Caprivi goes, lyaboloma comes!

Bashupi B Maloboka writes: The German era has at last come to an end and we hope those concerned about it will realise that. For one to appreciate the name change one has to realise the past changes that took place without the express consultation of the people. When Liyeyi's name was changed to Buseca and finally to Caprivi there was no consultation with the then dwellers of the area. In 1964 CANU made an attempt to rename it Intenge, thanks to the Swapo Party and government inclusively for opening the eyes of the CANU leaders and making them realise Caprivi was part of Namibia and thanks to CANU for their conversion. Let's not go back where we started and repented from; it is "Forward Ever, Backward Never". Attempts to change the name resumed again in 1976 during the Homeland Administration of Caprivi to rename it Lozi, but that could not work because there was no proper consultation. If the early dwellers could not retain the original name, what would stop the government of the day in consultation with the willing participants to restore the area to a locally relevant name that ties with our heritage, history and social life? In my view the people of the Zambezi Region had no racial or tribal ties with Germany and therefore it is uncalled for to cry over an imposed name. All imposed names have to go; both past and present. Let's take a short look at the name Caprivi. Georg Leo von Caprivi de Caprara de Montecuccoli (Count George Leo of Caprivi, Caprara, and Montecuccoli) was a German Major General and statesman from 24 February 1831 to 6 February 1899. He succeeded Otto von Bismarck as Chancellor of Germany and served for four terms from 1890 to 1894. He was born in Charlottenburg to a family of Slovenian origin, joined the army in 1849 and served in the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 and the Franco-Prussian War in 1870 as Corps Chief of Staff. From 1883 to 1888 he served as Chief of the Imperial Admiralty, a position in which he showed significant administrative talent. He was briefly appointed to the Command of the Tenth Army Corps in Hanover before being summoned to Berlin by Wilhelm II in February, 1890. Upon Bismarck's dismissal on 18 March, Caprivi became Chancellor. His administration was marked by what was known to historians as the "New Course" in both foreign and domestic policy, with moves towards conciliation of the Social Democrats on the domestic front, and towards a pro-British foreign policy, exemplified by the Zanzibar Treaty of July, 1890 in which the British ceded the Island of Heligoland to Germany in exchange for control of Zanzibar. This led to animosity from the colonialist pressure groups in Germany, while Caprivi's free trading policies led to opposition from conservative agrarian protectionists. In the process he managed to obtain the Caprivi Strip, which was added to German South West Africa, thus linking that territory with the Zambezi River. He resigned in 1892 and was succeeded by Count Botho zu Eulenburg. This is the Caprivi some of us are shading tears for. He even never set his foot in the strip as it was just given in his honour by Captain Streitwolf who was resident in the area since 1909. Can one compare such a name with a local name like Liyeyi, Zambezi or any other name that has been genuinely associated with the region, No, never. Fellow brothers and sisters from the Zambezi Region, we have no connection with Germany, why can't we cherish that which is ours and be proud of it rather than priding ourselves in the heritage and cultures of others which are foreign to our tradition and practices. What is it that Germany is going to give to the region which could not be given in 104 years of the existence of the name in the area? We hail the republic though, for a job well done.