SMSes of the Day : Wednesday

* CONGRATULATIONS to all of you who took part in the music awards, for me you are all winners. Continue working hard and putting Namibia on the music map. Those who didn’t receive anything, there’s always a next time. Don’t ever give up. Look at Stanley, he is a cute example, just work hard. Love you all Namibian artists.

* THE recent anti-media utterances by some politicians border on the absurdity, are nauseating, backwards and make Vision 2030 seem like a terrible nightmare. It baffles the mind that some politicians use democracy and anti-media statements in the same breath. Gagging the media and hence robbing people of a forum to express themselves might lead to frustration and might manifest in ways that the same politicians often speak of. Be warned! * AT all soccer matches I have attended I found young children selling beer at the stadium at the behest of their parents sitting at the gate selling meat. Is this lawful? Is this the way we want to keep the youth away from alcohol abuse? I need a response from the relevant authorities. – RudyFood for thought* THE Sanlam-NBC music awards event has become nothing other than a mickey mouse gimmick. Firstly, NBC TV, which is supposed to promote local artists has become a tool of promoting a few, select artists at the expense of others. Imagine an advert for Omo washing powder on the screen every day. Consumers will start believing that it cleanses better then Surf washing powder. All artists should enjoy equal exposure, airtime and treatment. Back to the awards, suppose a musician is well off, don’t you think this artist can fork out say N$3 000 and buy airtime for his patrons who will eventually cast votes in favour of this person through this SMS story. Now can anyone tell me if there is fairness in voting through SMSes? If an artist could have proved to have sold many CDs, can’t we fairly award him an artist of the year status? Live artists, especially those who are backed by bands, feature nowhere in this competition. In the reggae category, Steve Hanana, who is a hard core reggae artist, could not win.* PEOPLE stop complaining about The Dogg’s comments, the insults hurled in our Parliament are the worst I have heard. – ShafaNFA and the coach* IN the midst of our panic over the prospects of having our Warriors travelling to Ghana without a coach, we are forgetting that the man at the centre of the controversy really appears to be in pain. Let’s sort it out, but I think we also need to show him some respect, support and compassion. – Well said. – Newsdesk* OH no, the NFA make themselves look like fools by denying last week that Bamfuchile resigned. If not, why the appointment of a replacement now? Thanks to The Namibian newspaper for still telling it like it is. Keep on going.* WHO’S fooling who regarding the Bamfuchile and NFA saga. I’m now confused. Please Barry Rukoro just tell the nation whether Bamfuchile will be in Ghana or not.Music awards* I AM a foreigner who’s been working in Namibia for several years. I am also an avid music and soccer lover. I watched the Sanlam-NBC Music awards on TV. I was terribly ashamed, upset and horribly embarrassed by the attitude of the Artist of the Year winner – The Dogg. The uncharitable language, innuendo and even diatribe he lunged into on receipt of the award was absolutely shocking, more so when it was done right under the noses of highly respectable personalities like the former PM, among others, to the extent that the two presenters had to blush and leave the stage unceremoniously. The organisers and sponsors should in future try and avert such an ignominious scenario by educating the artists on decent public and professional manners. The Dogg should render a public apology to the entire nation for his reprehensible behaviour, because I know for a fact that the vast majority of Namibians are very decent and highly disciplined. A minority few must not use their popularity or other endowments to tarnish the impressive image of the country.* AN artist releases a single a few days before the close of entries for the Sanlam awards and then the album a month later. Meaning the album was out of count for the awards. Then he wins the Artist of the Year award, on account of a few-days single. This outshone the year-long efforts of other artists to entertain the masses. It reflects the tribal corruption of the bureaucracy and the wanton pleasures of the administration. Namibians should ban either the category or the competition. You need a year’s work to win a ‘year award’. We cannot allow the artists to be disgraced by displaced aristocrats. Viva la Musica!!* THIS whole NBC-Sanlam music award crab needs an urgent shape-up. How the hell do you explain an artist with a top-selling album not making it to the Artist of the Year? Let’s not disadvantage deserving artists because we want to maintain the frigging Gazza-Dogg delusion created by people with ulterior motives.* I JUST want to congratulate Mshasho fan for voting for The Dogg. Whenever he wins people complain. Why? I have seen that some people hate the man, which is bad. We must support each other. – Maria Kalimbo* ARTIST of the Year means someone has worked through out the year to promote his CD and music that was truly appreciated by the people, no matter which genre of music they support. Stanley’s music rocked for the whole year, he deserves title of Artist of the Year and not someone, who released a CD before the nominations. To the GMP fans, 467 Till we die! – Ndahalele T.