info_e12wt4cs – Page 945

25 Jun

Geingob needs better advisors

…as ill-advised labour ministry action judged to be illegal The High Court has found that the government acted against the constitution when it cherry-picked parts of the labour law and supressed certain clauses. The Minister of Labour failed by authoring this disastrous legal debacle. The Attorney General failed as he did not protect the administration by stopping the doomed labour action. Together, they exposed the president. Geingob needs better advisors. The Attorney-General, as the lawyer for the government, is supposed to do the legal research on proposed actions by the government. It is his task to go through the constitution,…

25 Jun

GIPF embarks on member Education campaign

info_e12wt4csUncategorisedGIPF, Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF)

Staff Writer The Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF) will embark on a member education campaign aimed at informing, educating and sensitizing our members about their benefits and rules of the Fund “The campaign will commerce on 29 June and will run until 31 July 2020. It is with great pleasure that we invite all our members to make use of these member information sessions on radio and print. We wish to emphasize that it is our members’ responsibility to make sure that they tune in and listen or buy the local newspapers to know more about GIPF offerings. As a…

25 Jun

Namport records increases in cargo shipments

info_e12wt4csUncategorisedLüderitz, Namibian Ports Authority (Namport), Namport, Walvis Bay

Staff Writer The Namibian Ports Authority (Namport) announced that it has handled one million tons of cargo carried along its four trade corridors from 01 April 2019 until 31 March 2020. Immanuel !Hanabeb, Executive: Commercial at Namport said the Port of Walvis Bay and Lüderitz had contributed equally to the success by recording 5,561,999 tons of cargo handled during this last financial year 2019/2020. “The largest portion of growth is reflected by the 100 percent increased activity along the Trans-Oranje Corridor as 204,301 tonnes of manganese ore was exported via the Port of Lüderitz. The benefit of the Trans-Oranje corridor…

24 Jun

Win first – then run the tourism victory lap

info_e12wt4csNational NewsCOVID, Namibia

Headlines blaring: ‘Tourists to return’ or ‘Namibia to open borders’ need to be examined carefully. The small print ‘terms and conditions’ for stages 4 and 5 of the re-opening, make those headlines too broad. Let us not raise expectations that cannot be met. It is important to not run a victory lap before the race is run. The hospitality, travel and tourism industry is failing and it is hurting tens of thousands of Namibians. No tourists = no tourism revenue = sector collapse. We know the industry is in pain. We do not envy policymakers who are juggling sharp knives…

24 Jun

Book Review: White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo

info_e12wt4csUncategorisedBook Review, Robin DiAngelo, White Fragility

Jackie Wilson Asheeke White Fragility should be mandatory reading for all white people. Yep, I said it. Most white people do not recognize their micro-aggressions against people of colour. They would never call someone an offensive racist name. They are truly appalled at the vicious murder of George Floyd. But, they don't 'get it' that their buy-in to white privilege is part of the reason why that happened. To those who want to understand more - I challenge you to read this book and think about it. [Let me know- jackie@observer.com.na] This book was written by a white woman who…

22 Jun

German Embassy contributes to Covid-19 fight

info_e12wt4csObserver MoneyCovid-19, German Embassy, Gobabis, Okahandja, Witvlei

Staff Writer As part of its projects to mitigate the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, the German Embassy will support families in need in the areas of Gobabis, Witvlei and Okahandja and a total of approximately N$ 99,600 (EUR 5,000.00) from the Embassy’s micro project fund will be made available as an immediate measure to purchase food packages. The packages include staple foods and will be distributed to the community members by the German Evangelical Lutheran Association of Okahandja-Gobabis (ELCIN - GELC) in cooperation with the Okahandja Community Forum. The Okahandja Community Forum is a civil organization in Okahandja that…

22 Jun

Women’s freedom chained by apartheid laws

info_e12wt4csNational NewsDoreen Sioka, freedom, laws, minister of gender equality, Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare, SRHR

There is a petition signed by over 5,000 people calling for the government to legalize women’s rights to choose when they have children. We applaud this effort; it is long overdue. Any human being has a right to decide what happens to their bodies. The discussion around sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) is important. The debate must respond to the silent cry of women forced to give birth against their will. The existing Abortion and Sterilisation Act of 1975 law is 45 years old. This apartheid-era law was written by South African white men, who patronizingly considered women as…

19 Jun

Couch Kitten: I am no man’s winter bed warmer!

info_e12wt4csUncategorisedClementine Tjameya, Couch Kitten

Clementine Tjameya When the days get colder, seasonal relationships get going. There are memes about this everywhere on social media where people are saying that it’s getting so cold that they might ‘shiver’ their way into other people’s relationships. As funny as that sounds, there is some truth to it. This is the time when most senior boys at varsity are on the hunt for their ‘human heaters’ for the next couple of cold months. Beware fellow girls, if he has known you very long and mysteriously claims to have interest in you just now, don’t fall for it. Don’t…

19 Jun

Gents let’s do better

info_e12wt4csUncategorised

Observatory: Thandizo Kawerama As the news of the horrific rape incidents that occurred during this month made its way to newsstands, men online rushed to type out their usual ‘gents let’s do better’ posts to appease the growing rage surrounding these horrific acts of violence and destruction of women. After which it was business as usual for most of them. ‘Gents, let’s do better’ is the go-to phrase for Namibian men on social media to signal to their audience that they support the fight against rape culture that continues to terrorize our society. It’s their way of saying rape culture…

19 Jun

Lowering the bar damages our children

info_e12wt4csUncategorisedCovid-19, Jackie Wilson Asheeke

Jackie Wilson Asheeke I am disgusted at the ridiculous decision to drop the passing average for primary school to 35 percent. It was already obscenely low at 40 percent! I am throwing shade on any ministry of education official that agreed to reduce the passing rate percentage. I am insulted to read officials blaming this outrageous decision on COVID-19. That doesn't work! Step up and take your tomatoes in the face for this bad decision that hurts our children. Whether you realize it or not, our children are smarter than you think! The issue around low scores is less to…