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Karibib maiden mayoral fund raises N.dollars 1.2 million


The Karibib Town Council has raised about N.dollars 1.2 million through pledges made during its first ever mayoral fundraising gala dinner held at the town Friday night.

About N.dollars 150 000 was raised from the sale of tables and in addition to the monetary pledges, some in-kind pledges have also been made during the gala dinner.

The mayoral fund was established to utilise donations for the benefit of the town’s community by uplifting vulnerable members.

President Nangolo Mbumba in his speech delivered on his behalf highlighted the importance of this initiative, acknowledging the mayor’s vision and effort in organising such a vital event.

‘Karibib is transitioning from its small, stagnant past into a burgeoning economic hub, and faces growing demands on its infrastructure and services, which is noticeable and therefore commendable,’ he expressed.

Mbumba emphasised the need for timely interventions to improve living conditions amid the town’s rapid growth, driven by the mining sector, strong farming co
mmunity, and urban retail industry.

‘While economic growth is positive and welcome, it often brings increased demands on services such as land, accommodation, education, and employment. Without adequate support, residents may face financial hardship, food insecurity, and lack of housing,’ the Head of State said.

Karibib Mayor Davey van Wyk reflected the community’s shared values and commitment to making a positive difference, while emphasising the critical role of local authorities in disaster response and community support.

‘If there is any disaster that happens, the first people that community members will approach is the elected leadership, however we are faced with limitations, which makes it very difficult for us,’ he expressed.

He added that it was for this reason that the council initiated the mayoral fund, in order to overcome these challenges.

‘This fund will be run by the community and used for uplifting especially the vulnerable people of this town. In order to ensure transparency and accounta
bility, all details will be given to the community members for them to know this money is going to be utilised for the benefit of the community,’ Van Wyk assured.

Moses Pakote, the Executive Director in the Private Office of the President is the fund’s patron.

The Presidency also pledged N.dollars 20 000 to the cause.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

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Swartbooi urges ||Kharas inhabitants to register to vote


Landless People’s Movement leader, Bernadus Swartbooi has expressed concern over the low number of eligible voters that have registered so far in the ||Kharas Region.

Swartbooi raised these concerns in an interview with Nampa here on Saturday during the belated independence celebration for the Keetmanshoop Urban Constituency.

‘Generally, voter apathy is a challenge and our voter turnout has been around 60 and 70 per cent which was fair, but we are concerned that this year it seems to be very low. We urge young people and other voters to really go out in the final days and register. People must go register and vote and not just sit and complain,’ he stressed.

The registration process started on 03 June and ends 01 August 2024 and statistics provided by the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) on Friday indicate that about 41 861 people registered in ||Kharas between 03 June and 13 July 2024. The region has about 70 672 eligible voters.

Swartbooi said ECN should consider extending the registration period w
ith one or two weeks to ensure that more people get the opportunity to register.

‘If the numbers are sufficient, let us say we have 60 per cent voter registration turnout then we think ECN must prolong the period and I think it’s important that we allow as much time as possible for people to register. We will also write to the ECN to request why they are not registering prisoners because it’s a concern, why are they discriminating against prison, it’s a major problem and we’ve got to deal with it,’ said Swartbooi.

Speaking during the event, Swartbooi said Central Government should stop behaving as if it is the ‘epicentre government’, adding that the State has three spheres of government – central, regional and local.

‘The central government keeps on taking more and more power and authority but worse, it keeps on taking more and more resources from society, therefore, the central government has over the past 34 years successfully transformed itself into the epicentre of corruption, nepotism and mismanagemen
t,’ he said.

Further Swartbooi went on to say: ‘The central government behaves as though society lives only in its proximity and any resources given to the regional and local authorities it treats like it’s a favour being given to those structures of government.’

Source: The Namibia News Agency

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UNAM Jaguars and NCS collect much-needed points


WINDHOEK: MTC Netball Namibia Premier League (NNPL) teams UNAM Jaguars Netball Club and reigning champions Namibian Correctional Service (NCS) both put on strong performances to secure maximum points on Saturday.

Rounds 21 and 22 of the NNPL were held here at the Khomasdal Stadium on Saturday and Sunday.

In the opening match of the Premier League on Saturday, NCS maintained their lead at the top of the standings after outclassing Afrocat Lions 52-33.

The match was largely one-sided as NCS proved too strong for their opponents. NCS came into the game at the top of the standings, tied on 22 points with the Namibian Navy, who are currently in second place.

In another Premier League fixture, UNAM Jaguars, currently in ninth place and fighting relegation, put on an impressive performance to dominate the fifth-placed Tigers. The youthful UNAM team led the match in the first three quarters, but Tigers’ experience prevailed in the final quarter. However, it was too late for them as they lost 38-35.

This win will
see UNAM move to 10 points in the standings, while Tigers will remain on 13 points.

During an interview with Nampa on Sunday, Netball Namibia president Rebecca Goagoses expressed her excitement about this year’s championship, both at the top of the table and in the relegation battle.

‘During a benchmarking trip to Netball South Africa, we adopted a concept used by them. Under this concept, the teams ending ninth and tenth at the end of the season will go for a playoff instead of being relegated automatically. The bottom two teams, 11th and 12th will be relegated,’ she said.

Goagoses added that so far, everything has been running as anticipated, and the league will be completed as scheduled.

‘The competition among the top three teams this year has been impressive. The Namibian Navy team has always finished third or second. I hope this year they will not drop the ball and surprise everyone by winning the league, as they have been very close in the last three seasons but never took the title,’ Goagoses said.

