Kindly allow me space in your newspaper to air my views about what I consider to be unbecoming behaviour on the part of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) following a court order for the Ministry to pay for my car damaged in a road accident caused by one of its drivers. On April 22, 2005 my pick up N7312Sh was bumped from behind by a Toyota Landcruiser, NDF3360, driven by a certain Andreas Nekwaya, which resulted in my car overturning three times and being damaged beyond repair. The accident, which could have cost my life and that of my passenger, Daniel Martin, occurred on the Oshakati-Okahao road. Although I have been trying to sort out this matter in an amicable manner, the Ministry of Defence has been uncooperative, which forced me to drag it to court. Before the court could hear the matter on November 17, 2006, the culprit approached me to settle the matter out of court after realizing that there was nothing to defend at the court. It was therefore mutually agreed that the defendant would pay me on or before January 15, 2007 the agreed amount. But, to my surprise, more than three weeks after the agreed deadline, which was made a court order, the MoD has failed to pay up. I am now tempted to ask whether some government institutions are above the law? If such a high-profile ministry is making itself guilty of contempt of court, is it not setting a bad example for ordinary citizens of the country? Are the laws only made to be respected by ordinary citizens while some government institutions – which consider themselves to be untouchable – are violating them with impunity? For the said reason, I urge the Minister of Defence, General Namholo, to set a precedent by being a shining example which should uphold the rule of law as enshrined in the constitution of the Republic of Namibia. WILLIAM J. MBANGULA OSHAKATI