Members of the National Assembly want obsolete laws repealed and replaced with new laws that address contemporary challenges facing the nation.

During a debate on the Repeal of Obsolete Laws Bill in the House, parliamentarians argue that, during the colonial and apartheid periods, those laws that have now become outdated and irrelevant have only benefited the privileged few, and they have continued to enjoy those benefits to date.

Finance Minister Maureen Hinda-Mbuende says the Proclamation of 1921 gave privilege to white people to be given land in order to address their poverty, and they continue to claim ownership of this land now.

She claims that the natives were literally chased away from their land and given to whites under this and other laws.

Hinda-Mbuende stressed that such laws, including the Railway Law and the Karakul Sheep Law, among others, were used to uplift and empower the white communities at that time, leaving blacks or natives in poverty.

RDP President Mike Kavekotora echoed the same sentiment, saying that past laws that perpetuated injustices must be replaced with ones that address the status quo.

Swapo Party MP Phillipus Katamelo says past laws must be countered with new ones that can uplift the well-being of Namibians.

He called for the bill to be withdrawn in its current form and cluster all similar laws together for better scrutiny, then re-table the bill.

Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform Minister Carl Schlettwein say he is puzzled as to what the bill exactly is aimed at doing away with and which parts of old laws need to be abolished.

Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety, and Security Minister Dr Albert Kawana and his Works and Transport Minister John Mutorwa welcomed the proposed bill.

The debate on the Repeal of Obsolete Laws Bill was concluded in the National Assembly, and Justice Minister Yvonne Dausab is due to give her reply next week.