Goagoses added that the newly promoted Eastern Chiefs from Kavango East have proven to be a formidable outfit, playing exciting netball and giving other teams a run for their money.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

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Coetzee says Welwitschias could have done better against Burkina Faso


WINDHOEK: National senior rugby team, the Welwitschias’ head coach Allister Coetzee says their first game against Burkina Faso at the ongoing Rugby Africa Champions was ‘off-colour’.

The 2024 Rugby Africa Cup kicked off on Saturday, 20 July in Kampala, Uganda and will run until Sunday, 28 July 2024. The tournament features the top eight unions across Africa and is being held at the refurbished Mandela National Stadium and Wankulukuku Stadium.

Despite starting their defence of the continental championship with a 38-5 victory against Burkina Faso, the head coach said on Sunday that their performance in the opening game did not start as they had hoped.

‘We were off-colour, we made a lot of unforced errors in our set pieces especially the line-out, where we were supposed to apply pressure,’ he said.

Coetzee added that the team not having points on the scoreboard in the opening 30 minutes of the match worked against their strategy.

‘We were under pressure from Burkina Faso as we missed a couple of kicks and w
e conceded seven penalties which were a lot in the first half, and with all these mistakes Burkina Faso grew in confidence and came at us,’ Coetzee said.

The coach stated that despite all these small obstacles their goal remains the same and they are looking forward to their next match in the competition.

‘Our goal was to win the first match which we did and we now have a lot of work against Zimbabwe who won their first match against host nation Uganda also on Saturday,’ he said.

Coetzee said that they are looking forward to that clash which they know is not going to be easy.

‘We are going to do our homework and prepare accordingly against them (Zimbabwe). We hope our next game won’t be an early one which will help with logistics, we know Zimbabwe has good players, but we are ready for this tough match,’ he said.

The semi-finals of the 2024 Rugby Africa Cup will feature Namibia against Zimbabwe at Mutesa II Stadium Wankulukuku on Wednesday, 24 July 2024.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

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UNAM victorious to remain top of Rugby Premier League table


WINDHOEK: On Saturday, the University of Namibia (UNAM) rugby team collected maximum points away from home to remain at the top of the Namibia Rugby Premier League log standing.

Round 13 of the Premier League saw FNB UNAM locking horns with Rehoboth and a determined UNAM ran havoc on their opponents scoring seven tries of which five were converted for a 47-07 win.

The win saw them extend their lead to seven points at the top. They now have 60 points out of 13 games compared to their close rival Wanderers who have 53 points from 12 matches played thus far.

Over the weekend, FNB Wanderers secured a 40-23 victory against FNB Rehoboth. The team, based in Pioneers Park, scored six tries, five of which were converted.

UNAM only suffered two defeats in 13 games this season, a record that matches Wanderers’ performance, as they’ve also lost only two out of 12 matches played.

In other Premier League matches, Trustco United, the defending champions, defeated FNB Western Suburbs 41-28, bringing them closer to FNB G
rootfontein in the league log standings.

Grootfontein hold the fourth position with 32 points from 12 matches, while United are in fifth place with 31 points.

FNB Kudus, from Walvis Bay, emerged victorious in a coastal derby against Simonis Storm Dolphins of Swakopmund with a 57-18 win. This victory solidified Kudus’ third-place standing and extended their points to 48.

After rounds 12 and 13 of the Premier League, Reho Falcons, who lost at home to Wanderers, are in sixth place with 26 points.

Western Suburbs, who were defeated by United, are in seventh place with 23 points. FNB Rehoboth hold the eighth position with 20 points, and the Dolphins remain at the bottom of the standings with 5 points.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

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Swapo wants at least 1.3 million people to vote


To gain a two-thirds majority in the 2024 Namibian general election on 27 November, the ruling Swapo Party says at least 1.3 or 1.4 million registered voters should go to the polls.

The secretary general of Swapo, Sophia Shaningwa expressed this during the Swapo Party Youth League rally held at Rundu on Saturday.

On Wednesday, President Nangolo Mbumba in a meeting with Electoral Commission of Namibia officials expressed concern over the low turnout of eligible voters to register for the upcoming elections.

Currently only 900 000 out of over 1.6 million eligible voters have registered, with the voter registration period’s end on 01 August in sight.

Mbumba stressed the importance of addressing the issue to ensure a comprehensive and credible electoral process.

‘From today on to 01 August, make sure your girlfriends, wives, husbands, your brothers and sisters all have voter cards. We want to make sure that we sit Comrade Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah comfortably in State House,’ Shaningwa said at the rally.

She c
alled on the party members, many of whom travelled from all 14 regions of the country, to all become information and mobilisation officers.

The SG called on the leadership of the region to mobilise vehicles that will get those that are not registered to the registration points.

Shaningwa said she will not rest until their candidate Nandi-Ndaitwah is president.

‘I will not rest until the Swapo Party wins. Let’s make sure our candidate wins as well as the party while we get a two-thirds majority,’ she said.

She said Nandi-Ndaitwah is a candidate of note who followed in the footsteps of the previous presidents of the country and served in various positions while in exile.

On his part, secretary of the SPYL Ephraim Nekongo called on all youth in the country to vote for Nandi-Ndaitwah who as a mother has their interest at heart.

‘We call on all the workers to rally behind Nandi-Ndaitwah who will never sell them out. We call on the veterans (of the liberation struggle) to walk with this brave leader who will
never compromise the revolution,’ he added.

Nekongo assured Nandi-Ndaitwah that come 21 March 2025, she will be sworn in as Namibia’s fifth president.

Source: The Namibia News Agency