WINDHOEK: The Swapo Party Elders’ Council (SPEC) has called on the government to address the issue of land reform as a matter of urgency.
The Swapo Elders’ call forms part of the resolutions taken during the fifth SPEC Congress held at Ongwediva in the Oshana Region from 26 to 29 July.
Newly elected SPEC Secretary Frederick Mwala Matongo said during a media briefing at the party’s headquarters in Katutura this morning that the elders are in particular calling on Government to conduct a thorough land acquisition review on all laws of the country that have not been amended since Namibia obtained its political independence 22 years ago.
Matongo explained that these laws in question that need amendment include those that were enacted immediately post-Independence, such as the so-called of ‘willing buyer-willing seller’ policy and the laws related to the issue of absentee landlords who own huge tracts of land in Namibia.
The elders also made an earnest appeal to the Namibian Government that all formerly dispossessed persons still alive be allocated resettlement farms by the Swapo-led government, and be provided with agricultural implements and business start-up financial resources in order to empower them to achieve a high and acceptable level of productive farming.
Old Mutual Namibia yesterday donated four computers to the Onamavo Primary School (PS), Engoyi Combined School (CS), Uukuma CS and Onashikuvu CS in the Oshikoto Region.
The four computers have a combined valued of N.dollars 22 300.
The patron of the schools and Veterans’ Affairs Minister Dr Nickey Iyambo approached Old Mutual’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Operations, Sakaria Nghikembua, for a donation to the schools last year.
Nghikembua was in Oshakati yesterday to officially hand over the computers to Iyambo in the presence of the principals of the said schools, representatives of the regional education office in the region and some local employees of Old Mutual.
He told those present that his company continuously strives to build on strengthening communities, and this gesture now means the schools can execute their administrative tasks appropriately.