15 Years Of Independence
THE celebration of Namibia's 15 years of Independence coincides with the swearing-in of our second President, Hifikepunye Pohamba, and the stepping-down of the incumbent, President Sam Nujoma, after a decade and a half as our head of state.
Namibia has achieved much in the past 15 years.
Among other things, our Constitution is still considered one of
the best in Africa, and we hope it remains so.
There have been significant gains since the demise of the
apartheid era, not least of which is our hard-won peace, freedom
and democracy.
But there remain many problems to overcome, and this is the
challenge for President Pohamba - to consolidate gains made and
further entrench democracy.
Some of the challenges include dealing with the escalating
problem of unemployment; the betterment of our education system;
the war against corruption; the fight against HIV-AIDS and
escalating crime, particularly against vulnerable members of our
society, such as women and children; and, most of all, the need to
reinforce democracy in all its manifestations.
We have peace in the broader context and national security, but
that is not enough to move the country forward to sustained
democracy and economic growth.
Namibian society remains a very unequal one, with the shortage
of jobs still a debilitating factor and school-leavers facing bleak
futures.
Our people do not feel safe in their homes because crime has not
diminished; and in particular, women and children often fear for
their lives due to the predators in our midst.
HIV-AIDS continues to take its toll on the younger
generation.
Corruption is fast becoming endemic, and there has been little
sustained effort in the past to rid the country of this
scourge.
And finally democracy, so integral to the aims and purpose of
the Independence struggle, is entrenched in our Constitution, but
not yet in the hearts and minds of our people.
The country as a whole, urged on by the political leadership,
needs to deepen their understanding of the concept of democracy and
what it means for a free people.
We have to rid ourselves of a culture of fear, still so
pervasive, and made more so by the recent Swapo infighting and
witch-hunting simply because of political differences.
Democracy should be able to sustain debate and differences
without people resorting to smear tactics and hate campaigns, and
so it is essential that the political leadership show the way to a
more conciliatory dispensation, and we believe new President
Pohamba has the ability to guide this process to a full-fledged
democracy.
On Monday the nation will bid farewell to President Nujoma.
He was indeed the founding father of the nation and his
incumbency took us to a certain point in our history.
Like any other head of state, he had his assets and his
liabilities.
But now we need to move on in a more progressive direction.
The goals that have been achieved in this time need to be built
on and the shortcomings addressed by incoming President
Pohamba.
We take this opportunity to wish President Nujoma well in his
retirement years; and to welcome President Pohamba as Namibia's new
head of state.
He has a formidable task ahead of him, as outlined earlier, and
we are sure the majority of this country will work with him to take
Namibia to greater heights.
Among other things, our Constitution is still considered one of the
best in Africa, and we hope it remains so.There have been
significant gains since the demise of the apartheid era, not least
of which is our hard-won peace, freedom and democracy.But there
remain many problems to overcome, and this is the challenge for
President Pohamba - to consolidate gains made and further entrench
democracy. Some of the challenges include dealing with the
escalating problem of unemployment; the betterment of our education
system; the war against corruption; the fight against HIV-AIDS and
escalating crime, particularly against vulnerable members of our
society, such as women and children; and, most of all, the need to
reinforce democracy in all its manifestations.We have peace in the
broader context and national security, but that is not enough to
move the country forward to sustained democracy and economic
growth.Namibian society remains a very unequal one, with the
shortage of jobs still a debilitating factor and school-leavers
facing bleak futures.Our people do not feel safe in their homes
because crime has not diminished; and in particular, women and
children often fear for their lives due to the predators in our
midst.HIV-AIDS continues to take its toll on the younger
generation.Corruption is fast becoming endemic, and there has been
little sustained effort in the past to rid the country of this
scourge.And finally democracy, so integral to the aims and purpose
of the Independence struggle, is entrenched in our Constitution,
but not yet in the hearts and minds of our people.The country as a
whole, urged on by the political leadership, needs to deepen their
understanding of the concept of democracy and what it means for a
free people. We have to rid ourselves of a culture of fear, still
so pervasive, and made more so by the recent Swapo infighting and
witch-hunting simply because of political differences.Democracy
should be able to sustain debate and differences without people
resorting to smear tactics and hate campaigns, and so it is
essential that the political leadership show the way to a more
conciliatory dispensation, and we believe new President Pohamba has
the ability to guide this process to a full-fledged democracy.On
Monday the nation will bid farewell to President Nujoma.He was
indeed the founding father of the nation and his incumbency took us
to a certain point in our history.Like any other head of state, he
had his assets and his liabilities.But now we need to move on in a
more progressive direction.The goals that have been achieved in
this time need to be built on and the shortcomings addressed by
incoming President Pohamba.We take this opportunity to wish
President Nujoma well in his retirement years; and to welcome
President Pohamba as Namibia's new head of state.He has a
formidable task ahead of him, as outlined earlier, and we are sure
the majority of this country will work with him to take Namibia to
greater heights.