SMSes for Tue 27 Jan 09

SMSes Of The Day
 * BISHOPS of Elcin church, please stop your pastors allowing political activities to take place in the churches. No political colours must be allowed in the church and tell pastors to preach love, tolerance and brotherhood.

SMSes Of The Day
* BISHOPS of Elcin church, please stop your pastors allowing political activities to take place in the churches. No political colours must be allowed in the church and tell pastors to preach love, tolerance and brotherhood.

* WHAT are the main causes of the global economic crisis and when will it end?
– James Likando, Arandis

Food For Thought
* CAN the Government confirm or deny that there is a diamond mine in DRC belonging to a Namibian individual gifted or compensated by the late (Laurent) Kabila?
– Otushishi

Politics
* WE have been debating with my friends about President (Barack) Obama’s inaugural speech. Was he reading or just speaking and people wrote it later after he had spoken? Please print our former President (Sam) Nujoma’s speech at our Independence Day on March 21 1990.
– Kamati
– The speech was prepared well ahead of the inauguration. Obama and his main speechwriter, 27-year-old Jon Favreau, started working on it during the first week of December. – News Editor

Salary Debate
* IT seems obvious that the civil service pay increase is not based on their performance.

* THANKS for our 24%. Shoprite, taxis, Checkers keep it as low as now. Mr Taxman watch your hammer please!

* NOW that the outcome of wage negotiations for civil servants is known and very positive, why are people still continuing to find wrong with it? Why call it an election ploy while economists during the Budget debate also indicated that this year Government was in a position to improve conditions of its employees? Is it not true that negotiators indeed have proven wrong those who always professed that affiliated unions could not convince Government to lead by example when times are hard? Namibians must learn to trust in their leadership and not just join those who copy things they hardly understand. We should salute Government for having agreed to Napwu/Nantu proposals despite uncertainty caused by the recession. We should equally acknowledge that unions can be effective when resources permit and conditions call for a critical approach.

* AS Swapo’s popularity starts waning – a historical inevitability – they will increasingly resort to populistic, opportunistic and legalised bribery such as these raises of 24%. Question is, will we be able to trim their excessive power (which they seem to regard as a religion these days, a sure sign of fear!) before we get bankrupted like Zimbabwe?

Bouquets And Brickbats
* BANK Windhoek Otapi? The correct name is Outapi. Please use the right spelling.

* IT’S very irresponsible for FNB to show adverts with people having fun on quad bikes and bicycles without helmets in its Lifestyle Banking promo.

Education
* TO make education a success involvement of parents is essential. Education starts at home. Respect for elders will change society for the better and lead to better standard of living.

* I’M a student at the Polytechnic of Namibia. I just don’t understand about the study loans we get from the Ministry of Education. Those people think we makes jokes when we say our parents don’t work and don’t have money. Each time they give us little money for our school fees and we always have to add more than N$4 000. Where do they expect us to get this big amount of money if we told them our parents don’t work or some are already dead? Please we need an answer.

* I AM calling on IOL management to please call your staff members to order.

Document Dilemma
* ARTICLE 21(1)(i) of the Namibian Constitution provides that ‘All persons shall have the right to leave and return to Namibia;’ This fundamental freedom necessitates a passport. Hence, the new Home Affairs regulations are unconstitutional! What does the Attorney General say, as principal legal advisor and guarantor of our Constitution?

* HOME Affairs’ latest announcement on passports is a sure sign of a bureaucracy gone crazy. And they get an increase for this?

General
* CITY of Windhoek, please put rubbish disposal containers at all your bus stops.
– Windhoeker

* CAN the City of Windhoek please request owners in affluent residential areas to paint their boundary walls. Unpainted walls are an unpleasant sight.

Children Of The Struggle
* MY sympathy to war vets’ kids. Let’s all open our hearts and assist them orphaned by our liberation struggle. Its not exclusively Swapo’s responsibility to provide every little bit but as well those who appreciate the freedom achieved. Even temporarily while the GRN still works out something.

* HON former President (Sam Nujoma), you are the Father of Nation but you don’t care about your kids who are at the Swapo farm. We need your voice, we don’t want your silence. Please.

Health Matters
* MoHSS I’m disappointed to hear that the TB ward in Oshakati is not a priority to be constructed. Multi-drug resistant (MDR) TB is increasing due to improper isolation. Come and stop this unnecessary problem.