* TO The Dogg, those who doubt your abilities are the same people who will ignore your success and appreciate your downfall. They mean nothing to you.* I WAS so disappointed with comments made by The Dogg when crowned Artist of the Year. Cursing people to swallow blades? The young man had bitterness written all over his face. The event was the wrong platform to show his frustrations and especially not while the former PM was standing there. Maybe the organisers should discipline him as an example or lesson to other upcoming musicians. Why the arrogance? It seems he is in the music industry just for the money and he does not give a jack about the well being of the music industry and about setting an example to young ones.* I DON’T understand the fuss about The Dogg being Artist of the Year. For those who still don’t get it, it’s simple – you buy credit and vote and that’s exactly what we Mshasho fans did!* CONGRATULATIONS The Dogg, but next time watch your tongue. Your fans are disappointed in you. You talk like you must always win. Gazza don’t worry, your turn will come. Stanley you deserve it. – Bryan* I AM a Mshasho fan and please allow me to answer this on behalf of The Dogg. Swallow the blade refers to those people who keep fighting others and who have no peace at all with The Dogg! Could Gazza himself please tell me, what he tried to demonstrate with the coffin he brought on the stage.* CAN Gazza please explain to the nation what role the coffin was playing? We want the music industry to be be local and loud, but not loud with witchcraft.* THIS annual Gazza-Dogg Artist of the Year diatribe makes me sick. These delinquent, anti-social personalities need urgent counselling before they do something terrible to each other. Just wondering what their managers teach them.* CONGRATULATIONS to the man himself, the Kwaito master. We can’t ignore Mshasho that’s why we voted for our man. Why didn’t you vote for Stanley if you wanted him to win. To those who are talking about The Dogg’s comments, why are you not talking about the coffin brought on stage (by Gazza) without any explanation and this was also done in the presence of the former PM. Please Gazza tell us the meaning of that coffin? Was it to bury The Dogg?Trigger-happy cop* WE went to the dam last Sunday afternoon with Jake (sausage dog). A man in uniform appeared having a gun on his back. My dog ran to the water to get his ball, running in the direction of the man in uniform. The man took his gun and aimed at my dog ready to shoot but thank heavens Jake ran away. He proceeded without saying a word. We stared at the strange man because we have never seen a man in this uniform at Avis dam. He approached a family sitting at the edge of the dam, with children playing around, while their dog was playing in the water. When the dog got out of the water posing no threat to anyone, the officer shot the dog twice. There was a sudden silence and breaking the silence was the cry of the wounded dog that still resounds in my ears. The man was asked why he did it and his exact words were ‘dog will eat me.’ We as dog owners love Avis Dam, but our lives are now threatened by the ones who are supposed to protect us. That man went there looking for trouble.* DOG shooting: This again proves that NamPol are not there to protect the public. They exist purely to bully the public and shoot dogs. NamPol is staffed by people who can’t think. Emelan should face a disciplinary hearing. But of course nothing will happen.* ONLY a coward will run the risk of being possibly bitten by a beast while armed. I see nothing wrong with a Police officer armed at the dam, he is there to ensure safety for all. Hands off the Policeman.* SHOOTING an innocent dog! President Pohamba please look at the trigger-happy cops. Tomorrow it could be a child!* THEY are the people who must protect us, BUT they can do what ever they want – how sick!* NOT all of us are dog lovers, please keep that animal next to you. “Come out out of the water and ambled up to the man to investigate”, to investigate what ? What if the poor Police officer was attacked. Police officers are there to protect you, they can be everywhere. Note I’m not a Police officer* THERE are laws about discharging of firearms in an urban area and here we have a Policeman firing an assault weapon in a recreation area with children present. Clearly appropriate charges should be brought against the officer. He need not carry an AK-47 assault rifle. It strikes me as macho display by the Police.* I THINK it is absolutely horrifying that our Police force are putting such a dangerous weapon in the hands of someone who does not know how to use it. People like that should not be trusted in public areas. I feel he should pay for all the expenses and his rifle should be confiscated because it’s more a danger to the public than protection.* THE terrifying sound of automatic weapon fire on a peaceful Sunday afternoon in a place where people go to relax with their pets is an abomination. Is it illegal to arrest someone shooting wildly in public? I’m glad he’s not ‘guarding’ me!