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Martin Endjala The Whistleblower Protection Act, passed in 2017, urgently needs to go into effect, according to the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) and the Popular Democratic Movement (PDM). Graham Hopwood, the executive director of IPPR, made the call on African Anti-Corruption Day, observed annually on July 11. This year's theme is “Effective Whistleblowers Protection Mechanism: A Critical Tool in the Fight Against Corruption”.“ “In view of this, the IPPR, through its Integrity Namibia project, calls on the government to urgently operationalise the Whistleblower Protection Act, which was passed in 2017. Seven years later, this crucial law remains unimplemented,…

Stefanus Nashama Vice President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah says the country would need N$8 billion to construct standardised sports facilities in all constituencies. Nandi-Ndaitwah made these remarks in Windhoek on Tuesday at a dinner event honouring the Brave Warriors, following their loss to Angola in the Cosafa Cup over the past weekend. “I have done my homework, and if N$8 billion is available, it is possible to have standardised sports fields in all constituencies,” she said. She added that such funds would enable the country to have a regional capital in the form of a Grade 2 sports stadium. “It does not…

Stefanus Nashama Former Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) member of parliament, Johannes Martin says President Nangolo Mbumba should be ashamed of praising the performance of the Brave Warriors in the final of the Cosafa Cup 2024. He said this during an interview with the Windhoek Observer over the weekend, concerning the underdeveloped sports facilities. “I am shocked to see the President praising the Brave Warriors for making it to the final. Yes, it is something worthy of praise, but if I were him, I would be even more ashamed to speak about the performance of the boys when, looking back home,…

Niël Terblanché The Ministry of Health and Social Services is working on ways to mitigate the challenges of supplying medicines and clinical supplies to public health facilities. The health minister, Dr Kalumbi Shangula, revealed this on Monday while providing an update on the ministry’s ongoing initiatives and the challenges faced over the past three years at the Government Information Centre. He said that these issues of shortage of medicine and clinical supplies stem from legal challenges to procurement processes, lengthy procedures, low procurement thresholds and poor supplier performance. “To mitigate these challenges, the Ministry has introduced several measures, including obtaining…

Martin Endjala and Ester Mbathera The Namibia Competition Commission (NaCC) lodged a second investigation on 6 July, against various owners and operators of vessels. According to a statement issued on 5 July, the NaCC suspects that there are companies that are imposing unfair purchase prices when negotiating quota usage fees with the fishing rights holders without vessels in the Horse Mackerel sub-sector. “The various fishing vessels are referred to herein as the Respondents. The investigation is initiated in terms of Section 33 of the Competition Act No. 2 of 2003”. NaCC has afforded these companies an opportunity within a period…

Ester Mbathera The High Court of Namibia has struck down the case involving businessman Daniel Kamunoko, who is suing Standard Bank Namibia Limited, and several respondents for US$8.9 billion (about N$184 billion). The matter was removed from the roll on 25 June marking it as inactive, effectively ending the current proceedings without further action. “The case is struck from roll in terms of R132(10) and finalised as Case Inactive (Rule 132),” reads the court documents. This is despite the fact that this was appealed in the Supreme Court under case no. SA 7/0023. Kamunoko cited the Supreme Court delay as…

Niël Terblanché Construction work on a new water treatment plant for Rundu began with a groundbreaking ceremony held on Monday. The Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform, Calle Schlettwein, officiated at the ceremony. He stressed the importance of the project for Rundu, Namibia’s second-largest local authority with a population of approximately 118,000. “As one of the fastest-growing towns in Namibia, Rundu has faced increasing strain on its water supply, a challenge this new project aims to address comprehensively,” the minister said. Three weeks ago frustrated residents of Ndama's Sun City and Long to Long settlements threatened a community uprising…

Niël Terblanché Last Friday, Namibians from all walks of life gathered at Walvis Bay to celebrate the life and legacy of the late Nathaniel Maxuilili, a towering figure in the country's struggle for independence. The event was held in commemoration of his death 25 years ago. Maxuilili died on 23 June 1999 in a vehicle accident when an ambulance that was transporting him to the airport to be airlifted to Windhoek was involved in a head-on collision with a truck near Dune 7. Vice President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, while speaking at the event in Walvis Bay, praised Maxuilili as a fearless…

Niël Terblanché To address the alarming rise in crime in the Mondesa area, the regional management of the Namibian Police in the Erongo Region will hold a crucial public meeting at the Multi-Purpose Centre of Swakopmund on Thursday. This meeting comes after a disturbing pattern of brutal murders, with at least one occurring each weekend over the past month, prompting concern among residents and law enforcement. The latest incident occurred early on Sunday morning, according to Chief Inspector Ileni Shapumba, the head of the community affairs sub-division in the region. The incident involved a violent altercation at the Strong Bar…