Oshakati
In line with his declaration of all-out war on poverty President Hage Geingob this week called on the country to also declare war against corruption.
He was speaking in Oshakati on Friday at a meeting attended by over 500 people, including various ministers and deputy ministers, as well as regional and local authority councillors, church and traditional authority leaders, as well as the general public.
Geingob called for accountability and transparency from every Namibian, including the business fraternity, but specifically mentioned the role of public servants. “Civil servants are there to work. You cannot be a civil servant and at the same time also be doing business at work. We have to do away with this” practice, he advised.
The president also assured people with disabilities that the government has put in place a deputy minister in the Office of the Presidency to ensure the concerns of people with disabilities throughout the country are addressed, including in the recruitment for jobseekers.
Geingob was responding to a representative of people with disabilities, who informed him that they continue to be discriminated against in accessing basic services and gaining entrance to the job market.
The Head of State made a further commitment that all new government offices to be built would make provision for easy access for people with disabilities. He also urged the business fraternity to ensure that their business premises are disability-friendly.
The president’s office would also take note of and address other key concerns raised at the meeting, such as the high rate of youth unemployment, the fair and widespread distribution of drought relief food, as well as bulk servicing of residential land.
Other issues addressed at the meeting include the acceleration of business growth in the regions and the need to enhance opportunities for post-Grade 10 education in a region where many failures are recorded.
Following the public meeting, which drew more than 500 people, the president also inaugurated the newly constructed governor’s office at the three-storey building of the Oshana Regional Council at Ondangwa, as well as the newly built Ondangwa Airport terminal.