A Diagnostic View Of Opposition Politics
By: Dr Rihupisa KandandoI AM challenged to engage in the ongoing national debate on the need to have 'one major, strong opposition party in Namibia' as a response to the ruling Swapo Party.
This view is prevalent among some Namibian opposition political
parties, political analysts, former prominent political figures and
members of the public.
The advocates and proponents of 'one major strong opposition
party' see this as a viable proposition at a time when opposition
parties are lean, if not skeletal.
This is also being realised at a time when opposition parties
are failing miserably to win seats during elections.
Apparently the new agenda is: Vertical integration is out,
alliances are in.
Having been engaged with this question as a member of the
progressive forces during the struggle for national liberation
against apartheid South Africa, experience dictates that there are
practical questions to be answered.
It is of utmost importance to realise that formation of
traditional political parties in Namibia prior to Independence was
a dialectical response in some cases against South African colonial
occupation and in other cases formed by South African colonial
regime as a response to the Namibian national liberation
movement.
These groups include Swanu, Swapo, DTA, UDF.
After independence, the only new political party formed was the
Congress of Democrats (CoD).
It is my submission, at least from my Swanu political
background, that the operations of any political party must - as a
matter of principle - be related to their political principles,
orientation and ideology.
In other words, it is my perspective and expectation that
credible political parties are not formed in a vacuum but that
their existence is dictated rather by historical and dialectical
materialism.
This theory postulates that the world is a unity of two
opposites.
In other words, it is my expectation that the existence of
political parties must be for the sake of advancing certain
political principles and convictions and not for the sake of
convenience.
During the struggle for national independence and freedom
against the South African colonial occupation, the national
liberation movement set for themselves the agenda of repossessing
what was taken from the Namibian people.
The national liberation movement adopted the policy of
non-collaboration with the colonial regime as a tactic of
frustrating the South African neo-colonial political dispensation
in Namibia.
In this process, the national liberation movement (as
represented both by Swanu and Swapo) emasculated the South African
neo-colonial political dispensation in Namibia to a point of
fatigue.
The national liberation movement denied credibility and
legitimacy to the presence of the South African regime in
Namibia.
The opposition to the presence of South African colonial forces,
firstly as nationalist forces, secondly, political and ideological
proximity to each other, put both Swanu and Swapo in the same
opposition camp.
This is not only evidenced by the 1985/86 Ai Gams Grouping but
goes as far as the 1973-75 National Convention (NC) and Namibia
National Convention (NNC).
It is important to note that political parties whose orientation
and inclination were diametrically opposed to those of Swanu and
Swapo did not join these anti-colonial platforms whose aim was to
express their opposition to the South African presence in Namibia
and to struggle for speedier implementation of Resolution 435.
On the other hand, it must be noted that the current opposition
parties such as the DTA, (Nudo and Republican Party as constituent
members of DTA), MAG (as represented then by AKTUR, National Party
of SWA) all participated in the South African-sponsored Turnhalle
Constitutional Conference (1975), National Assembly and Council of
Ministers (1979-80), Second-Tier Authorities, Transitional
Government of National Unity (1985-89), and, by the definition of
members of national liberation movement, they were not considered
as opposition parties to the South African regime, because the
constitutional measures they were advocating in Namibia with the
assistance and backing of South Africa were in conflict with the
principles of decolonisation as developed by the United
Nations.
This part of history might look to some of our people as a
tumultuous event of the past that has disappeared under the bridge
of history and has no bearing on the debate about opposition
parties in contemporary Namibia.
But as a student of a national liberation movement based on
political principles, convictions and ideology who hopes to
contribute to the charting of the new chapter, I beg to differ with
those who hold these views.
The proponents of one major strong opposition party in Namibia
are treating the issue as if opposition parties are homogeneous,
amorphous and amoeba-like formations without features, essentials
and characteristics.
The proponents are advancing their arguments as if they do not
have experience of the sustainability politics of both
pre-independent and post-independent opposition parties.
