Stationary stores in Otjiwarongo are packed as parents busy themselves with back-to-school shopping. Stationery lists, some say, require them to dig deep into their pockets.

While last-minute shoppers wait for the last day of shopping before schools reopen, others are making sure they have everything printed on their schools' stationary lists.

Celebrating New Year for the outgoers in Otjiwarongo was almost impossible as the police dispersed crowds' at different socialising outlets.

The night was tranquil for those who spent New Year's Eve and crossed into 2024 at church or at their homes.

However, the same could not be said for those who were looking forward to dancing the night away into the new year, as they could not find a better spot for a countdown.

Four people died in a head-on collision between a polo sedan and a seven-seater on the B1 road between Otjiwarongo and Otavi in the early hours of this morning.

The police said the sedan was allegedly attempting to overtake a truck when it collided head-on with a seven-seater, and a culpable homicide case has been opened against the driver of the polo.

Otjozondjupa Community Liaison Officer, Inspector Maureen Mbeha, said the polo sedan had seven occupants, of which the youngest was six months old and the eldest was 39. They all survived.

The Otjiwarongo Municipality has entered into an agreement with the Road Fund Administration and the Roads Authority to rehabilitate and upgrade the roads in the town.

Residents of Otjiwarongo have over the years complained about the state of the roads, especially because they have very large potholes.

Since the town is situated on the B1 road, heavy cargo trucks have to go through the town, worsening the already existing potholes.

The Otjozondjupa Regional Police have received three brand new police vehicles from the Road Fund Administration (RFA) for the police stations of Okakarara, Grootfontein, and Otjiwarongo.

One of the vehicles has been mounted with the jaws of life equipment.

It will be temporarily stationed at Farm Sukses, south of Otjiwarongo, to assist until the emergency centre has been set up to cut response time between Otjiwarongo and Okahandja.

As road carnage continues to claim the lives of Namibians at an alarming rate, Otjozondjupa Region, which is one of the accident-prone hotspot regions, has recorded a decline in fatalities and injuries to date as compared to 2022.

MVA's Regional Head of Accident and Injury Prevention, Daniel Mouton, shared this rather good development during the official launch of the 2023–2024 Otjozondjupa Festive Season Road Safety Launch at Otjiwarongo.

Mouton says this year alone, the region recorded 223 car accidents, of which 480 resulted in injuries and 45 fatalities.

Swapo Party Secretary General, Sophia Shaningwa, has called for the government and institutions to make more use of local investors to enable money to circulate within the country.

Shaningwa was speaking at a recent Swapo Party roundtable discussion at Otjiwarongo.

Shaningwa encouraged locals to form joint ventures with foreign companies for the mutual benefit of all.

The Otjiwarongo municipality has assured the residents that the planned explosives factory northwest of the town will pose no danger to residents as it is located in an area where there are no plans for current or future developments.

The statement by town mayor Kandiwapa Shivute follows a daily newspaper report this week in which concerns were raised and objections made against the factory. Shivute says the Beifang factory will not be manufacturing explosive products but will use the site to store explosives for mining activities in the town.

The Otjiwarongo Municipality is gearing up for an ambitious wastewater treatment plant and waste-to-energy project, a venture that demands more waste input than the town currently produces. 

Otjiwarongo Mayor Gottlieb Shivute on Wednesday promised to launch an in-depth investigation into allegations levelled against his council officials for reportedly conducting job interviews for cleaner positions Tuesday night.

Shivute, upon inquiry on Wednesday, told Nampa that he received complaints that 41 candidates were interviewed for 17 vacant cleaner positions at the municipality.

"I am now out of town, but once I return, I will definitely look into that allegation and establish for myself whether the matter is real or whether it is a mere rumour," he said.