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Titles every book fiend should read

Titles every book fiend should read

Jackie Wilson Asheeke I read Carmen Coetsee’s list of five books that reading junkies need to read at least once. Check out www.msn.com/en-za for her choices. I beg to differ on a few points, but a couple of her ideas inspired me. Of course, any book list is subjective. Most of the ‘best books’ lists reflect the white, male, European or USA-centred perspective. There are books from the Asian, Hispanic and African cultures or in non-English languages, which would be equally great if they had the attention given to the others. Nevertheless, the books I note below tell wonderful stories…
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Telecom appoints new CEO

Telecom appoints new CEO

Staff Writer Former Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (Cran) Chief Executive Officer, Stanley Shanapinda has been appointed as the new CEO of Telecom Namibia. His appointment will be effective from January 2021. “The Telecom Board of Directors have concluded the consultation with the NPTH Board (Namibia Post and Telecommunication Holdings) and have received endorsement from the shareholder to proceed with the formalities of appointing the successful candidate,” Chairperson of the Telecom Namibia Board, Jerry Muadinohamba said. Shanapinda makes a return to Telecom after previously having served the company as its Head of Legal Services. His appointment comes after 73 applicants…
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Exam hopefuls in the cold …as Ministry rules out deadline extension

Exam hopefuls in the cold …as Ministry rules out deadline extension

Andrew Kathindi A number of learners and exam hopefuls that missed the application deadline could be left out in the cold this year after the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture has ruled out further extensions for registration for grades 11 and 12 exams. Education Minister, Anna Nghipondoka declared that those who did not manage to register for exams this year will have to register in 2021. “Some candidates forgot or neglected to register for exams and want to register now (mostly part-time). Unfortunately, we need to advise these candidates to consider registration in 2021 as an alternative avenue to…
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Iitula dares PDM in clash of colours…as ECN distances self from fight

Iitula dares PDM in clash of colours…as ECN distances self from fight

Helena Johannes Independent Patriot for Change (IPC) leader Panduleni Iitula has dared the Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) to lay charges of colour plagiarism with the Namibia Police. “Stealing is a criminal offence. My advice, to your Inquirer's conscience, as I would advise any other citizen or legal entity, is that they should approach the Namibian police immediately and lay charges against the culprit with concrete objective evidence for a remedy,” Iitula said. The IPC leader said stealing or theft is defined roughly as acquisition of a property belonging to another without the permission of another with the intention to permanently…
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Democracy must be unhindered

Deputy Prime Minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah said that she believes democracy exercised by any who choose to participate, causes instability in Namibia. As a higher-performing government official for the last three decades, her comments are a concern. First, we must fact check the Honourable. She is quoted as saying that the "USA is the oldest democracy in the world but they only have two political parties." The USA could claim to be the largest, oldest CONTINUOUS democracy (recall that only white male landowners could vote at first - no blacks, no women). But, it is widely known that Greece (particularly Athens)…
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Agriculture and the ecosystems

Agriculture and the ecosystems

Erastus Ngaruka Agriculture is concerned with rearing animals and the cultivation of crops whilst an ecosystem simply refers to a community of living organisms such as plants and animals together with the non-living components such as the air and soils, interacting with each other in their environment. The functions of this natural co-existence or ecosystem include the provision of essential services such as habitat, food, water, nutrient cycling, as well as cultural and recreational benefits to the land users. The ecosystem functioning is influenced by biodiversity, and this is managed by natural processes that maintain species abundance and distribution, and…
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NWR gets N$40m boost

NWR gets N$40m boost

Staff Writer Government has availed N$40 million in financial support to Namibia Wildlife Resorts Limited (NWR). The funds were allocated to the company in the FY2020/21 Mid-Year Budget Review and Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement. This comes as the tourism company’s board and management had engaged the Ministry of Public Enterprises) to find ways of mitigating the effects of COVID-19 on the business, ensuring the sustainability of the company. “The past six months have been the most challenging for most Namibian companies in Namibia. The Covid-19 pandemic has and is still having, an enormous impact on the tourism and aviation-dependent organisations…
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Khomas leads in TB cases

Khomas leads in TB cases

Helena Johannes Khomas region has the highest number of Tuberculosis (TB) cases in Namibia, the Acting Regional Health Director of Khomas Region Patema Amunyela has revealed. “Windhoek being the most populated town in Namibia. It is where most cases of Tuberculosis have been recorded. However the country has shown a high decline in TB cases,” she said. Dr Nunurai Ruswa, a Clinical Mentor of the TB and Leprosy Program in the Ministry of Health said, “We have successfully contained TB by 60 percent so far, and this shows that we are doing very well compared to our neighboring countries.” According…
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Thousands retrenched since April…Ministry of Labour warns against illegal retrenchments

Thousands retrenched since April…Ministry of Labour warns against illegal retrenchments

Andrew Kathindi The Ministry of Labour has revealed that 9,000 people have been retrenched since April this year, which is more than double the figure for the whole of last year. Labour Commissioner at the Ministry, Henri Kassen told Windhoek Observer that from April to June there were 5,379 notices of retrenchment to the Ministry from 287 companies and almost all of them stemming from the state of emergency that was imposed to check the spread of COVID-19. There were 3,484 retrenchments in the three months after that, from July to September from 320 companies. Kassen said that he has…
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Advice to men – manage your anger

The Time Traveler: Hugh Ellis In the wake of the anti-femicide protests in the last few weeks, many of us men might, I think, be feeling troubled. Many of us are overwhelmed by the stories we heard of rape, murder, assault and harassment. Many of us are ourselves victims of the same violent tendencies in our fellow men. And many of us have been complicit in gender-based violence. We may not be the B1 Butcher, but we know we could have done better in our dealings with our significant others, one-night stands, or female relatives. If this is you, I’m…
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