Namibian Police chief Sebastian Ndeitunga believes there is still a lot of talent in the country, judging from the recent achievements of Namibians on global sporting fronts.
He made these remarks when the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic team paid a courtesy call to his office yesterday.
The Paralympians are silver medallist Ananias Shikongo (T11 400m) and bronze medallist Johannes Nambala (T13 400m), as well as Lahja Ishitile (T11), who unfortunately did not win any medal. They were accompanied by running guides Sem Shimanda, Even Tjiviju and Sydney Kamuaruuma, as well as coach Letu Hamhola.
Ndeitunga thanked the athletes for all their great accomplishments at the Paralympics, saying it shows how competent the country is.
“We are glad to see the Paralympic team coming here to pay us a visit. You made us proud by bringing two medals, and I am glad that one of the team members (Shimanda) is part of the Namibian Police Force and had assisted the team to achieve its goal,” said the police chief.
“We are known across the globe because of these achievements, and it’s now a well-known fact that Namibia is a force to be reckoned with. We are proud that all the teams that went to Japan came back with medals and it shows how prepared we were for these big sporting events.”
He then went on to say that judging from these successes from the Paralympians and Olympians, there is still a lot of talent amongst the youth.
“We have talent that’s yet untapped and this is the opportunity for us to go out there and unearth all the talent that’s yet to be unleashed. With that, more can be achieved, more than what we had accomplished already.”
Speaking at the same event, Hamhola said he was humbled by the reception they received on their arrival at the police headquarters, and thanked the police for all the support they had given them from the beginning.
“It’s quite humbling and I am left speechless because when we decided to pay a courtesy call, this is not what we expected. Normally we are taken to a boardroom and then it’s finished. Of course, our humbleness started when we arrived at the airport (from Tokyo) and it’s quite humbling because before we left for the games, the athletes you see in front of you felt the people of Namibia did not care about them the same way they cared about others,” he noted.
- mkambukwe@nepc.com.na