SMSes of Fri 13 Mar 09

* TO all political leaders, you have an obligation to stop this political immaturity, especially in the face of upcoming national elections. Stop the name-calling. Stop the hate speech. Stop instigating fear amongst the people. Rather, focus on building and uniting this nation.

* TO all political leaders, you have an obligation to stop this political immaturity, especially in the face of upcoming national elections. Stop the name-calling. Stop the hate speech. Stop instigating fear amongst the people. Rather, focus on building and uniting this nation. Let us address real issues affecting the nation: better and accessible education, unemployment, access to better healthcare, the list is endless. It is time our leaders leave cheap politics behind and serve the nation. Thank you.

Food For Thought
* CAN one company or organisation please come out and organise a candlelight vigil or something to commemorate the deaths of our fellow Namibians in the North whom we lost to the floods?
* I SUGGEST the electoral commission organise a presidential debate for all aspiring presidential candidates. This would help shed light on their standpoint on national issues, vision and help us make an informed decision come election day. If any refuses to participate or rejects the idea, it would be very clear that he/she doesn’t have a vision for the nation. – Inna
* WHAT hypocrisy! Our Swapo Government refuses to speak out against the madness in Zim but they fly someone over to the Middle East to go and condemn Israel. Oh please! We’ve already seen that the lives of victimised civilians don’t mean anything to you, so this is probably just another move for your own political interests!

Politics
* WHILE we the public and consumers of news have to be extremely cautious about how to treat leaked information, what I read in The Namibian of March 9 confirmed beyond doubt that the political civil war within Swapo has reached a critical stage.
* MADAM [Pendukeni] Ithana [Justice Minister], how can you say the people of Zimbabwe are well off when it comes to land. Tell us how many people benefit from it and what did they produce? These farms are standing still. Go to Zimbabwe and see for yourself, then you can comment. – Zim citizen
* MINISTER Ithana. With regard to your Zimbabwean statements. Nobody is as blind and deaf as those who do not want to see or hear.
* THE people of Zimbabwe are well off today, [Minister] Iivula-Ithana? Does she talk about the six million who fled the country or the seven million inside kept alive by USA-sanctioned free food supplies to the tune of US$500 million a year? The land reform programme is so successful that 10 farmers in the Otavi-Grootfontein belt produce more maize than the entire Zimbabwe. Let’s blame it on colonialism, apartheid or previously advantaged mindsets. What scares me most is that Iivula Ithana is co-responsible for solving the numerous problems facing Namibia. There is no hope.
* I’M a loyal Swapo member and l feel SPYL is destroying our party within. It’s high time that the likes of (Elijah) Ngurare be called to order before it’s too late. – J Mandume, Windhoek
* SPYL behave. Am tired of reading about this bickering. Well-behaved children don’t talk back to adults. This is the opposite with SPYL. Stop behaving like spoiled brats and let the elders talk. It really shows that SPYL is headed by Johnny-come-latelies. We never put our mighty party into disrepute as the current SPYL is busy doing.
* WHEN I see the poor children sitting on the floor in a tent of a ‘makeshift’ school, I know that our Swapo Government (isn’t that how they like to call themselves?) has its priorities seriously warped, in even considering to buy a N$600 million jet for the affluent few.

Running The Show
* ARE city councillors supposed to serve their rate-paying clients or the political party they belong to? If the latter, they should be paid by the party they represent. All Namibians, please register and vote this year. Opposition parties, please work together, if not to replace the current leadership, then to create a strong, preferably single-party, opposition. Let us not be silenced by a power-addicted party that does not allow independent thinking. – AM
* I THINK reinstating those councillors, if it happens, is to protect the image of Swapo rather than showing any confidence in them. As such I think those councillors run the risk of being used if they accept being reinstated.
* IT’S very embarrassing to have a Minister of Education who is not concerned about learners in the North who are affected by floods. I’m saying this because many schools in the North are closed due to floods, but the minister didn’t even make an attempt to go and assess the situation on the ground, how hard the schools are affected. Instead he let the Head of State assess the situation himself and the minister was not even part of the delegation. Does the minister really have the learners in remote areas at heart?

