Vaalgras education’s interview impasse

DISGRUNTLED NATIVE WRITES:The ||Kharas regional education directorate had advertised many positions for cleaners, caretakers and matrons, which were supposed to be interviewed sometime in July 2025, but it was called off indefinitely following complaints from the incumbent hostel workers. The aforesaid interviews were scheduled to resume on 14 October 2025. However, the hostel workers are fighting for the promotional positions as well as the local inhabitants, who weren’t shortlisted for the entry-level cleaner posts with no qualification requirements, stood their ground to be reckoned with as a force. They wrote a letter to the newly appointed regional education director, Mr. Nicholas Eiman, requesting him to put a moratorium on the interviews.Mr. Eiman delegated this task to the deputy director, Ms. Tjiroze, who started the process. The latter was adamant that the interviews would continue unabatedly, despite the petitioning and cries of the local residents. She questioned the Vaalgras primary school’s board chairperson whether the locals qualify and whether they had applied for the positions. This couldn’t be established beyond a reasonable doubt by all parties, including the labour ministry.The ministry of labour shouldered the blame for the technical breakdown of the NIEIS machine for quite some time, since the end of May 2025 to the beginning of June 2025. It was mind-boggling and interesting to learn that local residents with grade 10 with 25 points weren’t shortlisted for reasons best known to the perpetrators thereof. The protestors stood put and clocked the main entrance gate to the school premises.The HR from the Keetmanshoop education directorate, the acting principal, and the school board members were locked up in a closed-door meeting up to around 12:00. They couldn’t reach any consensus and the HR finally threatened to either appoint a new panel from the teachers to continue with the interviews as scheduled or to shift the interviews to Keetmanshoop. To this end the school board had two questions relating to the powers of the new panel and where the appointed candidates will be working?In the absence of any violence, the assistance of the Tses police were called in, who arrived there within minutes, as opposed to in cases of serious criminal offences. The school board members then requested their children to abscond from the classrooms. It’s reported that profiles of some of the applicants just disappeared after the NIEIS was repaired, it showed double-registration and the worst of all, which justifies the moratorium, is that the résumes of the applicants also disappeared from the system. Now, the question begs: does the system failure justify the deprivation of someone’s constitutional right to employment?Cognizance must be taken that the ministry’s arrogance and stubbornness have cost the innocent interviewees unnecessary expenses in traveling and accommodation etc. Who’s going to refund these poor interviewees, albeit the fact that some might be employed elsewhere? According to verbal claims filed by the community, the circuit inspector, who is responsible for orchestrating all this evil, is the one who must swallow this bitter pill.The HR maintained that they can’t procrastinate the interviews, simply they don’t want to pay acting allowances to the current staffers. There was no noise when Aroab education authorities refused to appoint a lady from Vaalgras, who scored the highest points, residents only in a Karasburg advert by the same ministry.Thus, the relief that the local residents seek is that the people from the area must be given preference in the no-qualification requirement post, and that the incumbent staffers be considered first for the promotional positions. The parents’ demands are loud and clear that they’re just fighting for the progress of their children and that justice be done. They are asking where else can their children be employed, if they can’t even be employed in their own native village? If my memories serve me well, this is the second time that Vaalgras primary school’s appointments and interviews are being raided by police. The parties finally agreed that the protestors would allow the school operations to continue unhindered, whilst the petition continues on its own without any interference. * Beste lesers, keuring vir die publikasie van WhatsApp, briewe en alle ander lesersbydraes berus by Republikein. Klagtes oor die diens van private besighede word eers aan die onderneming vir reaksie voorgelê. Die menings van ons lesers en rubriekskrywers verteenwoordig nie noodwendig die standpunt van Republikein nie. Republikein is ’n lid van die Redakteursforum van Namibië (EFN) en onderskryf die etiese kode vir die Namibiese media soos toegepas deur die media-ombudsman.

Vaalgras education’s interview impasse

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Republikein 2026-01-28

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Vaalgras education’s interview impasse

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Republikein 2026-01-28

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