SWAPO promises to stick to election manifesto

By Muyambango Ngumbele

THE ruling SWAPO Party, a liberation movement which has been in power for nearly 35-years has promised that it will stick to its election manifesto once it is re-elected.

This was voiced by its first-ever female presidential candidate , Netumbo Nandi Ndaitwah , Vice President of SWAPO Party at a campaign rally which attracted many residents of Zambezi region at Katima Mulilo Sports Complex on Saturday.

During the rally , SWAPO party’s presidential candidate spoke out  on the party’s election manifesto and what the party achieved in the last five years since 2019.

The Vice President also said that the party is ready to use the manifesto as the vehicle “therefore our election manifesto is a vehicle that will lead us from 2025 to 2030” .

Speaking on the manifesto Nandi Ndaitwah said that Namibia is having 530 health facilities of which thirty-eight (38) which include 33 clinics, 4 health centres and one (1) hospital of these facilities are in Zambezi region but the number might have now increased from 2023.

The main target of the party on health in the next five years is to upgrade Katima Mulilo State Hospital and turn it into a District Hospital because of the increasing population and distance from health centers.

The national statistic has showed that out  of 14047 educational facilities in Namibia 120 are in Zambezi and this includes 160 public educational facilities.

Zambezi region also has been identified as one region with critical mineral resources.

Under the national technical vocational education and training expression program, recently the government had to spend Sixty million three hundred and  fifty-one and one hundred  eight seven and forty-three cents (N$60,351,187,43) to improve the Zambezi Vocational Training Centre(ZVTC). “and it is there for us to use” She said.

The Vice President also reminded the Zambezi residents that she organised and brought the concept of conservancies in the region when She was still the Minister of Environment and Tourism.

“no one should mislead you that she was there and now Namibian people through SWAPO you have to give that national responsibility to lead you to prosperity and I am telling you that I am ready and I want all of you to be ready” She promised.

Nandi Ndaitwah added that the government has taken a decision which will be made available to those who are in a situation and need to be assisted as well as those who are currently not receiving any grants such as old age grant, pension fund and the children’s grant and disability grant.

“I want to tell you that when you get in this program its not permanent but is to prepare you for a proper employment and then you graduate from this program. My appeal is going to those who are going to be given the opportunity to register the targeted group”

She pointed out that this was said following the mistakes which was there when they were registering the veterans where a lot of people who are not qualified for this  money are receiving this fund, instead of the right people. This has now increased the amount of money spent on this program.

“ We feel sorry about the unemployed and that’s why in our manifesto we even put a figure that over five hundred thousand jobs are going to be created in the next five years and we even went further that N$85 billion is going to be spent on this and as your president I will make sure that the money is available and focus on those specific sectors such as agriculture, sports, creative industries infrastructure development and private sectors which will also create jobs to our youth” SWAPO Presidential candidate concluded.