WINDHOEK: First Lady Sustjie Mbumba on Saturday handed over winter blankets and food items to senior citizens living in the Tobias Hainyeko constituency, in Windhoek.
The event, organised by the Omkhai Namibia Trust saw the attendance of close to 100 senior citizens and some persons living with disabilities.
In her address, Mbumba lashed out at young people who abandon and leave their children in the care of the elderly.
‘All you do is give birth and dump your children to the elders who are now burdened as they have to use the old age pension that was meant to help them, to sustain the whole family. That is unfair because they also have their lives. These are people who brought us into this world and I want you to appreciate them. Take care of your elders and respect them because tomorrow when you reach our age you will also want others to respect you,’ Mbumba said.
She also called on parents to talk to their children and guard them against the consumption of alcohol and drugs.
‘Growing up, there were no
drugs, there were no stories about alcohol. Today, children are leaving their elders in the villages, and coming to Windhoek to look for work. When they don’t find work they resort to drugs and alcohol, stealing other people’s belongings, grabbing bags from their elders and poor defenseless women,’ Mbumba remarked.
The handing over of items followed a wellness session for the pensioners, which included massaging their feet.
Omkhai Trust Founder, Saima Shaanika said the Trust was founded in March 2022 to empower the less fortunate, by identifying young, brilliant children from marginalized communities and sending them to school.
‘We also run programs for young entrepreneurs, who we assist with micro financing. We appreciate the elderly by giving back in the form of winter initiatives and Christmas parties. So far we have done projects in the Khomas region but we want to cover all the regions, going constituency by constituency,’ Shaanika said.
Source: The Namibia Press Agency