Opinions – Page 8 – Windhoek Observer

12 Aug

The Power of Your Vote: Why Every Namibian Should Vote on November 27

ObserverOpinionsEvery Namibian Should Vote, Making an Informed Decision, The Consequences of Not Voting

Sakaria Johannes As Namibia approaches the election on November 27, it's crucial to reflect on the importance of voting. Many people, especially young Namibians, often feel disconnected from politics or believe that their vote doesn't matter. However, understanding the significance of voting and its impact on our lives can empower us to act and shape the future of our nation. The Social Contract and Your Role In political science, the concept of social contract is fundamental. It refers to an implicit agreement among members of a society to cooperate for social benefits. By participating in this contract, we agree to…

11 Aug

Recommendations to ECN for effective November 2024 election preparation

ObserverOpinions

Sem David Huge props to Namibians who understood the need of maintaining electoral democracy and took the initiative to assert their constitutional right to participate in decision-making and advance democracy. Out of the 3 million eligible Namibians, 1,467,604 registered to vote. This seems like a strong indication that either most Namibians still do not understand their constitutional rights to democracy or that not enough has been done to compel and attract the interests of the majority to register. Consider that it is insignificant compared to the 2.2 million youth in Namibia. It is easy to declare that people are not…

08 Aug

Addressing unemployment: a call for government-driven job creation

ObserverOpinionsAddressing Unemployment

Tomas Nashongo The road to prosperity is paved with the labour of its citizens, yet too many are left without a path. The unemployment endemic is a global crisis described as a state where eligible members of the workforce who are willing and able to work cannot find employment. Namibia has a high unemployment rate, which averaged 20.94 percent from 1991 until 2023 and is predicted to be 20.70 percent by the end of 2024. There is a high dependency on the mining and agricultural sectors for employment, which shows limited job diversity and a lack of capital to venture…

08 Aug

Assessing opportunities and drawbacks, building a nuclear power plant to meet Namibia’s electricity needs

ObserverOpinionsNuclear Power Plant Reactor

Josef Kefas Sheehama Energy security demands a reduction in reliance on imported fossil fuels as everyone braces for the potential of an impending energy apocalypse. Namibia must prioritize building a nuclear power plant reactor if it wants to surpass its current position and become a leader in energy self-sufficiency. The most cost-effective way for Namibia to boost energy security and resilience while diversifying its sources of electricity generation is through nuclear power. Namibia is the third-largest producer of uranium in the world and Namibia is the largest producer of Uranium from mining in Africa, yet it has no nuclear power…

08 Aug

ON COALITION AND GOVERNMENT OF NATIONAL UNITY

ObserverOpinionsEconomic Freedom Fighters, Government of National Unity, Umkhonto Wesizwe Party

Paul T. Shipale The DA’s Federal chairperson Helen Zille said the ANC is in a Coalition Government with the DA and not in a Government of National Unity (GNU). According to her, “a Government of National Unity brings all the parties together that would include the EFF (Economic Freedom Fighters) and MK Party (Umkhonto Wesizwe Party), which it did not,” Zille said. In a video clip that has gone viral on social media, Zille explains that both parties entered into a coalition “from the beginning”. “President Cyril Ramaphosa came up with this notion of a Government of National Unity, which…

08 Aug

The real stewards of the country’s natural resources are the people

ObserverOpinions

Kae Matundu-Tjiparuro “We will continue to use our best endeavours to ensuring that our minerals and petroleum resources are exploited in the best interest of the country and its people. It is our resolve to be good stewards of our resources.” This is verse of what seems has become the personal anthem of Mines and Minerals Minister, Tom Alweendo, and his assembled choir and a popular rendition at almost at every choir competition of especially explorers and other mineral and mining vultures, whether on home turf or at one or the other forum. All meant so much to test the…

06 Aug

Is the case of Amushelelo an economic assassination or financial genius?

ObserverOpinions

Joseph Nakalemo I feel for my brother Michael Saddam Amushelelo, honestly speaking or this time honestly writing, a person with intention to steal, or robby people will never open lawful several Bank accounts and still keep the money in those bank accounts. People with fraudulently obtained money do not keep money in bank accounts, they use Sofas in their sitting room to hide the money or at their farms hidden deep in the ground. Some will also prefer to travel with such money in suitcases etc everywhere they go. Another issue or question of concern is that how did NAMRA…

06 Aug

Artificial Intelligence is a board-level issue

ObserverOpinions

Asad Abbas Recently, my colleague, Kehad Snydewel, wrote an article about how Artificial Intelligence (AI) impacts every sector and challenges well-established businesses. A significant and surprising shift is the challenge a company like Google faces. OpenAI announced its entry into the search market with SearchGPT. This is the company that brought us ChatGPT. They are introducing an AI-powered search engine with real-time access to information across the Internet. To give it some context, this search engine and the AI and computing power behind it have Google and Microsoft's Bing quaking in their boots. AI is challenging the hegemony of established…

02 Aug

President Mbumba is leading Namibia with skill, wisdom and composure

ObserverFeatured, OpinionsAlfredo Tjiurimo Hengari, President Mbumba is leading Namibia with skill, wisdom and composure

Alfredo Tjiurimo Hengari The 4th of February 2024, a day of historic significance on which the extraordinary President Hage G. Geingob passed away, remains unquestionably the most sombre hour since the founding of our Republic on the 21st of March 1990. With all events of cataclysmic magnitude, moments during which the history of nation is marked by defeats and the resolve of republican institutions is tested, providential men and women emerge to lead nations through those dark hours of unchartered waters. With great difficulty, emotion and hurt, President Nangolo Mbumba stepped forward to assume the reigns of the Namibian nation…

01 Aug

Amidst unabated land theft NIPDB now the new apologist for capitalism?

ObserverOpinions

Ownership of land by rich foreign whites was the headline lately in one of the English dailies that seem to awaken many out of their usual slumber that land in Namibia, the little that may be left, if there’s any left from colonial capitalist plunder and thievery, is anything to go by. What is disturbing about this headline it is as if this is new phenomenon in Namibia, whether predating capitalist colonialism and even post capitalist neo-colonialism as pertaining today in an independent and free Namibia. The colonial agenda has been and is still about the natural resources of the…