Maria David
A LOT of men continue to “buy” love from women and then turn violent when woman ends the relationship because the man can no longer provide material goods.
Such men end up killing the women they professed to love.
According to the Namibian Police’s Sergeant Andrew Nghiyolwa, many romantic relationships are based on material goods and he is encouraging both men and women to discontinue such a practice.
He was speaking during a men’s conference held at Okongo under the theme: “Everyone deserves to live free from violence.”
He stated that men have now turned into wild breasts, killing and abusing other human beings.
“Everyday we receive reports of homicide, people either shot with guns, stabbed with knives, hacked with pangas or beaten up with bare hands. This needs to come to an end,” he said.
Nghiyolwa said that to-date there are about 710 prisoners in the Ohangwena Region who face charges related to gender-based violence.
“The situation is disheartening,” he said, adding that people should find ways to stop violence in the society. He also lamented the high number of rape cases in the region.
In some cases it is male parents raping their own daughters because they “look very much like their mothers”.
Addressing the same gathering, Okongo constituency councillor Efraim Shipindo said that the conference happened at the right time.
He said that men who suffer in silence, eventually turn violent and this contributes to the high crime rate in his constituency.
He further said that men need to constantly engage members of their households to make sure that they always know their children’s whereabouts and what they are doing in order to avoid unwanted social issues.
A men’s association was established in Okongo in February this year with the aim of addressing issues pertaining to men and to find solutions to violence.
The secretary of the association, Petrus Mwaamenge, said that the aim is to engage and sensitize all men in the constituency. “The ultimate aim is to eradicate gender-based violence,” he said.
He said: “The association is not there to make money but to help men seek solutions to societal problems.”
Community member Mathews Shongaleni, asked men to stop suffering in silence but rather learn to speak up, thereby avoiding outbursts of anger that end in homicide.
Shongaleni urged fellow men to go back to their traditional roots and start having family talks and also stop spending too much of their valuable time drinking alcohol at shebeens.
