Kae Matundu-Tjiparuro Kalkfeld After passing through the town now and then as parliamentarians on a mission in the country to assess the development needs of communities, Kalkfeld was one of the place which could not help but attract the attention of visiting MPs. And this was for all the wrong reasons, the glaring lack of development in the area. That is why one of these MPs last Saturday returned to the town with a new idea. Five years ago when he was here he was also pitifully struck by the bucket toilet system in the town. Not only this but there was also a lack of grazing, water, etc. The lack of basic services and overall lack of development in the town were as glaring five years ago as it is today. With the return last Saturday to the town of Swanu of Namibia MP Usutuaije Maamberua, there may be some hope for the residents terms of development. That is once the Maamberua Solidarity Trust is up and running and fully operational. The Trust was launched by the Swanu parliamentarian on Saturday. The dire need of the residents was obvious because shortly after its launch the residents present at the launch could not but bombard him and fellow trustees with various requests for help. Among them help for disabled child who for a very long time now has been in need of a wheel chair, amongst many other needs. The need of the settlement for development was further accentuated by the hope, which seemed common to most of the community leaders who welcomed the initiative that this Trust was not just an empty promises from Maamberua and fellow trustees. Explaining the idea behind the Trust, Maamberua said it is a free organisation that does not require anyone to belong to it and the idea is to raise funds from various instances that would be used towards the various needs of the residents of Kalkfeld and other communities beyond it. He emphasised that the launch was not by any means meant for the community members to join the Trust, but to be informed of its existence, so that when in need they could approach to see how it can help them. He said the Trust is registered with the High Court of Namibia and it terms of such registration its financial books must be audited by qualified auditors, in this case the auditors being Saunderson and Co. Among the objectives of the Trust, as per the document endorsed by the High Court of Namibia, it is to strive for the development of the community, especially the elderly and orphans. Among the first people to donate to the Trust was Vekondja Tjikuzu, deputy director of development in the Otjozondjupa Regional Council, no stranger to the development challenges of the town – which has since been downgraded to a settlement Tjikuzu donated N$1,000 to the Trust. As yet the Trust does not have any resources apart from the start-up from Maamberua himself. Members of the community were after the launch of the Trust treated to lunch, as well as a donation of clothing and shoes and in the evening some joined Maamberua in celebrating his 60th birthday anniversary.
2017-08-30 11:10:26 1 years ago
