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Repatriation of Addis murdered children begins

Repatriation of Addis murdered children begins

Staff Writer The Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation has announced that it has begun the process of repatriating the bodies of two children allegedly murdered by their mother, who is the wife of a Namibian diplomat attached at the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Namibia in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. “The latest is that the young children have been declared dead and the Mission has embarked on a process to facilitate the repatriation of the remains to Namibia and will advise accordingly, as soon as the process has been finalized,” Emilia Mkusa, Ambassador of the Republic of Namibia to…
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Kawana hits back

Kawana hits back

Staff Writer Fisheries minister Albert Kawana has hit back at allegations that he awarded fishing rights to his son under the on-going government fishing rights allocation to new applicants. According to social media allegations, the minister awarded his unnamed son, five of the best species as fishing rights, three Hake rights and two Monk rights. A furious Kawana said the allegations which have been circulating on social media were politically motivated. “That information you are asking about just came to my attention as I have been out of Khomas. I can tell you it’s coming from people with a political…
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Three more face Fishrot prosecution

Three more face Fishrot prosecution

Andrew Kathindi Three new names have been added to the “Fishrot” list after the office of the Prosecutor General (PG) said it will charge former Justice Minister, Sacky Shangala’s lawyer Meren De Klerk, along with Phillipus Mwapopi (Accused 8) and Otneel Shuudifonya (Accused 7) for their involvement in the scandal. De Klerk has been living in South Africa since earlier this year and is believed to have fled justice. This comes as the Prosecutor General, Martha Imalwa, has decided to arraign the Fishrot accused before the High Court, which is scheduled for pre-trial on 22 April 2021. This date is…
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High Court dismisses Gideon’s application

High Court dismisses Gideon’s application

Staff Writer The High Court on Friday delivered its judgement dismissing Professor Frednard Gideon’s application with costs. Gideon had challenged the appointment of Dr Erold Naomab as the Vice-Chancellor (VC) of Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST). In the ruling, Judge Miller refused to grant the interim interdict sought by Gideon through his lawyer, Sisa Namandje as “all requirements for granting of the interim interdict have not been met.” Professor Frednard Gideon was seeking to set aside the NUST Council decision made on the 12th of November 2020 to select Naomab as their preferred candidate to be appointed into…
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MPs call for debt waiver

MPs call for debt waiver

Moses Magadza WINDHOEK – The 48th Plenary Assembly Session of the SADC Parliamentary Forum has adopted a motion exhorting the regional body to support an initiative by Speakers and heads of African national parliaments to call for total cancellation of the continent’s foreign debt. Many African countries are heavily indebted to industrialised countries and financial bodies that include the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. Consequently, some countries have been failing to meet the human needs of their citizens. Against this backdrop, the Speaker of the Parliament of South Africa, Honourable Thandi Modise, tabled the motion through South…
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Govt faces borrowing headache

Govt faces borrowing headache

Staff Writer The Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) has warned that the country’s indebtedness is reaching precarious levels, a position which could one day hamper its ability to pay the interest on what is owed. This comes as ratings agency, Moody’s downgraded Namibia’s government debt on Friday from the previous Ba2 rating to Ba3. “The government has become so completely dependent on borrowing, that just one more small external shock will put it in a position where it cannot pay the interest on its debt. This will lead to an automatic downgrade to the ‘C’ category according to Moody’s system, which…
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Kapere to get official funeral

Kapere to get official funeral

Staff Writer President Hage Geingob has conferred an Official Funeral on the late Mandela Kapere, Chief Public Relations Officer in the Office of the President, Dennis Shikwambi, confirmed to Windhoek Observer. Kapere, a former Executive Chairperson National Youth Council, served as SWAPO Member of Parliament and Chairperson of Human Resources committee. “Our nation and the Swapo Party lost a talented and dynamic Parliamentarian who played a vital role in shaping the trajectory of youth leadership and the development of young people,” President Geingob said. Kapere died yesterday 7 December, aged 38 of COVID-19.
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COVID vaccine to cost Namibia N$200 million …only 20% of population to access drug

COVID vaccine to cost Namibia N$200 million …only 20% of population to access drug

Andrew Kathindi It has emerged that Namibia must spend around N$200 million on the COVID-19 vaccine that will only be made available to 20 percent of the population. This comes as Ministry of Health and Social Services Executive Director Ben Nangombe revealed that the government, last week, already processed payment for the initial 15 percent of the fee, which came up to N$29 million following Treasury approval. Nangombe told Windhoek Observer that he is unsure when the vaccine is likely to reach Namibia but that it was unlikely to be this year. Given that the vaccine has only been rolled…
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DRC backs SADC Parliament bid

DRC backs SADC Parliament bid

Moses Magadza The Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Professor Sylvestre Ilunga Ilunkamba , has pronounced his country’s support to efforts to transform the SADC Parliamentary Forum into a SADC Regional Parliament as his country assumed the presidency of the SADC PF. Ilunkamba spoke about the need for a SADC Parliament when he officially opened the 48th Plenary Assembly Session of the SADC Parliamentary Forum on Friday. The DRC virtually hosted the Plenary which brought together over 120 members of Parliament and other delegates from 14 of the SADC PF Member States over two days. He recalled that…
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SADC MPs want end to armed insurgency in Mozambique

SADC MPs want end to armed insurgency in Mozambique

Moses Magadza Windhoek – The 48th Plenary Assembly Session of the SADC Parliamentary Forum has unanimously adopted a strongly-worded motion calling for urgent regional action to stop armed insurgents that are destabilising northern Mozambique. The Plenary is the highest decision-making body of the SADC PF which brings together 15 national parliaments of the SADC Region. It met virtually on Friday and Saturday with 14 of the Member Parliaments represented. The Speaker of the Parliament of Zimbabwe, Advocate Jacob Francis Mudenda moved a motion exhorting the Plenary to condemn “the terrorist attacks in the Republic of Mozambique which are threatening the…
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