In And From the Regions
* MR President! You have been in office since 2005 and I hope you know your country well. For your information Onkumbula village in Okankolo Constituency in Oshikoto Region is still operating in the colonial era. No tap water, no network, no TV signals. Thanks for the power we got late last year! Please do something this year 2009.
– JA Zuma

* I DON’T understand what the Kunene Deputy Director of Education thinks about his own people. Why only bring people from outside while there are capable people.

Media Mirror
* THE Government must take a move towards the family from Ombalantu. Those people don’t cost so much that the Government cannot afford to help! Please!
* SHAME on you Swapo Government! Which Namibian citizens are you serving? What excuse can you give about the Kamholo family? (Open File repeat, January 25) Please help this needy family. A true leader would have acted already.
– Tangeni

* IT is very hurtful to know what the Kamholo family are going through. Can the GRN and the churches get involved in trying to help our fellow Namibians.
Guns ‘n Ganga
* GUN Brothers! You can’t compare drugs to guns. Guns are for defending people, while drugs like marijuana influence the human behaviour negatively. Please think again brothers.

* IT’S so sad to read that Ganja smokers are uniting for legalisation to smoke ganja! I’m Pastor John from Full Gospel Church in Outapi. Before I met Jesus, I also smoked ganja! It destroyed me and I spent eight months in hospital because of TB! Please may our Government never commit a mistake by legalising such sin.

Service Please
* FNB-MTC cellphone banking ‘service’ is almost non-existent! You request a balance or mini statement and it comes a day later. Why even bother??
* MTC mobile home in Oshakati, please you need to improve your service to avoid long queues. I’m suggesting that you separate the line for those who are making invoice payments from other lines because payments don’t take much time. Please, please!

* MTC what a mess! I’m still waiting for my GPRS settings after three weeks of struggling.

Ministry of Health Responds
* In the interest of the Otjituuo community I wish to alert the Minister of Health that the clinic building which they started to build in August 2007 is incomplete after the construction was stopped in August 2008. Please follow up, we need our building. (January 12 2009)
– It is true that the construction of the clinic was stopped in August 2007 as highlighted in the text message of 12 January 2009. The service of the main contractor was terminated by the Department of Works in the Ministry of Works and Transport due to poor progress.
The architect has submitted the updated plans incorporating the new request to the Department of Works in the Ministry of Works and Transport for exceptional approval. This approval was not granted by the Tender Board
because the consulting technical team did not go to the site to make a final inspection. The matter is currently being dealt with by the Department of Works for the appointment of a new contractor for Otjituuo Clinic in order to complete the outstanding work.

* We are in the Ohangwena Region working for the Ministry in the MoHSS, but we are suffering! Our monthly overtime takes two to three months to get to us. Does the director know this? If so, why does she not make the change? (November 3 2008)
– The Ministry is aware that there are delays in processing or procuring overtime claims.
The delay in the claim of overtime and other night-shift-related allowances was caused by the fact that some staff members omitted to claim as per stated directives. This resulted in having to send documents back for corrections. The matter is receiving attention.
The computerised Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS) is not yet decentralised to the regions the regions, which obviously also causes delays.
However, the Ministry of Health and Social Services is in the process of decentralising the IFMS system to the regions. It is also planned to provide specific training on the correct calculation of overtime of shift workers once all necessary guidelines have been finalised.

* Dear President Pohamba, Minister Kamwi, Honourable Libertine Amadhila people are suffering a lot. Take a visit to the Keetmanshoop State Hospital it looks like this hospital only belongs to some of the health workers and their immediate families .The nurses are over ruling the foreign doctors and the doctors don’t even care. They just want to finish their duties and go home. They don’t even touch some of the patients and just give them painkillers. 90% of the nurses there are very rude, unfriendly, yelling and screaming at the poor patients and only boasting and modelling around, talking their private stories, while eating in the corridors of the hospital ,while the sick people are begging and dying, especially those coming from the rural areas. (January 9 2009 )
– The Keetmanshoop Hospital Management has put in place measures to ensure that there is good communication with all clients. The hospital pays special attention to the issues raised as it is fully agreed that a caring and friendly environment forms an integral part of good health care.
The public is encouraged to approach the Matron’s office should they have any complaints or suggestions on how to improve the services at Keetmanshoop Hospital.

Yours in Health
Mrs G Kamboo
PRO