Firstly, political parties have their own identity and
uniqueness that must be recognized and therefore must not be lumped
together for the sake of short-term convenience and expediency.
The recognition of this identity is a catalyst to anticipate the
future and predict whether the opposition politics are sustainable
or not.
The record of Swapo as a ruling party over the last 14 years,
despite its previous progressive tradition, is not compatible with
its historical text during the struggle for national
liberation.
An element of ideological revisionism has set in to such an
extent that the pre-independence wishes, desires and aspirations
are fading away.
Gone are the days of comradeship, solidarity, social justice,
One Namibia One Nation, mutual assistance, mutual respect, one for
all and all for one.
Swapo, since independence, has been infiltrated by elements who
do not have the ideological understanding and sentimental
attachment to the pre-independent demands, and therefore the
Party's progressive tradition is being hijacked for opportunistic
and petty personal considerations.
It is my submission that crime, poverty, hunger, unemployment,
corruption and HIV/AIDS that are confronting the Government in
particular, and Namibian people in general, are symptoms of a
socio-economic and political order that can only be addressed
through ideological clarity.
It is therefore my submission that there is a need for a major
strong opposition party in Namibia to remind Swapo of the Namibian
historical text; to defend the heritage of the national liberation
struggle and nurture and inculcate democratic values and
principles, to enable plurality of political opinion and functional
multi-party democracy.
The question in my mind is whether the current opposition
parties have the necessary progressive credentials to improve on
the relative performance of Swapo.
The answer is a big NO.
Can opposition politics in Namibia in the short-term be
sustained? The answer again, is a big NO.
The mere fact that politics in Namibia is not issue-orientated
makes it difficult for the sustainability of opposition
politics.
The mere fact that the joining of political parties by members
is not necessarily dictated by political convictions but rather by
personal gains, makes it difficult for the sustainability of
opposition politics.
It is no secret that before independence a sizeable number of
prominent political figures, traditional leaders and
businessmen/women were aligned to those parties that had a strong
connection with the South African regime, and now, after
Independence, are joining Swapo.
This is not necessarily dictated by conviction but personal gain
and the politics of the belly.
Former political activists and party leaders in the opposition
parties during and after Independence have either joined the ruling
party or have become 'community activists', 'technocrats',
businessmen/women in the name of an attempt not to disclose their
political allegiance.
As classic examples, a 25+ year-old prominent youth leader
joined CoD twice and Swapo twice; a prominent political figure from
1960's to 2004 joined Swapo approximately three times and the DTA
(NUDO) three times; another political figure stayed in the DTA for
most of his life and then joined Swapo for one month (December)
only to rejoin NUDO (January).
These are facts and evidence to demonstrate that in Namibia
either we have ideological compatibility among political parties or
there is a complete lack of political conviction and understanding
if, politically-speaking, parties are different, but people are
treating them as if they are the same.
These are not new phenomena.
During the liberation struggle, the national liberation movement
witnessed the spectacle of some of their supposedly staunchest
members defecting to the Pretoria regime, and throwing in their
miserable lot with the partitionists and supine followers of the
Turnhalle's formula for Namibia.
The opposition parties are now losing to the ruling party.
While, in principle, a major strong opposition party is needed,
the resurgence of splinter parties with tribal undertones within
opposition parties themselves; lack of policy perspectives based on
ideological position; lack of leadership qualities; opportunism of
moving from one party to another within a shorter period of time
because of personal gains (politics of the belly), fear,
intolerance, lack of financial resources, lack of human resources
because of fear (remember the 'jobs for comrades only' and
'acquaintance with Swapo manifesto'), lack of political convictions
as well as past political history, all remain impediments and
challenges facing the opposition politics in Namibia.
My humble and sincere submission is that opposition parties in
Namibia are heterogeneous, and as such, their internal chemistry
must clearly be understood before sweeping statements on mergers,
alliances and fronts are made.
They have different approaches, origins, orientations and
inclinations.
* The author is a former lecturer and HoD at Unam.
