By John Ekongo
WINDHOEK
Swapo Party President and Head of State Hifikepunye Pohamba has reassured residents of the Kunene Region about his party’s vision to continue working towards the socio and economic upliftment of the region.
Addressing an audience during his party’s star rally at the town of Khorixas over the weekend, Pohamba said Swapo Party will “continue to work hard in order to make this country prosperous”.
Pohamba, together with a high powered delegation of the party’s top brass, made a stopover at the town en route from Opuwo where the President commissioned a new village for the Ovatue, a mountain dwelling nomadic people in the Kunene Region.
This was part of a series of N$5-million of villages in the areas of Otjomoru, Otjikoyo and Ohaujuua. A total of 81 housing units were built and 689 Ovatue and Ovatjimba people were resettled at these new villages.
Citing many developmental projects undertaken by the Government, Pohamba said more can be done if the residents of the region lend their vote to Swapo Party.
The Head of State said the region, which is the only one under the opposition governorship of the DTA of Namibia and United Democratic Front (UDF) coalition, has not grown considerably as the current leadership of the region has failed the masses.
Amongst the developmental projects in the region, the President cited the erection of schools at the settlements of Ongongo, Otjapitjapi, Otjikoto, Otjiu, Otjitanda and Etoshapoort. There are also plans in the pipeline to erect schools at Okorusave and a further three primary schools under the special programme in the Epupa circuit.
Pohamba pointed at the building of new clinics and renovation of hospitals in the region as the “Swapo Party Government’s commitment to high level health care in the country”.
“We will continue to expand access to health and services, especially to rural and remote areas, to enable our people to lead productive and healthy lives. Towards this end, hundreds of clinics and major health centres have been built in all 13 regions of the country,” said Pohamba.
He added: “Here in the Kunene Region, clinics were constructed at Otjimuhaka, Otjiu,Terrace Bay, Oruvandjei and Ongongo. The construction of clinics at Epupa, Otuanis, Ombombo, Onjuva, Otjinunga and Sesfontein health centres will take place in the near future.”
The Swapo entourage was meant as fact-finding mission for the party to hear about the plight and challenges faced by the communities of the region, as well as assessing the implementation and programmes of Government in the region.
Against this setting, the President stressed that Namibians have a collective duty to work together for the development of the country.
“It is our collective duty to ensure that Namibia is home to all of us. We have adopted the noble policy of national reconciliation.
We have made collective and individual pledges to forgive each other of all the sins and mistakes of the past in order to forge ahead in unity, peace, brotherhood and sisterhood.
We have national, community and individual duties not to repeat the mistakes of the past and to avoid the pitfalls of some of our African brothers and sisters.”
Over the last 18 years, he said, the Swapo Party Government has made great strides in many areas of socio-economic development, amongst others telecommunication infrastructure, railways, hospitals, clinics, schools, provision of potable water and rural electrification to rural areas.
It is evident that the Swapo Party is the only party with experience and commitment to implement practical policies and programmes that will bring about economic development to all corners of the country, said Pohamba.
“We are committed to the consolidation of our strong foundation of nation-building, national reconciliation, democracy, unity, peace and stability,” concluded the President.