PDM’s Johannes Martin says the dimension stones industry has been existing in Namibia but its potential has not yet been fully developed locally.
Martin, who gave notice to question the mines minister Tom Alweendo on Thursday, said Namibia exports more than 30 000 dimension stones (marble and granite) to South Africa from Karibib.
He also said that the demand for dimension stone is increasing in Namibia and SADC, while Namibia’s internal market is small, and is limited mainly to tomb stone manufacturing with occasional building cladding/flooring application.
Martin further said that the annual production of marble and granite has shown a rapid increase in tonnage since 2003.
There has been an increase in the variety of dimension stone now available, which is mainly due to the upswing in dimension stone exploration, and mining in Namibia.
The MP wants to know why the dimension industry’s ‘potential’ has not yet fully developed in Namibia and whether the government was looking at this lucrative mining with a blind eye?
He also said he would ask why the government cannot invite prospective investors to open factories in Namibia and create employment rather than creating employment for our neighbours.
Another PDM MP Jennifer Van Den Heever gave notice that she will on Thursday ask the Prime Minister, Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila when her office will establish a directorate that deals
with the monitoring and implementation of motions adopted by the National Assembly.
Van den Heever also said she would want to know if and when such an office is established, how will the Office of the Prime Minister ensure that motions adopted by the National Assembly are effectively implemented by the relevant state institutions?
“Does the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister agree with me that the current status quo where adopted National Assembly motions become white elephants renders the work of this House inconsequential?” She asked in her notice.
During the 6th Parliament, a total of 73 motions were tabled by members of
various political parties represented at the time in the Natonal. In the early days
of the 6th Parliament, you responded to a question by former SWANU MP Hon.
Usutuaije Maamberua that the Office of the Prime Minister planned to establish
a directorate that would deal with the monitoring and implementation of motions
passed by the National Assembly.
However, the 6th Parliament has since lapsed, and no such directorate has been
established by the Office of the Prime Minister to oversee the implementation of
the countless motions that we adopt here as MP’s in the National Assembly. The
establishment of such a directorate is long overdue and critical to the work of
Parliament.
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This House has adopted a number of progressive motions that seek to address the
complex socio-economic issues that the people of this country urgently need
addressed. However, it becomes clear that these motions are just mere sentiments
on paper, and are never implemented by the relevant state institutions to which
they are addressed to, making the work of MP’s almost inconsequential.
I thus ask the Rt. Honourable Prime Minister:
