New ­junior ­council for Walvis Bay

The harbour town has a new junior council.
Octavia Tsibes
leandrea Louw



Kristine Shetunyenga from the International School of Walvis Bay was elected as the new junior town council mayor for Walvis Bay for the term 2020/2021.

Her deputy is Johannes Shipepe from Duinesig High School with Anna Ndara from the International School of Walvis Bay as the chief executive officer.

Other members are Eino Shiimi (deputy executive officer), Rowen Uiseb (public relations officer), Alliyah Brenner (deputy public relations officer), Robyn Jansen (human resources officer), Anthony Palmer (deputy human resources), Anescha Blatt (treasurer), Morientes Isaaks (deputy treasurer), Sirkka Mulundu (secretary) and Maggi Mwahafa (deputy secretary).

Senior members for the 2021 council are Dolphy Eixab, Inimari Aggenbach, Snyder Shaulwah, Cecilia Frans and Lizaan Steenkamp.

In her acceptance speech, Shetunyenga said that she is honoured to be the junior mayor. “I am sure we will make this year a success with the help of my fellow councillors, who I know have my back. We don't know what the future has in store for us, but we will work hard serving the council.”

Addressing her councillors, Shetunyenga said that she would like the new council to bring about change. “Cases like rape, gender-based violence and human trafficking have been on the increase. Unfortunately, it seems that Walvis Bay is becoming the epicentre of it all. I would like us to take on projects that can assist the youth affected by these crimes.”

Outgoing mayor Kundja Kavari stated that the junior council of 2020 has done its best regardless of the tough circumstances they were faced with. “It was an honour being a servant of the youth of Walvis Bay. I learned to listen more and talk less. Through listening you learn a lot and it adds value to your general ­knowledge and skills. My motto was always to bring all the councillors' potential together and use it to the benefit of our community. I enjoyed it, I loved it, I treasure it and I will always be thankful to the municipality of Walvis Bay.”

The junior council used online platforms to create awareness on mental health, mental health illnesses, their effects and how to overcome these illnesses during the lockdown which had put a hold on their projects. “We ­realised that a lot of our youth in Walvis Bay were demotivated due to the pandemic and in the absence of schooling. We decided to start uploading motivational videos on our Instagram page.”

These videos feature influential youth such as the former junior mayor of Ongwediva, Paulina Hambata, international speaker Mathew Kambuze, and the deputy minister of information, communication and technology, Emma Theofelus.

The projects for the 2021 council are a continuation of the previous council's projects, with their biggest fundraiser for the year, the annual Miss Teen Walvis Bay pageant, slated for July 2021.