Geingob slams local firms, media
President Hage Geingob yesterday blasted local construction companies for “milking” government tenders.
He said this during the launch of the food bank initiative when he explained why the government had cancelled the construction of a warehouse and cold-storage facilities as part of the food bank programme aimed at donating food to the hungry.
Geingob said after receiving a number of conflicting quotes for such facilities, the government came to the conclusion that it would be preposterous to put up a structure costing close to N$100 million while people are going to bed hungry.
“It also shows how our business people are greedy. Once you talk about government tenders they are putting layers on top on how they can get the government. And therefore the costs are so high,” he said.
Detractors
The president also took a swipe at “unpatriotic” journalists and naysayers who fail to see anything good done by his administration.
He questioned why local journalists cannot write positive stories about Namibia, as was reflected by a recent article by the renowned American economist Joseph Stiglitz and media expert Anya Schiffrin.
“I am really disappointed that our scholars and our journalists lay down this effort. What is the problem? Here is a Nobel laureate coming to this desert and show what we are doing, also admitting our shortcomings. Why should a Namibian oppose that? If you are patriotic why are you being so negative?” he asked.
According to Geingob, some people have condemned Stiglitz and Schiffrin’s work claiming that the government influenced their writing.
“Now we stand and condemn them, for what? Who are you by the way?” he asked agitatedly.
Geingob’s outburst followed an open letter signed by a certain D Aluteni and R Kozonguizi and published in a local daily, which said they could not spot “the corrupt and self-serving Namibian elite in any of Stiglitz and Schiffrin’s writing”, which according to them is somewhat lopsided.
The letter added that public hospitals are falling apart and often do not have basic medicine due to the deliberate budget cuts and that racial inequality still persists in the country.
JEMIMA BEUKES
He said this during the launch of the food bank initiative when he explained why the government had cancelled the construction of a warehouse and cold-storage facilities as part of the food bank programme aimed at donating food to the hungry.
Geingob said after receiving a number of conflicting quotes for such facilities, the government came to the conclusion that it would be preposterous to put up a structure costing close to N$100 million while people are going to bed hungry.
“It also shows how our business people are greedy. Once you talk about government tenders they are putting layers on top on how they can get the government. And therefore the costs are so high,” he said.
Detractors
The president also took a swipe at “unpatriotic” journalists and naysayers who fail to see anything good done by his administration.
He questioned why local journalists cannot write positive stories about Namibia, as was reflected by a recent article by the renowned American economist Joseph Stiglitz and media expert Anya Schiffrin.
“I am really disappointed that our scholars and our journalists lay down this effort. What is the problem? Here is a Nobel laureate coming to this desert and show what we are doing, also admitting our shortcomings. Why should a Namibian oppose that? If you are patriotic why are you being so negative?” he asked.
According to Geingob, some people have condemned Stiglitz and Schiffrin’s work claiming that the government influenced their writing.
“Now we stand and condemn them, for what? Who are you by the way?” he asked agitatedly.
Geingob’s outburst followed an open letter signed by a certain D Aluteni and R Kozonguizi and published in a local daily, which said they could not spot “the corrupt and self-serving Namibian elite in any of Stiglitz and Schiffrin’s writing”, which according to them is somewhat lopsided.
The letter added that public hospitals are falling apart and often do not have basic medicine due to the deliberate budget cuts and that racial inequality still persists in the country.
JEMIMA BEUKES
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