Buchter News » Current Affairs

LETTER FROM THE MAYOR

admin — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 14:17:01 +0000

Dear residents,
Thank you for paying your bills. Take note the council will soon do presentations of the Capital budget for 2011/12 to the public.
Would like to apologize for the public meetings that could not take place, but it’s surely due for end of June 2011.
To all the youth and students; thanks for a wonderful Commemoration of the “Day of the African Child”
Let’s all Embrace the spirit of “Ubuntu” of helping one another despite the challenges that we are facing.
Keep well
The Mayor

BIG PLANS FOR JUNIOR TOWN COUNCIL

admin — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:13:15 +0000

Luderitz’s Junior Town Council has big plans for the town. On 20th May the Junior Mayor along with six members of the Junior Council came together to formally introduce themselves to the Honourable Regional Councillor Mr JA Scholtz. Mr Makaula Headmaster of Luderitz Secondary School was also present to formally order the proceedings. The meeting also served to familiarise the Junior Town Council members with Luderitz’s two new Peace Corps Volunteers Leah Fitch and Megan Froehle.

The Junior Mayor began by outlining some of the main issues facing young people today. Namely alcohol and drug abuse, teenage pregnancy, HIV and aids and unemployment. It was suggested that the root of such problems in Luderitz was simply lack of entertainment and recreation in the townships. Ideas for initiatives to combat these problems were put forward, motivational activities hosted in Benguela Hall were outlined such as drama, debating and talent shows, and for the more active young people, sports days and clubs.

Clean up days and old age visits were suggested to increase responsibility and understanding between the age groups in the community. The lack of employment prospects was identified as a concern facing many school leavers, entrepreneur training was proposed to encourage young people to initiate business ventures after matriculation.
The meeting was brief but full of confidence for the success of future plans and ideas. Mr Makaula was keen for the Junior Town Council to be properly utilised over the forthcoming months and for the assembled to work together in order to make a genuine impact. Mr Scholtz concluded the meeting by advising the council that when planning future projects the recipe for success would be to “start small and dream big” •

LUDERITZ’S NEW JUNIOR MAYOR SPEAKS OUT

admin — Fri, 06 May 2011 10:53:49 +0000

Good afternoon,
Our coming here today is to witness the inauguration of Luderitz Junior Councillors of which I am elected a “Junior Mayor” to spearhead Luderitz Junior Council. I am therefore delighted and privileged to talk to you at this event on behalf of the Junior Councillors and entire school.
I am delighted to stand infront of you and speak to you at this joyous moment. My task is very simple but needs your unwavering support. I first of all would like to thank the Town Coucil for receiving us as guest of honours.
Secondly, I would also like to thank Luderitz High School in particular the principle, the teachers and the fellow students that have entrusted me with such an important function amongst my fellow young people of Luderitz and Community at large. The young people in our society are faced with many different challenges.
Amongst others are Alcohol and Drug abuse, teenage pregnancies and HIV/AIDS are one of our challenges which prematurely terminate our lives at our youngest age leaving us with no HOPE no FUTURE and no PROSPERITY.
I therefore would like to request a support from the Honorable Coucillors, Principles and Teachers as well as learners of all school in Luderitz in identifying a project on Alcohol and Drug abuse being a contributing factor to teenage pregnancies and other social evils in our town which may also leads to HIVAIDS.
Therefore, our focus as Junior Councillors is to oversee that these challenges are addressed. To overcome these challenges we need to work out a commitment plan together, meaning that we can come together and identify a road map on how seriously we can occupy the minds of the youth and commitment plan together. We also need to create and inclusive platform where the youth in Luderitz come together to share their ideas on how to approach this challenges for the future of this town and their own future too.
We as the youth of Luderitz we need to realize our potential as future leaders and abiding citizens. In our opinion as Junior Coucillors the chance to improve the current status quo of those challenges mentioned previously is to open up a dialogue between the youth and the political leadership because where there is a political will there is a way.
I would also like to humbly request our parents to give their helping hand by encouraging young people to concentrate on their education for securing their future and the future of this country. In doing so your worship we will put the Town of Luderitz on the mapby molding good citizens and strong stable nation in our beloved land of the brave. We as Junior Councillors are therefore at your disposal.
I want us to take note that “It takes two to tango,” meaning a problem can only be solved with the help from other people.
Therefore I hope that the CEO of the Luderitz Junior Council will work hand in hand with the CEO of Luderitz Town Council and similarly the Mayor of Luderitz and the entire council will open up the doors to work hand in hand with me as the Junior Mayor and all Junior Councillors in order to realize our dream. Team work and unity are powerful tools to success because
UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL.
I Thank You.

