NOMTSOUB - The Opawa Junior Secondary School (JSS) in Tsumeb on Wednesday held a memorial service in honour of late president Hage Geingob, who had served as a teacher there before going into exile.

The school’s principal, Lameck Masule, said at the event that teaching and learning activities of the school were cancelled on Wednesday in order to dedicate the day to Geingob’s legacy.

He added that the late president was a teacher at the school for the upper-primary level in 1962.

“The president also taught music to the learners in grade one until grade six that same year,” he said.

The teachers and learners gathered in their school hall, where several speeches, songs and emotional stories from Geingob’s former learners, political followers and religious leaders were shared.

Two of his former learners who spoke at the event are 69-year-old Betty Kaula, and the 70-year-old Manuel Uiseb.

The two also sang one of Geingob’s favourite songs he taught them in 1962.

Former Deputy Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Engel Nawatiseb, as well as Tsumeb constituency councillor Gottlieb Ndjendjela were present at the memorial service.

Nawatiseb told the gathering that in November 2014, Geingob last visited Opawa JSS to remember his youthful days at the school where he was a prominent teacher.

The school has a total of 671 learners and 24 teachers in 2024, including the school principal.

The gathering furthermore shared stories on how generous Geingob was, saying he even purchased a Toyota Hilux 2.0 single cab for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Namibia’s Exodus ll Parish church at Tsumeb.

“The vehicle is still operational, and it often serves the church as a means of transport for its members,” said dean Frans Nawatiseb at the event. Geingob was a member of the church, he added.

- Nampa