Political Perspective
THERE are simply no consequences for mismanagement, waste and corruption. Which is why it is impossible to believe the President or any other high-ranking officials when they make promises to tackle this scourge.
They think words are enough. And they simply aren’t any more. Not only is there clearly a lack of political will to tackle the evil, but government also refuses to make the connection that corruption is a major cause of poverty. They pretend there is no link. And we simply have to see more immediate reaction from Government and agencies like the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) when the media does its job and reveals such transgressions.
THE revelation in the weekly Confidente newspaper this week, that two members of the Khomas Regional Council had flown to China on an unauthorised trip estimated to cost up to N$100 000, seen against a poignant story in The Namibian by Nampa reporter Charles Tjatindi about the state of children’s lives at the Donkerbos school in Omaheke, angered me beyond words. The school literally has nothing, and the children sleep like sardines in two separate corrugated iron dormitories with few basic amenities.
From the talk, talk, talk in the State of the Nation address (the President mentioning our “high levels of poverty” and the fact that “we must turn this situation around by addressing the underlying causes of unemployment, poverty and inequality in a comprehensive manner”), all is simply political bluster without meaning. Instead of immediately linking this increasingly dire state of affairs with the rampant theft in our country, he deals with them as two entirely separate ‘problems’. Only later in his speech did he talk about Namibia being “steadfast in our commitment to crush the menace of corruption in our society”. “The message to anyone who engages in corrupt activities ... should be loud and clear. Crime does not pay. The long arm of the law will catch up with you”. If only this were true. It is not even remotely the case.
The President also (again) talks about speeding up legislation to protect whistle-blowers. Most of us will be dead by the time this is done! I recall Ombudsman Bience Gawanas, in 1996, talking about how critical whistle-blower protection was and travelling the globe to look at what other countries were doing in this regard, yet nothing has happened nearly 20 years since then.
The President mentioned ‘accountability reports’. If he and his government meant it, they would have taken immediate action when unauthorised trips are taken, money is missing or mismanaged or S&Ts are abused. It happens all the time, and when did anyone last hear of action taken in this regard, or at the very least, the official in question made to pay back?
What does the minister of local and regional government and housing have to say about the latest folly of the Khomas chairperson and chief regional officer? There needs to be immediate public explanation of this trip, a breakdown of the expenses and accountability to the taxpayer, as well as steps to be taken. Not in weeks or months. Now. We cannot beat this scourge unless we are prepared to take strong action. No ‘suspension with full pay’ for years, as is so often the case. These are senior public figures who should know better, and if they did wrong, they must face the music.
I can only imagine what a difference N$100,000 would make to that pitifully under-resourced school in Donkerbos and to the lives of those children who have so little. For their sake, I call on Government to, for once and for all, show that it means business and will take action. I won’t, however, hold my breath that it will happen!