Hambeleleni Heita – “Junior Mayor of Luderitz”

LUDERITZ IS BOOMING!

admin — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 09:39:54 +0000

Any one would think Luderitz is booming!!!!! The past year has seen all records broken with a 27.25% increase in our fundraising efforts in spite of the recession.

2009 = N$ 93 739 – 80
2010 = N$ 119 328 — 28

KIMBIES N$ 26 395-68
APPLES 25 956-00
BANDANAS 16 040-00
CUP FOR CANCER 11 450-00
MEN’S BREAKFAST 7 000-00
LIFE GAIN 5 787-00
LADIES LUNCH 5 000-00
SUNSCREEN 4 507-00
CALENDERS 4 000-00
SHAVE A THON 3 890-00
EASTER EGG HUNT 2 000-00
PAP SMEAR 1 180-00
PROSTESIS 085-00
RAFFLE 1 000-00
SHEEP SKIN 765-00
E – PAP 740-00
OXYGEN 650-00
DONATIONS 590-00
SAVE BABY RENEE 500-00
MEDICAL PILLOW 156-00
MIDI’S 276-00
MEMBERSHIP FEES 130-00
TIN 116-00
GENADE SIEKTE 80-00
TRANSPORT 34-00
———————
TOTAL N$ 119 328-00
———————

Please remember to get your tickets for the Easter Egg Hunt on the 9th of April 2011.
It is time for your papsmear!!! Contact Elize at 204252 •

Suspension of Bogenfels flight route

admin — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 18:26:00 +0000

Air Namibia suspended flights between Walvis Bay, Luderitz and Cape Town on the 27th September.
The current global economic recession which has impacted countries, organizations and individuals worldwide had an adverse effect on the travel industry in general. As a consequence, Air Namibia has found it necessary to re-asses its route network in order to offer an equal balance between supply and demand.
However, although Air Namibia has suspended operations at the above mentioned stations, the airline will continue operating the Eros – Walvis Bay route twice daily to provide a business day between Windhoek and the Coastal Towns of Walvis Bay and Swakopmund. Air Namibia will still provide a charter service for any customers wishing to travel to Luderitz, Oranjemund and Cape Town.

For enquiries and more information contact air Namibia Call Centre: +264 61 299 6111
Email: Call.Centre@airnamibia.aero

Combatting Crime

admin — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:16:24 +0000

The second police and public relations committee (PPRC) meeting of this year was held on February 24th at the newly built police board room. These meetings are open to the public, so anyone can become a member and contribute to the important discussions that occur. The first discussion point on the agenda was the Luderitz Youth Against Crime (LYAC) committee being established, as the relationship between then PPRC and LYAC is vital when it comes to making the Ludritz community safe. The potential LYAC members met on March 5th to discuss how they can assist Luderitz, and the role they will play within the town as voluntary informers for the police. The requirement to become a member include being able to read and write, completion of grades 10 and 12 are an advantage but not a necessity, and being involved in a voluntary programme like this can lead to becoming a member of the police force but it is not a guarantee. The members will receive a month’s training to teach them how to approach incidents, how to report incidents to the police and how to arrest culprits if the needs be. For future PPRC meeting s it was discussed that the Public Prosecutor or one his staff should attend the meeting to provide legal advice, to accommodate this the meetings will now be held on Fridays.
The PPRC meeting also arranged a meeting for the wider community on April 11th at 14:00 at Benguela Community centre to discuss police matters within Luderitz.

