Elizabeth Hiyolwa
NKURENKURU – In yet another memorable event, the community of the Kavango West region took possession of a brand-new regional police head office.
Last week, they witnessed the inaugural plaque and cutting of the ribbon at the Namibian Police headquarters by the Minister of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security Albert Kawana.
During his address, he stated that the inauguration of the regional head office aims to ensure that the community of Kavango West, like any other region, receives efficient and timely police services.
“The inauguration of this state-of-the-art police regional headquarters demonstrates the commitment and dedication of the Namibian government in general, and the Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security in particular in ensuring that the residents of Nkurenkuru town and indeed Kavango West as a whole will receive efficient and timely police services,” Kawana said.
He added that the existence of regional headquarters and a police station are meaningless if police officers are not devoted to their careers by displaying discipline, loyalty and patriotism.
“It is important for me to stress that the existence of regional headquarters and police stations alone do not mean anything if they are not supported by a sufficient number of police officers who are fully devoted to their careers. Such officers must consider their profession as a calling, not just as a job opportunity.”
He also encouraged the community to contribute to the maintenance of peace and stability by joining the police force or other organisations which fulfill this duty.
“There are a number of organisations which they can join. These include the neighbourhood watches, youth against crime and police reservists, which are all part of the community policing philosophy,” Kawana observed.
A team of officials will also soon undertake an outreach programme to attend to people without national documents.
Police chief Sebastian Ndeitunga, who retires at the end of August, said the facility is fundamental as it creates and ensures a conducive working environment for men and women in uniform.
Governor Sirkka Ausiku applauded the head of the force for fulfilling promises he made in 2013 of establishing a regional headquarters here. She said the presence of a police head office will reassure investors who plan to invest in the region.
She then highlighted illegal fencing and a lack of national documents as the main concerns in the region, and said it must be addressed urgently.
The governor likewise urged traditional authorities to engage the community and calm their fears, as community members tend to take the law into their own hands at times.
The construction of the headquarters, which was handed over to a contractor on 20 January 2020, was completed in July 2022 to the tune of N$85 million.
The facility consists of the main administrative block with 44 offices, four record rooms, two safes, one storeroom, one server room, two ablution facilities, one public ablution block, three staff kitchenettes, two cleaners’ rooms, a logistics warehouse building, a vehicle clearance building, guard houses and the security fence.
In the same vein, there was a groundbreaking ceremony for the infrastructural development of the Namibian Police’s checkpoint at Namasira, where they plan to construct prefabricated structures for the police officers deployed there.