By Catherine Sasman
WINDHOEK
The Veterans Bill, after passing through the National Assembly recently, is expected to sail through the National Council today, Minister of Veterans Affairs, Dr Ngarikutuke Tjiriange said.
He said the Bill is being rushed through Parliament to be enacted before the various Government agencies present their budgets to the Ministry of Finance by November 26.
The Minister was addressing ministry staff and a Mozambican and Zimbabwean delegation at a gathering organised to exchange ideas on how these two countries have dealt with their post-independence veterans.
The ministry staff has, since inception in October last year, grown to 80 percent of the full complement and six regional offices have been opened, Tjiriange said, emphasising the need to mobilise veterans and give them the necessary logistical support.
“The ministry undertakes serious tasks to make sure the veterans’ plight is addressed,” said Tjiriange.
Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, William Amagulu, said the situation of veterans in Namibia is such that there is no room for error.
Since independence, most of the able-bodied former liberation fighters have been absorbed into the Namibian Defence Force, the Namibian Police and state-owned enterprises.
In the same vein, various specific schemes were created to address their situation. These included the creation of the Development Brigade Corporation, the Socio-Economic Integration Programme for Ex-combatants (SIPE), the enactment of the War Veterans Subvention Act in 1999 that provides for payment of subvention of N$500 monthly to veterans and their dependents, and the provision of 1ǟ