Election Tension

admin — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:00:08 +0000

All of Luderitz couldn’t help but be aware that the Presidential elections are upon us, what with all the posters, heated discussions and recent rallies in the town, it is something that cannot be avoided. Rightly so, as the elections are a very important event and everyone who can, should vote.
On the 15th of November there was a big SWAPO rally at the soccer stadium, which was very well attended, partly due to its very influential guests, such as the first President of Namibia, founding father Sam Nujoma and Gal Level, the famous Namibian singer. SWAPO supporters drove through town displaying their flags and beeping their horns before heading to the rally.
However, there has been some trouble between supporters of different political parties which has kept the police busy with this month. The elections are from the 27th-28th of November and I’m sure we are all waiting with bated breath to discover the results.•

World AIDS Day Awareness Week

admin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:14:24 +0000

There is a World AIDS Day Awareness Week being held in Lüderitz from the 1st to the 5th of December. It is organised by the Youth Centre in Luderitz. Lots of activities are taking place everyday and here is a timetable of some of the highlights:
Tuesday 1st December
Launching of World AIDS Day
∙ Venue – Benguela Hall
∙ Time – 08h00
- Prison’s Drama Group

Wednesday 2nd December
Video Screening from People in Need
∙ Venue- Main Hall of Lüderitz Youth Centre
∙Time- 15h00

Thursday 3rd December
Gospel Show
∙ Venue – Benguela Hall
∙ Time – 18h00
- Gospel Competition between all invited choirs

Friday 4th December
Sports Activities
∙ Venue – Stadium
∙ Time – 12h00 – 19h00
- Soccer/ Netball/ Volleyball

Saturday 5th December
Parade. A convoy will proceed from Lüderitz Prison through the town and Benguela
∙ Venue – Lüderitz sports stadium
∙ Time – 09h00
- National Anthem
∙ Time – 18h30
- Entertainment from local live bands and bands from further afield, until late Saturday night.

Children Count

admin — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:32:59 +0000

This year’s conference hosted by U-Khai/Yelula

took off to a flying start as the audience were asked to shimmy, shake and sing before learning all about the project. The conference was mainly for stakeholders to learn how their money is spent, and also to assess how grants are awarded to orphans and vulnerable children. It was a three day conference held in the Youth Centre and included lots of important people, such as the mayor, the regional councillor and doctors. A social worker from Keetmanshoop was the first speaker on Thursday. Mrs N.T. Naukushu is from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare, and is a very prominent social worker in the Karas Region. The audience was educated on the maintenance grant criteria for children, such as they have to be orphaned, have one parent imprisoned or have one deceased parent in order to receive the money. The child must also be in full time education, if they are of school going age.

It was a very interesting talk and many questions were raised by the audience. Some questioned whether N$200 a month was enough for a child to live on, with food and school fees to pay. The maximum amount one family can receive is N$700 a month, and that is if they have six children of the same parentage. A special maintenance grant is also available for disabled children who need extra care which costs the family money. A bit of light relief from the presentations was a related dramatisation done by inmates of Lüderitz prison and also various group work activities.

An important issue was also raised at the conference and that was that there are a serious lack of social workers and community care workers in the south of Namibia, which means children who are vulnerable or orphaned aren’t being looked after the way they should be. Many social worker jobs have been advertised but they get few replies.

U-Khai/Yelula has also worked with people with HIV and AIDS in order to make them come to terms with their circumstances and allow them to lead a normal life. Homosexuality has also been raised by the group, although it is not permitted by law, it is something that happens and people must be aware that homosexual men are more at risk. U-Khai/Yelula is supported worldwide, by Alliance, People in Need, Legal Assistance centre, IBIS, Hivos and the European Union.

Sexy And Sorted

admin — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 18:34:19 +0000

Ever had an embarrassing question and not known who to ask? You can’t quiz your friends in case they laugh at you, you’re too embarrassed to ask you teacher anything and you don’t want to talk to your parents anything because well…they’re your parents, so where do you turn?

In the past all those slightly-too- personal questions that you couldn’t talk to anyone about were left unanswered and ignored but not anymore: welcome to Health Education Response, or HER, an anonymous advice line that is happy to answer all your questions on sexual health.

Set up by Rashid Khan, a Peace Corps Volunteer based in Keetmanshoop, the service directs your SMS’d questions to one of a group of health volunteers from across Namibia. HER is totally anonymous as your SMS will pass through a computer before being redirected, preventing any volunteer from having access to your cell phone number.

“The service is designed for young people who have questions about their sexual health” said one volunteer who works for the service, “but people of all ages are welcome to send us their queries as well.

HER specialises in sexual health questions and cannot answer any queries related to relationships, religion and so on. The SMS number is 0814133315.