENDUKENI Iivula-Ithana if you and your fellow comrades took the sole decision to pay out the veterans speak for yourselves and don’t say the Namibian nation.Labour Issues*WE want the Deputy Minister of Safety and Security to come out and tell us what happened to the salary increment he was talking about last year. *CAN the Prime Minister and Public Service Commission please give clarity on how the S&T rates for the Public Service were arrived at? Which criteria were used to determine what rate ordinary staff members should get and what rate the management, politicians etc should get. I really do not understand why a director and a clerk from the same office should get different rates going to the same town/city for the same duration, if the hotels, cafes, laundries, supermarkets etc in that particular town/city charge the same rates/prices for individuals irrespective of their professional positions or social status. To me that’s ridiculous and borders to social segregation based on status when the cost of living is the same for all. Let there be one rate across the board for all or please explain why there are differences!
*N$3.80 per hour for security guards is nothing. They work under harsh conditions but are paid little, they have no additional benefits like other workers.*CITY POLICE human resources department when are the names of the successful candidates for the crime prevention officers going to be released?*CAN Otjozondjupa Regional Council please stop advertising vacancies as if they are considering the unemployed masses in the region, while everyone knows you have to be a relative or pay some hot shot to be considered.
Health Matters*MINISTER of Health and Social Services, specifically the directorate of Primary Health Care, we qualified ophthalmic medical assistants countrywide are tired of this dead-end profession. Since we trained years back there has been no career pathway, no workshops organised. Does the ministry does really care about this category of professional. No promotional posts, no salary adjustments. We are extremely overworked, we are only known when national Eye Camp starts. What a crisis when you turn a blind eye to those who are doing a lot to prevent blindness and preserve sight.*WHEN will the Minister of Health make a turn at the dental clinic in Keetmanshoop? Dentists treating the Karas community are always in a hurry, at meetings etc.In and From the Regions*NORED electricity did you know that at Oshifo in Ruacana, some people are not allowed to buy electricity if they have personal issues or differences with the owner of the place where electricity is sold?*PLEASE Nored can you please connect our electricity from Omundaungilo to Onamungodji. We have been in the dark since 2009. Stop giving out those nonsensical excuses.*THE Land and Farming Committee of the Vagciriku Tribal Authority in Kavango Region is going to do its best on farms where there is no visible development and which will be confiscated within three months. At the recent meeting convened at Ndiyona on the March 24 it was heartbreaking to observe how some committee members were abusing their powers in threatening farmers in an inhuman, antagonistic and unChristian manner. Why not learn from our President Hifikepunye Pohamba? He is Head of State, yet he is simple, humble, peace-loving and is sets an example of solving problems amicably.Please Help*COULD somebody tell me where we can get a copy of the Targeted Intervention Programme for Employment and Economic Griwth (Tipeeg) plan to see which projects are being funded? How do we submit proposals to Tipeeg for funding?*I TURNED 21 on November 28 and the Government Institutions Pensions Fund gave me a letter and sent me to the Master of the High Court to get my money. I handed in everything and was told to come back the next Friday. When I call they say up to now my name is not in their system. Then I called the GIPF again and they told me there is nothing they can do. The Master of the High Court tells me they are waiting for the GIPF to send them something. Can I just get my money please. It has been five months now.- Theresia Gaohas, Tsumeb*CAN the Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (Namfisa) please tell us what happened to our money that went missing invested in Oranjemund Cash Loans. How far is the investigation that started five years back. We received no feedback as promised during the investigation. People lost all their savings and retirement money. We still think justice can prevail, the couple responsible for our lost money are still enjoying life.Lost and Found*I PAULUS Kunamwene (born February 1993) have lost an identity card. If found please contact me on 081-818-8095.*I FOUND documents for Mijon Potgieter born 1994 in Otjiwarongo. If you know her please call 081-804-5071.
*I B KHEIMSEB lost my cheque book, ID and other documents. If found please call 061-260899 or 081-813-2230.*I GODHARD Kaiseuatjo lost my wallet containing my driving licence, bank cards and other documents. If found please SMS or call 081-202-9833.*I INESIA L Hamakali lost my ID in Windhoek. If found please contact me on 081-722-2201, 081-753-6305 or 081-319-0009.Responses to recent SMSes*TO the youth in Mariental: Why do you not organise the youth of the town to renovate the Youth Centre and make it safe. It’s yours after all – isn’t it? According to my experience people tend to keep things clean and tidy only when they have invested some sweat and labour to fix it. Make it yours !*TWO million consultancy! President please we want action on the above and the land grab issue. We want action please.*THIS nut sold in Kavango at this time of the year is called Bambara groundnut (believed to originate from West Africa but widely grown within the SADC region). It is called ‘Nongomene’ in RuKwangali. It is after all a groundnut as are peanuts, the most commonly known groundnuts.*ON information regarding the differences between groundnuts and roundnuts. Below are some of the differences: groundnuts are the ones used to produce/make peanut butter and cooking oil. They are soft and are edible raw and produced commercially in many countries. Whereas roundnuts, also known as bambara nuts, are round in shape and hard to crack. Bambara nuts are high in protein content while groundnuts are high in fat content. For clarity the product pictured on the front page of the Namibian dated 26/03/12 are the Bambara nuts/roundnuts and usually produced at household level. Should the reader wish to purchase groundnuts, they are produced and sold at Etunda Irrigation Project contact: 065-258828*I AGREE 100 per cent with the writer telling parliamentarians to be silent when other MPs are speaking. It has long reminded me of a bunch of ill-disciplined and unruly schoolchildren and they expect to be called honourables. Just stop it, listen and learn.