* WHY are people issued with firearms when every second day one opens the newspaper and read about Police officers losing their minds and someone or some poor defenceless animal is shot at. Put him away for life in a small container in the Namib desert!* IF the Policeman is afraid of dogs, why does he choose to go and walk in a public place where it is known that families and pet owners go for recreation. What would that Policeman do if someone just winked at him? Shoot them?* AT all soccer matches I have attended I found young children selling beer at the stadium at the behest of their parents sitting at the gate selling meat. Is this lawful? Is this the way we want to keep the youth away from alcohol abuse? I need a response from the relevant authorities. – Rudy Food for thought * THE Sanlam-NBC music awards event has become nothing other than a mickey mouse gimmick. Firstly, NBC TV, which is supposed to promote local artists has become a tool of promoting a few, select artists at the expense of others. Imagine an advert for Omo washing powder on the screen every day. Consumers will start believing that it cleanses better then Surf washing powder. All artists should enjoy equal exposure, airtime and treatment. Back to the awards, suppose a musician is well off, don’t you think this artist can fork out say N$3 000 and buy airtime for his patrons who will eventually cast votes in favour of this person through this SMS story. Now can anyone tell me if there is fairness in voting through SMSes? If an artist could have proved to have sold many CDs, can’t we fairly award him an artist of the year status? Live artists, especially those who are backed by bands, feature nowhere in this competition. In the reggae category, Steve Hanana, who is a hard core reggae artist, could not win.* PEOPLE stop complaining about The Dogg’s comments, the insults hurled in our Parliament are the worst I have heard. – Shafa NFA and the coach * IN the midst of our panic over the prospects of having our Warriors travelling to Ghana without a coach, we are forgetting that the man at the centre of the controversy really appears to be in pain. Let’s sort it out, but I think we also need to show him some respect, support and compassion. – Well said. – Newsdesk * OH no, the NFA make themselves look like fools by denying last week that Bamfuchile resigned. If not, why the appointment of a replacement now? Thanks to The Namibian newspaper for still telling it like it is. Keep on going.* WHO’S fooling who regarding the Bamfuchile and NFA saga. I’m now confused. Please Barry Rukoro just tell the nation whether Bamfuchile will be in Ghana or not.Music awards * I AM a foreigner who’s been working in Namibia for several years. I am also an avid music and soccer lover. I watched the Sanlam-NBC Music awards on TV. I was terribly ashamed, upset and horribly embarrassed by the attitude of the Artist of the Year winner – The Dogg. The uncharitable language, innuendo and even diatribe he lunged into on receipt of the award was absolutely shocking, more so when it was done right under the noses of highly respectable personalities like the former PM, among others, to the extent that the two presenters had to blush and leave the stage unceremoniously. The organisers and sponsors should in future try and avert such an ignominious scenario by educating the artists on decent public and professional manners. The Dogg should render a public apology to the entire nation for his reprehensible behaviour, because I know for a fact that the vast majority of Namibians are very decent and highly disciplined. A minority few must not use their popularity or other endowments to tarnish the impressive image of the country.* AN artist releases a single a few days before the close of entries for the Sanlam awards and then the album a month later. Meaning the album was out of count for the awards. Then he wins the Artist of the Year award, on account of a few-days single. This outshone the year-long efforts of other artists to entertain the masses. It reflects the tribal corruption of the bureaucracy and the wanton pleasures of the administration. Namibians should ban either the category or the competition. You need a year’s work to win a ‘year award’. We cannot allow the artists to be disgraced by displaced aristocrats. Viva la Musica!! * THIS whole NBC-Sanlam music award crab needs an urgent shape-up. How the hell do you explain an artist with a top-selling album not making it to the Artist of the Year? Let’s not disadvantage deserving artists because we want to maintain the frigging Gazza-Dogg delusion created by people with ulterior motives.* I JUST want to congratulate Mshasho fan for voting for The Dogg. Whenever he wins people complain. Why? I have seen that some people hate the man, which is bad. We must support each other. – Maria Kalimbo * ARTIST of the Year means someone has worked through out the year to promote his CD and music that was truly appreciated by the people, no matter which genre of music they support. Stanley’s music rocked for the whole year, he deserves title of Artist of the Year and not someone, who released a CD before the nominations. To the GMP fans, 467 Till we die! – Ndahalele T.* TO The Dogg, those who doubt your abilities are the same people who will ignore your success and appreciate your downfall. They mean nothing to you.