Specialist in Clinical Biochemistry (M.Sc) Marine Sciences
(Ph.D) trained at the Universities of Leeds and Surrey, UK.
He is also Swanu President.
Views in this article are expressed in his personal
capacity.
The advocates and proponents of 'one major strong opposition party'
see this as a viable proposition at a time when opposition parties
are lean, if not skeletal.This is also being realised at a time
when opposition parties are failing miserably to win seats during
elections.Apparently the new agenda is: Vertical integration is
out, alliances are in.Having been engaged with this question as a
member of the progressive forces during the struggle for national
liberation against apartheid South Africa, experience dictates that
there are practical questions to be answered.It is of utmost
importance to realise that formation of traditional political
parties in Namibia prior to Independence was a dialectical response
in some cases against South African colonial occupation and in
other cases formed by South African colonial regime as a response
to the Namibian national liberation movement.These groups include
Swanu, Swapo, DTA, UDF.After independence, the only new political
party formed was the Congress of Democrats (CoD).It is my
submission, at least from my Swanu political background, that the
operations of any political party must - as a matter of principle -
be related to their political principles, orientation and
ideology.In other words, it is my perspective and expectation that
credible political parties are not formed in a vacuum but that
their existence is dictated rather by historical and dialectical
materialism.This theory postulates that the world is a unity of two
opposites.In other words, it is my expectation that the existence
of political parties must be for the sake of advancing certain
political principles and convictions and not for the sake of
convenience.During the struggle for national independence and
freedom against the South African colonial occupation, the national
liberation movement set for themselves the agenda of repossessing
what was taken from the Namibian people.The national liberation
movement adopted the policy of non-collaboration with the colonial
regime as a tactic of frustrating the South African neo-colonial
political dispensation in Namibia.In this process, the national
liberation movement (as represented both by Swanu and Swapo)
emasculated the South African neo-colonial political dispensation
in Namibia to a point of fatigue.The national liberation movement
denied credibility and legitimacy to the presence of the South
African regime in Namibia.The opposition to the presence of South
African colonial forces, firstly as nationalist forces, secondly,
political and ideological proximity to each other, put both Swanu
and Swapo in the same opposition camp.This is not only evidenced by
the 1985/86 Ai Gams Grouping but goes as far as the 1973-75
National Convention (NC) and Namibia National Convention (NNC).It
is important to note that political parties whose orientation and
inclination were diametrically opposed to those of Swanu and Swapo
did not join these anti-colonial platforms whose aim was to express
their opposition to the South African presence in Namibia and to
struggle for speedier implementation of Resolution 435.On the other
hand, it must be noted that the current opposition parties such as
the DTA, (Nudo and Republican Party as constituent members of DTA),
MAG (as represented then by AKTUR, National Party of SWA) all
participated in the South African-sponsored Turnhalle
Constitutional Conference (1975), National Assembly and Council of
Ministers (1979-80), Second-Tier Authorities, Transitional
Government of National Unity (1985-89), and, by the definition of
members of national liberation movement, they were not considered
as opposition parties to the South African regime, because the
constitutional measures they were advocating in Namibia with the
assistance and backing of South Africa were in conflict with the
principles of decolonisation as developed by the United
Nations.This part of history might look to some of our people as a
tumultuous event of the past that has disappeared under the bridge
of history and has no bearing on the debate about opposition
parties in contemporary Namibia.But as a student of a national
liberation movement based on political principles, convictions and
ideology who hopes to contribute to the charting of the new
chapter, I beg to differ with those who hold these views.The
proponents of one major strong opposition party in Namibia are
treating the issue as if opposition parties are homogeneous,
amorphous and amoeba-like formations without features, essentials
and characteristics.The proponents are advancing their arguments as
if they do not have experience of the sustainability politics of
both pre-independent and post-independent opposition
parties.Firstly, political parties have their own identity and
uniqueness that must be recognized and therefore must not be lumped
together for the sake of short-term convenience and expediency.The
