The Vaalgras festival must be revitalised

NATIVE WATCHDOG WRITES:The 47th Vaalgras festival was hosted over the long weekend of 4th - 6th May 2018 at Vredefontein.Chief Kilus Nguvauva of the Ovambanderu also attended the commemorations for the first time with a small delegation. He pledged his full support and co-operation and that he will follow in the footsteps of his late father.Chief Joel Stephanus in his keynote address reiterated that it was not his personal festival, but that of the community and thus made a clarion call to the community to take ownership of it. He said he is afraid that the festival will no longer be commemorated after his death.THE HISTORYHe explained thoroughly how the event became an annual commemoration.The Late Chief Elias Stephanus died in 1902, after settling at Vaalgras. He was appointed by acclamation with the assistance of the then Bondelswartz chiefs in Warmbad, Captain Abraham Christiaans.The remains of late chief Elias Stephanus were taken to Keetmanshoop for burial by ox-wagons and donkey-cards, the only mode of transport during those years. The reason being Vaalgras was not developed at all and the community felt they cannot bury their chief in the "veld".The late Chief Cllr. Zagarias Biwa described the re-burial of chief Elias Stephanus remains at Vaalgras during 1971 as a historical event and requested late Chief Elias Stephanus that it becomes a yearly occasion.The latter then summoned his five sons and instructed them to take charge of that responsibility to host the festival annually. Chief Joel Stephanus maintained that he as the only surviving son is doing that every year, but is worried what is going to happen after he has fallen away.None of his four brothers' children are part of his current Council, otherwise he could have just passed on that responsibility to them to ensure that the festival does not die a natural death.LOW TURNOUTOne could conclude that the low turnout was worrying the chief and this in the face of the visiting chiefs. Comments were made about the visit of the delegation dispatched by the Paramount Chief of the Ovaherero, Adv. Vekuii Rukoro, who came to Vaalgras to talk to the Concerned Group about the Genocide, without consulting the recognized Traditional Authority within their jurisdiction area.Nothing was wrong when the Vaalgras Traditional Authority was associating it with the Goliath Traditional Authority, until this landed them in Court.Mr Willem Konjore extended serious warnings against stocktheft in the area and concluded that "what goes around, comes around". He pointed out that gone are those days that parents were asking children where you got this meat, as a person who is not farming or does not own any livestock.He continued that people have lost respect for the leadership, although it is being earned in a democratic society. Konjore then shifted to the "blame game" of name-calling, by referring to some festival goers as "genuine audience" and some as mysterious observers or "spies".FINDING THE LOST SHEEPAll in all what was evident is that the organising of this commemoration needs an absolute revamp, revitalisation, new ideas and a holistic and pragmatic vibrant approach to make it more colourful and successful.There is one enormous task for the chief and his leadership and that is to lodge a meticulous investigation into why people are no longer interested in this festival and why are they boycotting it? Someone should take up that big responsibility to go and look for the lost sheep and to bring them home. The philosophy of they know why they left, allow them time to come back home, once they have had enough, is not going to work.One thing that was perturbing, is how the academics and the literate people of the Vaalgras Concerned Group not know what they are concerned about?Who doesn't know that there is tribal division, a leadership vacuum and a leadership deficit at Vaalgras? And this is simply due to the blocking and lack of socio-economic development, an autocratic management style in a democracy, bad governance, maladministration, a lack of fiscal discipline and a lack of political accountability, just to mention a few reasons.

The Vaalgras festival must be revitalised

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Republikein 2026-11-03

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The Vaalgras festival must be revitalised

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Republikein 2026-11-03

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