EDITORIAL: Rukoro burial a possible super-spreader
Over the past few days – including the entire past weekend – ordinary people across the country were probed and hauled before flashing cameras for perceived violations of curfew and other Covid-19 regulations.
Yesterday, huge numbers of mourners, predicted by some to be over 200 people, congregated at Okahandja to pay their last respect to Ombara Otjitambi, Advocate Vekuii Rukoro, the paramount chief of the Ovaherero Traditional Authority.
Current Covid-19 regulations allow only 10 people to attend burials in person. If special permission was sought to increase the number beyond the permitted 10 persons, allowing 200 to attend the burial – in the middle of the very pandemic that killed the chief – was simply a reckless irony.
True, Rukoro was no ordinary man. He was a revered lawyer, business executive who served as CEO of the biggest bank in the country and astute traditional leader. He attracted followers from across all spectrums, and it’s thus natural that many would want to see him off in a dignified manner.
But there’s no dignity in allowing hordes of people congregate in the middle of a fatal crisis. Even Rukoro himself, who has done so much to preserve the lives of those he led, wouldn’t have wanted to drag his followers into the Covid-19 lion’s den.
The arguments by some about culture and tradition can simply not be accepted. All Namibians have traditions but they had to put them on ice as per the dictates of the time.
Yesterday, huge numbers of mourners, predicted by some to be over 200 people, congregated at Okahandja to pay their last respect to Ombara Otjitambi, Advocate Vekuii Rukoro, the paramount chief of the Ovaherero Traditional Authority.
Current Covid-19 regulations allow only 10 people to attend burials in person. If special permission was sought to increase the number beyond the permitted 10 persons, allowing 200 to attend the burial – in the middle of the very pandemic that killed the chief – was simply a reckless irony.
True, Rukoro was no ordinary man. He was a revered lawyer, business executive who served as CEO of the biggest bank in the country and astute traditional leader. He attracted followers from across all spectrums, and it’s thus natural that many would want to see him off in a dignified manner.
But there’s no dignity in allowing hordes of people congregate in the middle of a fatal crisis. Even Rukoro himself, who has done so much to preserve the lives of those he led, wouldn’t have wanted to drag his followers into the Covid-19 lion’s den.
The arguments by some about culture and tradition can simply not be accepted. All Namibians have traditions but they had to put them on ice as per the dictates of the time.
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Namibian Sun
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