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Namibia: Amathila to Tackle Caprivi Problems
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New Era (Windhoek)
7 April 2008
Posted to the web 7 April 2008
Reagan Malumo
Katima Mulilo
The Deputy Prime Minister, Dr Libertina Amathila, arrived in Caprivi over the weekend to deal with a myriad of problems besetting the northeastern region.
Assigned by President Hifikepunye Pohamba, the Deputy Premier is on a special mission to the region to tackle issues related to drought, flood and other problems eating at the region's social fabric. One of the problems is food for flood victims that remains undistributed
Her assignment to the region follows a visit to the region by the President a week ago when he assessed the flood situation in the region. The President met all traditional leaders in the region who briefed him about the problems affecting communities. During her meetings with the Regional Emergency Management Unity (REMU) members and regional and local authority councillors on Friday, the Deputy Premier explained that the President was not pleased with the prevailing drought and flood situation in the region. The President felt the region was being left behind and hence he decided to send her to the region to urgently attend to this perennial problem.
Meanwhile, the Acting Director of the Emergency Management Unity (EMU), Gabriel Kangowa, told New Era that the President was annoyed to discover that there have been no food deliveries to the flood victims since relocation to new camps.
He said all affected people especially in eastern Caprivi have not been supplied with drought or flood relief food despite the fact that drought relief food arrived in the region on January 25. Kangowa said the food has for two-and-a-half months been lying at warehouses and has not been distributed while people went without food.
Two years ago, a group of senior REMU officials were suspended after food from donors meant for distribution was left to rot in a warehouse. In the four northern regions where more people have been displaced by floods, food and other supplies were immediately distributed to the needy unlike in Caprivi. Kangowa said the first food consignment was delivered to affected communities on March 25 preceding the President's visit to the region. Despite the non-delivery of food to needy people, Caprivi Regional Governor, Leonard Mwilima, told the President upon his arrival in the region that about 20000 people were affected and urgently needed food in his region.
Disappointingly, the President discovered by himself during his tour of swamped areas that food supplies had not been distributed to the flood-displaced people. This raised more questions about the operations of REMU in Caprivi. The President discovered that there was a shortage of food and decent accommodation for learners and teachers as well as people who were relocated to camps at Schuckmansburg.
"I can describe the situation as very bad indeed because I saw villages under water and surrounded by water. I also saw people shifting from one village to other villages, which are not engulfed by water," the President confirmed.
Kangowa said although a lot needs to be done, his office last week distributed about 5000 bags of mealie-meal to affected people at Schuckmansburg, Nankuntwe, Mpukano, Namiyundu, Nsundwa and Muzii. He said learners and teachers were also covered with about 224 bags of mealie- meal, dried fish and cooking oil. Kangowa said the food is being dispatched via Zambia and ferried by dugout canoes to the various distant affected areas. Kangowa is pleased that nine engine boats, donated by the Federal Republic of German to assist with the food distribution, had arrived.
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The Deputy Premier is expected to pay a visit to all Regional Councillors' offices, traditional leaders in the region and to the San people in the western Caprivi.
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