WINDHOEK – Out of eight children registered at boarding schools in Otamanzi Constituency in Omusati Region five have dropped out of school – leaving only three at school.
Development planner in the Office of the Vice-President’s Directorate of Marginalised Communities in the Omusati Region Senia Endjala revealed this yesterday.
Endjala said the community of Onkaankaa village in Otamanzi Constituency do not understand the benefit of education and that the community needed to join hands in order to conduct mobilisation aimed at arresting the situation. She said this yesterday in a telephonic interview with New Era regarding the situation of marginalised communities in the region.
She described the situation as demoralising.
“I have used government money to buy school uniforms, blankets and pay school fees for these children but now as we are talking, they are at home hiding. They do not want to go to school and their parents are happy with it,” stressed Endjala.
She further explained that the situation needs joint efforts so that stakeholders can educate the parents on the importance of education before the situation gets worse.
She said there was a time when they visited these communities with the Director of Education Laban Shapange and the constituency’s councillor Johannes Iyambo to conduct meetings and provide awareness, but this did not yield any positives.
“In fact the boy who was the master of ceremonies during that meeting was brutalised by the mob and was rushed to Oshakati state hospital because apparently he is the one who called the officials to have a meeting, which was not true at all,” she explained with a soft heart.
She said that the only activity that is well received and appreciated by the community is consumption of alcohol.
“If you go to that area at 05h00 you will find those people at the shebeens already. They do not work, they are just waiting for the government to provide food. Although there are those that are in need of food, the majority of those people are energetic youths that are able to work just like other people.”
She said that she is willing to go with the constituency councillor and investigate shebeens in the area because they help perpetuate the situation.
“Although one cannot just stop [relief food], something needs to be done so that these people are motivated to work on their own, especially to work in the mahangu fields because they live on fertile land,” said Endjala.
She further expressed her disappointment that some people who are receiving the social grants for children are not using it to help the children but spend it on alcohol.