General
* GRN who is fooling who with land reform. Look at Ongombo. Only government fat cats. Look at other government farms where certain people support the resettled communities in exchange for grazing. Your land reform is a farce. If you want I give you at least names of six farms. Don’t mention Zimbabwe as you haven’t seen it at grassroots level. – Gem
* THE photo of Dolly in yesterday’s New Era has reference: roasting the poor dog is barbaric and loathsome. The people who did this should be prevented from keeping a dog from now on until eternity!
* THE Social Security Commission does not have excess funds – they are still paying off some special pens!

Bouquets And Brickbats
* CONGRATULATIONS to the editor of Top Revs for featuring those Fords and other old-timers. Those cars still have special places in the hearts of many people. Keep up the good work.
* THE Namibian, thanks for the SMS page. Short messages (SMS) should remain SMS, not letters, otherwise let’s have a daily letter page for longer SMSes. I am tired of sending unpublished SMSes and I think I am not alone. What do you say, Ms Editor?
* THANK you for still ‘telling it like it is’, The Namibian team. Why though say telling it like it is if you don’t publish our concerns. We need change at NBC Oshiwambo. How can a presenter present sport without any knowledge of sport!
* THE newspaper is great but are the SMSes maybe sponsored by MTC? Tell us the true story because of the space. – JEP – The page is not sponsored. – News Editor
* NEWSDESK: Is the SMS platform only there to print and repeat some selected short messages or is it there to cater for what is meaningful though not critical? A number of the SMSes I sent never reached your printing machine. Don’t know about this one. – The service is to allow as many people as possible to share their opinions and criticisms on a wide range of topics. To get as many as possible in, these need to be short. Most longer contributions go on the letters pages. – Newsdesk
* I SALUTE your paper for ‘still telling it as it is’, even though the government of the day has banned the sale of your paper to Government offices, it did not tempt you to stop telling it as it is. You are living out the freedom of speech, association and choice that the Constitution allows. Your newspaper is demonstrating true and transparent democracy (a government of the people by the people). We have a lot more to say, please give us more space so more people can tell it as it should be told.
* GRN demote your incompetent supervisors, if not give them training.

ACC Alert
* ACC is Ruacana High School immune to investigation or what? We paid for tracksuits in 2007. Until today, no refunds, no tracksuits. When we ask there are no answers. – Ndaloloka

Education
* MINISTER of Education, why does the GRN allow institutes and colleges which are not recognised by NQA to give education? In the end students and parents are affected, students study and parents pay in the vain hope the future will be bright. Vacancies these days are given to students of Unam and the Poly etc. Please help.

In And From The Regions
* FIRST Walvis Bay without water, now Ongwediva. I think we should opt for Vision 2060!
* LEGAL Shield where is your office at Otjiwarongo? I live here and am a member of legal cover for five years. I’m now in trouble and urgently need your law service. No jokes. Please help.
* THE land issue for us living in coastal areas is of real concern. We cannot afford to buy land because prices are being pushed high by construction companies owned by individuals and I don’t know for us, the poor people, how we are to going own houses.

Labour Issues
* FARM owners and Ministry of Labour officials must do their jobs properly. They get paid by the Ministry of Labour. Why accept payment from farm owners instead of fighting for employees?
* THIS is a friendly request to the nation. Since we are at battle with unemployment in Namibia, I suggest we should help each other by giving info on jobs abroad. People from developed and the western world think those are low class jobs, but to us it’s a lot of foreign money coming home. Set up such an agency GRN with affordable fees! For example I want anyone with info on getting a job on offshore oilrigs. If anyone knows some please call or text me at this number 081-337-4695. – Nicky Onshore – Please double-check many of these well-paid jobs abroad very thoroughly. There have been several instances of them being nothing more than fraudulent schemes enriching only those who promote them. – Newsdesk

Service Please
* IWAY toll free 0800202020 is just a pain. Clients cannot get through, only music and messages, a person can hold on for 15 to 30 minutes without any help. Please provide other numbers we need service. – Frustrated client
* PLEASE we need service at Gibeon, Oshiwambo radio station, MTC update your network and Cell One bring network. It is a matter of agency to avoid loneliness. – Loide