Tobacco Control Bill tabled today

THE long-awaited draft law to control tobacco products will be tabled in the National Assembly today, Health Minister Richard Kamwi informed the House yesterday afternoon.

The first session after the winter recess lasted only 20 minutes and Members were sent home after opposition MPs fired a salvo of questions at Cabinet Ministers.Leading the pack was DTA Secretary General McHenry Venaani who asked Prime Minister Nahas Angula whether the Secretary to Cabinet or the Secretary to President Hifikepunye Pohamba had asked him for permission to carry out any paid work outside their duties as civil servants.’Has your Office granted any permission to the Cabinet Secretary or the President’s Secretary for any remunerative work outside the Public Service?’ Venaani asked.The Public Service Act of 1995 stipulates that civil servants must seek permission for such work from their seniors. In the case of the Secretary to Cabinet and the Secretary to the President, Venaani told the House, the Prime Mister must give permission. Venaani wants the Office of the Prime Minister to provide the names of all civil servants who have applied for such permission.’How many private interest companies of Permanent Secretaries have secured Government tenders and for what total amount over the last three financial years?’ the DTA leader asked.’Are you aware that some civil servants use their knowledge of upcoming Government tenders, being insider trading, to secure business (with Government) through dubious means?’ Venaani asked the Prime Minister whether he would consider an investigation to ‘curb this worrisome trend.’Venaani further asked Defence Minister Charles Namoloh about the cost of navy vessels bought from Brazil and who the Ministry’s officials were who handled the matter.’Is there any internal investigation in your Ministry regarding the procurements from Brazil?’ he asked.Tsudao Gurirab of the Congress of Democrats (CoD) asked Environment and Tourism Minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah about the terms of the pubic-private partnership (PPP) contracts the State-owned Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR) company have signed with a private company to develop the Von Bach Dam resort outside Okahandja. ‘Has any part of that resort been sold, leased or contracted out?’ Gurirab wanted to know. ‘What will be the revenue generated – if any – from this company for the NWR or Government Treasury and how superior will these incomes be from those of the present operations?’According to a report by freelance journalist John Grobler in The Namibian recently, NWR has signed a contract with a black empowerment company for developing the resort, and currently a Chinese contractor is doing renovations there. Gurirab also asked when the outstanding annual reports of NWR of the past few years, which usually include the financial statements, would be tabled in Parliament. Arnold Tjihuiko of the Nudo party wanted to hear from Works and Transport Minister Helmut Angula who in Government was responsible for buying Chinese locomotives for Namibia, which were found to be incompatible with the Namibian rail network. Jurie Viljoen of the Monitor Action Group (MAG) wanted to know from Prime Minister Nahas Angula why the Hansard books, which contain the printed version of what was debated on in Parliament, are incomplete between July 2004 to September 2005 and for some of the sessions after 2007. Viljoen also asked Labour Minister Immanuel Ngatjizeko whether his Ministry had any vacancies for engineers, quantity surveyors and similar technical fields. ‘If there are such vacancies, are there any limitations that prevent white Namibians who qualify to apply and being appointed in such posts?’ Viljoen wanted to know.