WALVIS Bay mayor Trevino Forbes said it is embarrassing that the town, known as the industrial hub of Namibia, only has one state hospital and no ambulances.
He said this at a media information session recently, while highlighting that residents lack health and education service delivery at the town.
"We can do better in this town. We dream of companies that will take over a ward each at the state hospital, refurbish it and put on their brands. We are also working at paving the area. It is just a dream, but it can be achieved.
"It is embarrassing that our ambulance is borrowed from Omaruru. We cannot sit and see how the public services are falling apart," Forbes said.
Walvis Bay Urban constituency councillor Deriou Benson said one state hospital servicing a population of about 120 000 people was not sufficient.
"Many people are to flocking to the hospital and complaints are piling up that our healthcare workers and infrastructure are not up to standard. I appeal to the government to assist in developing or upgrading our infrastructure.
"I visited the hospitals and must congratulate the staff that there have been improvements in service delivery. They are trying. We are planning to visit various embassies to secure donations for ambulances," Benson said.
Erongo regional health director Anna Jonas says healthcare is an issue everybody needs to address.
"It is the same in all regions. There are clinics and a state hospital at most towns. Where there is a problem, we always welcome discussion around the table to see how we can solve it.
"As much as the government is investing in healthcare, it is also a shared responsibility which should be tackled by everybody. Councillors are free to engage with us on improvement," she says.
Forbes said they are not afraid to "step on toes" this year when it comes to service delivery.
"There might be some battles, but we are ready for them. Decisions will be made in the interest of the residents of Walvis Bay. It might not go well with some people, but we will do what needs to be done. We should take out the politics and look at what is good for our people," said Forbes.
"We have one mandate and it is to serve our community. Projects will kick off with or without permission," said the mayor.
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The upgrading of the town's infrastructure, land delivery and water security are the main areas, he said.
"The issue of Farm 37 will especially be tackled to provide housing, and the first extension should be delivered by the end of February. Council is also looking at starting its own desalination plant. We have commenced with this project. We have boreholes within the Kuiseb basin, but they cannot supply water to Walvis Bay all the time. We did a feasibility study that the envisaged plant will supply water for much cheaper to our residents. We, however, face some difficulties from higher levels with these projects," he said.
Forbes said the council is struggling to obtain permits to start with the desalination plant and last week sent a team of technocrats and councillors to engage with the line ministry on how to secure the assistance of other ministries to secure permits.
Walvis Bay Rural constituency councillor Donatus Tegako said four schools have been built since independence, however, the demand for grades 1 and 8 classrooms increase annually.
"We are observing the situation and we are trying to solve it. We need a school that was supposed to be finished by the end of this month, but we are facing challenges that are beyond our control. The budget is ready, but there are technical issues," he said
Tegako said the new school would require additional teachers to ease the workload of existing teachers.