* I WAS so disappointed with comments made by The Dogg when crowned Artist of the Year. Cursing people to swallow blades? The young man had bitterness written all over his face. The event was the wrong platform to show his frustrations and especially not while the former PM was standing there. Maybe the organisers should discipline him as an example or lesson to other upcoming musicians. Why the arrogance? It seems he is in the music industry just for the money and he does not give a jack about the well being of the music industry and about setting an example to young ones.* I DON’T understand the fuss about The Dogg being Artist of the Year. For those who still don’t get it, it’s simple – you buy credit and vote and that’s exactly what we Mshasho fans did! * CONGRATULATIONS The Dogg, but next time watch your tongue. Your fans are disappointed in you. You talk like you must always win. Gazza don’t worry, your turn will come. Stanley you deserve it. – Bryan * I AM a Mshasho fan and please allow me to answer this on behalf of The Dogg. Swallow the blade refers to those people who keep fighting others and who have no peace at all with The Dogg! Could Gazza himself please tell me, what he tried to demonstrate with the coffin he brought on the stage.* CAN Gazza please explain to the nation what role the coffin was playing? We want the music industry to be be local and loud, but not loud with witchcraft.* THIS annual Gazza-Dogg Artist of the Year diatribe makes me sick. These delinquent, anti-social personalities need urgent counselling before they do something terrible to each other. Just wondering what their managers teach them.* CONGRATULATIONS to the man himself, the Kwaito master. We can’t ignore Mshasho that’s why we voted for our man. Why didn’t you vote for Stanley if you wanted him to win. To those who are talking about The Dogg’s comments, why are you not talking about the coffin brought on stage (by Gazza) without any explanation and this was also done in the presence of the former PM. Please Gazza tell us the meaning of that coffin? Was it to bury The Dogg? Trigger-happy cop * WE went to the dam last Sunday afternoon with Jake (sausage dog). A man in uniform appeared having a gun on his back. My dog ran to the water to get his ball, running in the direction of the man in uniform. The man took his gun and aimed at my dog ready to shoot but thank heavens Jake ran away. He proceeded without saying a word. We stared at the strange man because we have never seen a man in this uniform at Avis dam. He approached a family sitting at the edge of the dam, with children playing around, while their dog was playing in the water. When the dog got out of the water posing no threat to anyone, the officer shot the dog twice. There was a sudden silence and breaking the silence was the cry of the wounded dog that still resounds in my ears. The man was asked why he did it and his exact words were ‘dog will eat me.’ We as dog owners love Avis Dam, but our lives are now threatened by the ones who are supposed to protect us. That man went there looking for trouble.* DOG shooting: This again proves that NamPol are not there to protect the public. They exist purely to bully the public and shoot dogs. NamPol is staffed by people who can’t think. Emelan should face a disciplinary hearing. But of course nothing will happen.* ONLY a coward will run the risk of being possibly bitten by a beast while armed. I see nothing wrong with a Police officer armed at the dam, he is there to ensure safety for all. Hands off the Policeman.* SHOOTING an innocent dog! President Pohamba please look at the trigger-happy cops. Tomorrow it could be a child! * THEY are the people who must protect us, BUT they can do what ever they want – how sick! * NOT all of us are dog lovers, please keep that animal next to you. “Come out out of the water and ambled up to the man to investigate”, to investigate what ? What if the poor Police officer was attacked. Police officers are there to protect you, they can be everywhere. Note I’m not a Police officer * THERE are laws about discharging of firearms in an urban area and here we have a Policeman firing an assault weapon in a recreation area with children present. Clearly appropriate charges should be brought against the officer. He need not carry an AK-47 assault rifle. It strikes me as macho display by the Police.* I THINK it is absolutely horrifying that our Police force are putting such a dangerous weapon in the hands of someone who does not know how to use it. People like that should not be trusted in public areas. I feel he should pay for all the expenses and his rifle should be confiscated because it’s more a danger to the public than protection.* THE terrifying sound of automatic weapon fire on a peaceful Sunday afternoon in a place where people go to relax with their pets is an abomination. Is it illegal to arrest someone shooting wildly in public? I’m glad he’s not ‘guarding’ me! * WHY are people issued with firearms when every second day one opens the newspaper and read about Police officers losing their minds and someone or some poor defenceless animal is shot at. Put him away for life in a small container in the Namib desert! * IF the Policeman is afraid of dogs, why does he choose to go and walk in a public place where it is known that families and pet owners go for recreation. What would that Policeman do if someone just winked at him? Shoot them?