PDM Member of Parliament assigned to the Kavango East Region, Mr Timotheus Ndumba Shihumbu, has criticised the region’s State of the Region Address (SORA), saying the address lacked depth, honesty and substance.
In a document titled “Critical Analysis of Kavango East’s SORA 2021” Shihumbu, who also is the PDM’s shadow justice minister, scrutinised the State of the Region Address which was delivered in Rundu by Governor Bonifatius Wakudumo on 16 July.
In his SORA the Governor stated that with the N$216,687,000.00 received from Central Government, the Regional Government engaged in various developmental activities which included the renovation of schools, servicing of erven in the towns of Rundu and Divundu, construction of pit latrines, and others.
But in his analysis of the SORA, Shihumbu said: “I must be frank in my assessment that this SORA was however misrepresented and premised on a political public relations exercise intended to please the residents of the Kavango East region and those who have self-interests among many others.”
Shihumbu stated that: “Precious lives continue to perish in the Kavango East region as a result of the Covid-19 virus, [yet] the Governor merely brushed it off as if this virus is merely a joke; he refused to inform the region to what extent this virus has infiltrated the region and targeted hotspots for our people to be cautious when visiting those areas.
“Deep in our rural areas our people still do not have the necessary information about the vaccine and why it is important to get vaccinated; we have seen the surge and unprecedented number of new infections and loss of lives but the Governor did not dwell much further on that or show any concern for the danger faced by our people during this trying time of Covid-19 and no meaning and practicable interventions was said in his address to call for calm and adherence to Government’s Covid-19 regulations let alone urge them to take the vaccine seriously.
“I am equally disappointed in the manner in which the Regional Council’s Rural Sanitation Program in which ninety-five (95) Ventilated Improved Pit Latrine toilet units were constructed at a very inflated cost of one million six hundred thousand Namibian Dollars (N$1,600,000.00)
“It is really a grave concern for any leader who has taken an oath of office to defend and protect our Constitution [and who] should be honest in their dealing and not to alienate themselves from their people and must not seek for fame, self-enrichment or using their public office for gratification and providing misleading information.”
In his 7-page long analysis Shihumbu went on to criticise the Governor for failure to present a true picture of the situation of the region socially and economically. In the end he said: “I therefore would state that the State of the Region Address of Governor Wakudumo failed the test of the current expectations.”
In the photo: Namibian MP Timotheus Ndumba Shihumbu.
