WINDHOEK – “I keep wondering who the media will report on if all ministers get fired like Kazenambo,” Kazenambo Kazenambo said on Wednesday in the National Assembly.
Kazenambo, was contributing to the debate on the National Health Bill, accused the media of being on a mission of getting ministers fired by “not reporting on other ministerial staff”.
“The problem we have is that the media is interested in politics too, therefore journalism is not developmental anymore, it is more political. Journalism is driven by maximisation of competition and it lacks the developmental aspect,” he said.
Kazenambo, who is himself a trained journalist besides having other qualifications, made the remarks when Nudo MP Arnold Tjihuiko asked him what he thinks is the reason for the public always “looking for ministers” and not other ministerial staff.
“Why is it that people are always looking for ‘ministers’ while there are structures in the hospitals? Is it perhaps because the people at management level who must assist the minister are not the right people?” asked Tjihuiko in his contribution to the debate on the National Health Bill.
Kazenambo went on to say: “My colleagues in the media live for the day that each minister is shown the door. Other people are sleeping on duty but you will never hear about the media writing about anyone else. The media must investigate the whole system.”
He urged the media to also expose the performance of permanent secretaries and directors because “a ministry is an institution and it does not only comprise of the minister”.
Kazenambo called on nurses to show a more caring attitude on the job.
“The attitude of some of our nurses leaves much to be desired. You can have the best facilities in hospitals but that will not translate into a caring attitude,” said Kazenambo.
Sometimes people go to hospitals for treatment and in pain only to find the nurses selling recharge vouchers or busy on their cellphones.
“The attitude of many of our employees at hospitals from the cleaner to the top develop an attitude where they feel they are no longer servants but bosses, they feel very empowered,” he charged.
“I do not know where the medicine to develop will come from but we need it,” he said.
Tjihuiko said the blame should not only be on nurses, but the attitude of the public also leaves much to be desired.
“These people work from 07h00 to 19h00, do you expect them to show a caring attitude if the public does not respect them?” he said.
“The noise in the corridors of hospitals, the public act differently when they are at Katutura Hospital compared to when they are at Rhino Park Hospital, at Rhino Park they behave and therefore you see the attitude of nurses at Rhino Park Hospital is different,” he said.
“It takes two to tango, we must change, every human being reacts to a situation in front of him/her. Everyone must change their attitude so that we can develop a [good] attitude between nurses and the public,” said Tjihuiko.
“Nurses must change and we should also bring our part,” said the Nudo MP.
By Mathias Haufiku