WHILE it has not been publicly announced, we reliably understand that President Hifikepunye Pohamba has in fact commenced his second term of office as the country’s head of state on a proactive note.
This newspaper has in the past expressed concern about talk and no action and has urged the President to hold his people accountable.It appears that this is exactly what President Pohamba has done, and we commend him for this, although it would be good for the Namibian public to be informed as to precisely what the Head of State expects from his Ministers.President Pohamba apparently, along with the appointment letters for his new Cabinet, has also set them terms of reference. Not much is known about the content at this stage, but it is very encouraging to hear that he has given goals and targets, and that he will be following up on progress made at regular intervals.We would actively encourage the President in this endeavour. It is heartening to learn that he is also aware that accountability has been a problem in the past, and that despite non-delivery, people have continued in these high-ranking posts for years on end. His new initiative hopefully means an end to the fact that non-performers were never taken to task in the past.We would encourage him to not only give targets to the Ministers, but also to highlight this fact in public so the people are aware that something is being done. It would, in addition, be informative to the public to hear about which Ministers have been given what set of goals. It is, after all, squarely in the public interest for him to do so.It is also understood that the President’s ‘new regime’ will also affect the Permanent Secretaries in a probable future reshuffle. Already they have been asked to provide the Prime Minister with copies of their curriculum vitae, and it is understood that the President is going to ensure future Permanent Secretaries are at least knowledgeable about the business of the Ministries for which they are principal accounting officers. This too, if true, can only benefit the public service and good governance.We are therefore encouraged by what we hear, and we hope that President Pohamba will not stop there. That it is not just a case of a sudden rush of blood to the head, and that the President will continue to keep his Cabinet members on their toes by checking up and holding them to targets set. Ditto the issue of the Permanent Secretaries.And if we could have our way, we would encourage him to go further still: among others, to definitely rein in senior Ministers and Government officials, many of whom are on an incessant continuum of trips abroad on sometimes unimportant missions. In this light also, to keep a tight check on the declaration of interests of his Cabinet and Members of Parliament, and to ensure that they are properly and thoroughly interrogated.And while commending President Pohamba for a new start, about which we are eager to learn more, we would at the same time give credit to the National Assembly for an increasingly media-friendly approach. This is with regard to a new initiative to put out the speeches of MPs and various other pieces of information to the press. It is helpful and it also shows that work is being done in the secretariat of Parliament to keep the public more thoroughly informed. We appreciate their efforts and encourage them to continue.While this newspaper will not hesitate to criticize things which are wrong when it comes to our Government, because we believe that accountability is vitally important in our democracy, at the same time we need to acknowledge when good work is done. The President’s new initiative is just a start, but we nevertheless think it is a good one, and encourage him to remain firm in his endeavour to hold high the flag of accountable Government especially when it comes to a concrete plan of action and tangible targets given to Ministries to improve on their performance and service delivery in the future.