recognition of this identity is a catalyst to anticipate the future
and predict whether the opposition politics are sustainable or
not.The record of Swapo as a ruling party over the last 14 years,
despite its previous progressive tradition, is not compatible with
its historical text during the struggle for national liberation.An
element of ideological revisionism has set in to such an extent
that the pre-independence wishes, desires and aspirations are
fading away.Gone are the days of comradeship, solidarity, social
justice, One Namibia One Nation, mutual assistance, mutual respect,
one for all and all for one.Swapo, since independence, has been
infiltrated by elements who do not have the ideological
understanding and sentimental attachment to the pre-independent
demands, and therefore the Party's progressive tradition is being
hijacked for opportunistic and petty personal considerations.It is
my submission that crime, poverty, hunger, unemployment, corruption
and HIV/AIDS that are confronting the Government in particular, and
Namibian people in general, are symptoms of a socio-economic and
political order that can only be addressed through ideological
clarity.It is therefore my submission that there is a need for a
major strong opposition party in Namibia to remind Swapo of the
Namibian historical text; to defend the heritage of the national
liberation struggle and nurture and inculcate democratic values and
principles, to enable plurality of political opinion and functional
multi-party democracy.The question in my mind is whether the
current opposition parties have the necessary progressive
credentials to improve on the relative performance of Swapo.The
answer is a big NO.Can opposition politics in Namibia in the
short-term be sustained? The answer again, is a big NO.The mere
fact that politics in Namibia is not issue-orientated makes it
difficult for the sustainability of opposition politics.The mere
fact that the joining of political parties by members is not
necessarily dictated by political convictions but rather by
personal gains, makes it difficult for the sustainability of
opposition politics.It is no secret that before independence a
sizeable number of prominent political figures, traditional leaders
and businessmen/women were aligned to those parties that had a
strong connection with the South African regime, and now, after
Independence, are joining Swapo.This is not necessarily dictated by
conviction but personal gain and the politics of the belly.Former
political activists and party leaders in the opposition parties
during and after Independence have either joined the ruling party
or have become 'community activists', 'technocrats',
businessmen/women in the name of an attempt not to disclose their
political allegiance.As classic examples, a 25+ year-old prominent
youth leader joined CoD twice and Swapo twice; a prominent
political figure from 1960's to 2004 joined Swapo approximately
three times and the DTA (NUDO) three times; another political
figure stayed in the DTA for most of his life and then joined Swapo
for one month (December) only to rejoin NUDO (January).These are
facts and evidence to demonstrate that in Namibia either we have
ideological compatibility among political parties or there is a
complete lack of political conviction and understanding if,
politically-speaking, parties are different, but people are
treating them as if they are the same.These are not new
phenomena.During the liberation struggle, the national liberation
movement witnessed the spectacle of some of their supposedly
staunchest members defecting to the Pretoria regime, and throwing
in their miserable lot with the partitionists and supine followers
of the Turnhalle's formula for Namibia.The opposition parties are
now losing to the ruling party.While, in principle, a major strong
opposition party is needed, the resurgence of splinter parties with
tribal undertones within opposition parties themselves; lack of
policy perspectives based on ideological position; lack of
leadership qualities; opportunism of moving from one party to
another within a shorter period of time because of personal gains
(politics of the belly), fear, intolerance, lack of financial
resources, lack of human resources because of fear (remember the
'jobs for comrades only' and 'acquaintance with Swapo manifesto'),
lack of political convictions as well as past political history,
all remain impediments and challenges facing the opposition
politics in Namibia.My humble and sincere submission is that
opposition parties in Namibia are heterogeneous, and as such, their
internal chemistry must clearly be understood before sweeping
statements on mergers, alliances and fronts are made.They have
different approaches, origins, orientations and inclinations.* The
author is a former lecturer and HoD at Unam.Specialist in Clinical
Biochemistry (M.Sc) Marine Sciences (Ph.D) trained at the
Universities of Leeds and Surrey, UK.He is also Swanu
President.Views in this article are expressed in his personal
capacity.