War vets on march again

FORMER combatants, who are demanding that Government pay them compensation, plan to camp outside Government offices until the relevant Minister talks to them.

“We will march on June 4 to the newly created Ministry of Veterans’ Affairs, since the responsible Minister, Dr Ngarikutuke Tjiriange, has so far not spoken to us, despite several requests,” said one of the group’s leaders, Alex Kamwi. Last year the group, comprised of Namibians who fought in the liberation struggle, went public with their demands.These include jobs, study bursaries for their children, a shareholding in State-owned enterprises and large sums of cash.The Inspector General of the Police, Lieutenant General Sebastian Ndeitunga, has now called a meeting with the war veterans, which is scheduled to take place today.”We sent President Hifikepunye Pohamba a letter in February this year and one on March 27 to Minister Tjiriange, which I delivered by hand myself to his office,” Kamwi told The Namibian on Friday.According to Kamwi, the Minister of Presidential Affairs, Dr Albert Kawana, sent a letter to Tjiriange on March 7 2007 informing the Veterans’ Affairs Minister that President Pohamba had directed him, Kawana, to let Tjiriange know he should now deal with the group’s grievances.Kawana sent a copy of his letter to Tjiriange to Kamwi’s organisation, the Association of War Veterans (AWV), which he and Ruusa Malulu lead.”We only got a response to our letter of March 27 to Minister Tjiriange today, Friday May 18, nearly two months later,” Kamwi told The Namibian.”Instead of granting us a meeting as we had requested, he informed us the Ministry had to first set up its structures and that it would hold meetings with all veterans in the different regions, it is just a letter saying nothing, the usual blah-blah,” Kamwi complained.”If he had granted us a meeting, it would not be necessary for us to hold the protest march next month.”Kamwi was also critical that mediation offers by Bishop Zephaniah Kameeta of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Namibia (ELCRN) had not materialised.In September last year, Kameeta offered to mediate between the group and Government after the war veterans threatened to stage countrywide protests.Only a few people gathered on September 4 2006 in Katutura and Kamwi handed over a petition with their demands to Presidential Affairs Minister Kawana.AWV chairperson Ruusa Malulu confirmed receipt of the letter.”Although we were happy to finally get a written response on Friday, we are disappointed that the Minister did not grant us a meeting,” Malulu told The Namibian yesterday.”We had a very good meeting with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry at the end of last year and he suggested that a meeting with Minister Tjiriange would be a very good thing.So we wrote to the Minister this year requesting to see him.He is only answering now but does not heed our call.”Malulu said her group wanted to camp in front of the Ministry’s offices from June 4 onwards.”The retrenched workers of NHE (National Housing Enterprise) have been allowed to camp for weeks now at the company’s premises, so we should also be allowed,” she added.Malulu confirmed that the meeting with NamPol’s Ndeitunga was set to take place this morning.Last year the group, comprised of Namibians who fought in the liberation struggle, went public with their demands.These include jobs, study bursaries for their children, a shareholding in State-owned enterprises and large sums of cash.The Inspector General of the Police, Lieutenant General Sebastian Ndeitunga, has now called a meeting with the war veterans, which is scheduled to take place today.”We sent President Hifikepunye Pohamba a letter in February this year and one on March 27 to Minister Tjiriange, which I delivered by hand myself to his office,” Kamwi told The Namibian on Friday.According to Kamwi, the Minister of Presidential Affairs, Dr Albert Kawana, sent a letter to Tjiriange on March 7 2007 informing the Veterans’ Affairs Minister that President Pohamba had directed him, Kawana, to let Tjiriange know he should now deal with the group’s grievances. Kawana sent a copy of his letter to Tjiriange to Kamwi’s organisation, the Association of War Veterans (AWV), which he and Ruusa Malulu lead.”We only got a response to our letter of March 27 to Minister Tjiriange today, Friday May 18, nearly two months later,” Kamwi told The Namibian.”Instead of granting us a meeting as we had requested, he informed us the Ministry had to first set up its structures and that it would hold meetings with all veterans in the different regions, it is just a letter saying nothing, the usual blah-blah,” Kamwi complained.”If he had granted us a meeting, it would not be necessary for us to hold the protest march next month.”Kamwi was also critical that mediation offers by Bishop Zephaniah Kameeta of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Namibia (ELCRN) had not materialised.In September last year, Kameeta offered to mediate between the group and Government after the war veterans threatened to stage countrywide protests.Only a few people gathered on September 4 2006 in Katutura and Kamwi handed over a petition with their demands to Presidential Affairs Minister Kawana.AWV chairperson Ruusa Malulu confirmed receipt of the letter.”Although we were happy to finally get a written response on Friday, we are disappointed that the Minister did not grant us a meeting,” Malulu told The Namibian yesterday.”We had a very good meeting with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry at the end of last year and he suggested that a meeting with Minister Tjiriange would be a very good thing.So we wrote to the Minister this year requesting to see him.He is only answering now but does not heed our call.”Malulu said her group wanted to camp in front of the Ministry’s offices from June 4 onwards.”The retrenched workers of NHE (National Housing Enterprise) have been allowed to camp for weeks now at the company’s premises, so we should also be allowed,” she added.Malulu confirmed that the meeting with NamPol’s Ndeitunga was set to take place this morning.