Making A Better World - Milton Louw

First printed in The Namibian 11 April 2013 Writing this weekly column has become the highlight in my week. In any given week I can expect at least three different issues to stick out their head that want to be brought to the attention of the esteemed readers. The past week was one in which more than eight different issues have been raised and I found myself overwhelmed in making the decision of what to write about. Then on Tuesday while I was in a pharmacy seeking to purchase a vitamin supplement containing ginseng and St John’s Wort, it struck me that most of the issues the past week have been about misleading advertising. But first, let me tell you about my experience at the pharmacy. For the past ten to twelve years I have been a big supporter of homeopathic medicines as an alternative to man-made medicine and worse, their expensive brand names that are pushed by our medical profession. In 2003, while spending a year studying the possibility of creating a central database fo...

First printed in The Namibian 04 April 2013 This week I wish to share with you my experience with debt and the threat by the lawyers that “the Sheriff of the Court” will come take my possessions and sell them to repay debts that have been registered with the court. I have two registered debts that I am aware of. Both are debts incurred while running my company and applied by the creditors to my personal responsibility. The one debt is stated by the creditor to be over N$ 25 000 and thus is a matter for the High Court. Now, you must keep in mind that though you might not wish to discuss your debt, the creditor is doing everything possible to make sure as many people as possible know about it. The use of the threat to inform the widest possible audience is the greatest tool of the creditor to force you to pay what the court has agreed you owe them. (This is important: The amount you are supposed to owe is the amount they have convinced the court you must pay – and I will come back to...