Otjinene
The event was meant to be the launch of the Kavitundema Trust and the groundbreaking ceremony of the site where the Otjinene Vocational Training Centre is envisaged to be built.
In this regard one would have expected the line-up of dignitaries of the various role players to have run away with the limelight on Saturday here. Instead, the Gustav Kandjii Secondary School Choir turned out to be the star of the day and the occasion. Much to the delight of the Chief of the Maharero Royal House Traditional Authority, Tjinaani Maharero, who could not hide his association with the choir as one of its founders if not brainchild, having brought the idea to this part of the country having picked it up from other well-established choirs, like the National Youth Choir, Maranatha, Soli Deo Gloria – you name them.
A few years down the line there is no mistaking that the Gustav Kandjii Secondary School choir has been and has left a mark on the village, if not on the whole constituency and is a worthy ambassador of both the village of Otjinene, the Otjinene constituency and indeed the whole region of Omaheke. On Saturday the choir did not only imprint itself on the director of ceremony, Eino Mbango, but also further on the residents of the village, as well as the inhabitants of greater Otjinene constituency, not to mention the guests who descended on the village from different corners of the region and beyond.
Among those that the choir seemed to have left a deep impression on was none other than one of the country’s foremost Oviritje genre frontrunners, Ongoronomundu, one of the groups that volunteered to spice up the launch and groundbreaking event with entertainment. Unknown to them, albeit in a different genre, Acapella, in this regard, another star group has been making waves in the Omaheke region, eclipsing the unbeatable Ongoronomundu, if only by the design of the director ceremony, who could not hide his instant liking for the choir, telling by the number of times the choir was called upon to perform.
As per the programme, the choir was meant to perform at two intervals, early in the beginning of the programme, and later towards the end. But it seemed they performed more than this. Or is it their sheer excellence and attendant likability that may have given one the impression that they were given more than their programmatic share?
Whatever the case may have been, many would agree that Otjinene, Omaheke, and indeed Namibia, in this choir, surely have got talent. How can they not under the stewardship of the equally able conductor, Nguriye Katusuva? One cannot but admit that the success that the event turned out to be had as much to do with Katusuva and his ensemble. It is now incumbent upon the school, and indeed Chief Maharero, to ensure that the choir becomes a delight to the whole of Namibia and not remain confined to the village.