MPs Should Weigh Their Words

MEMBERS of Parliament tend to be silent when they should speak out, and then talk too much when they should not.

Most should really put more thought into their words before making bizarre suggestions and/or embarrassing themselves and the principles the Constitution holds dear. Many people and institutions have and are putting a lot of serious thought into how to combat the very high road death and injury toll in this country.This includes people from all sectors searching for solutions and ways forward, and this newspaper will do what it can to facilitate the process and give support to road safety campaigns.But when Swapo MP Jeremiah Nambinga suggested in Parliament this week that drivers of ‘luxury’ cars be permitted to travel at speeds up to 160 km/h, smaller cars and bakkies up to 120 km/h and buses and big trucks 80 km/h, he was not helping drive the discussion forward, and he had no statistics or backup for his statement.It may be so that the toll in human life is more excessive when minibuses carrying more passengers than sedan cars are involved in accidents, but that does not mean that fast and expensive vehicles are not frequently the cause of road carnage.It was hardly days after Nambinga spoke that Minister Jerry Ekandjo, driving a luxury Government Volvo, killed a seven-year-old boy on the Western bypass.Whether the Minister is culpable or not, is a matter for the Prosecutor General to decide after weighing the facts of the case, but there is no doubt that fast cars kill too, and they’re not always in the hands of the most responsible drivers! To advocate for a speed limit of 160 km/h therefore is not a positive suggestion.Later in the week in Parliament the same MP went on to say that young girls were often to blame for sexual relationships with teachers.Again, this is not a helpful contribution.Teachers should all commit to the fact that sex with school pupils is a clear taboo, and even if the girls themselves make the advances, adults need to show the way.Nambinga’s is certainly not the first or only case of an MP who makes him or herself look foolish.But if Parliamentarians decide to weigh their words and do their homework before speaking, this could hopefully be the last.Does The Namibian Public Not Count? REPORTERS were aghast yesterday when they discovered that the Budget speech of the Minister of Finance, as well as copies of the Budget itself, were not available to them and thereby the public.Inquiries with Parliamentary staff were met by the comment that they could ‘get the information from the Government website’ and worse still, the few copies that were available were strictly reserved for members of the diplomatic corps! A rush to access the Ministry of Finance website was fruitless: the Budget documents had not been posted yet.We would call on the Speaker of Parliament to immediately brief himself on this incident and ensure it does not happen again.The media are there to inform the public.While they would have taken notes during the Minister’s (brief) speech, there are nevertheless vital facts and statistics contained in the Budget which she did not mention and which the Namibian people need to be informed about, as they are most directly affected.Government has a direct responsibility to the people, and it is first and foremost the media who inform them.To treat media practitioners in such a disgraceful fashion is unacceptable, and Parliamentary staff must be instructed to make such documentation available to the media without delay.Many people and institutions have and are putting a lot of serious thought into how to combat the very high road death and injury toll in this country.This includes people from all sectors searching for solutions and ways forward, and this newspaper will do what it can to facilitate the process and give support to road safety campaigns.But when Swapo MP Jeremiah Nambinga suggested in Parliament this week that drivers of ‘luxury’ cars be permitted to travel at speeds up to 160 km/h, smaller cars and bakkies up to 120 km/h and buses and big trucks 80 km/h, he was not helping drive the discussion forward, and he had no statistics or backup for his statement.It may be so that the toll in human life is more excessive when minibuses carrying more passengers than sedan cars are involved in accidents, but that does not mean that fast and expensive vehicles are not frequently the cause of road carnage.It was hardly days after Nambinga spoke that Minister Jerry Ekandjo, driving a luxury Government Volvo, killed a seven-year-old boy on the Western bypass.Whether the Minister is culpable or not, is a matter for the Prosecutor General to decide after weighing the facts of the case, but there is no doubt that fast cars kill too, and they’re not always in the hands of the most responsible drivers! To advocate for a speed limit of 160 km/h therefore is not a positive suggestion.Later in the week in Parliament the same MP went on to say that young girls were often to blame for sexual relationships with teachers.Again, this is not a helpful contribution.Teachers should all commit to the fact that sex with school pupils is a clear taboo, and even if the girls themselves make the advances, adults need to show the way.Nambinga’s is certainly not the first or only case of an MP who makes him or herself look foolish.But if Parliamentarians decide to weigh their words and do their homework before speaking, this could hopefully be the last.Does The Namibian Public Not Count? REPORTERS were aghast yesterday when they discovered that the Budget speech of the Minister of Finance, as well as copies of the Budget itself, were not available to them and thereby the public.Inquiries with Parliamentary staff were met by the comment that they could ‘get the information from the Government website’ and worse still, the few copies that were available were strictly reserved for members of the diplomatic corps! A rush to access the Ministry of Finance website was fruitless: the Budget documents had not been posted yet.We would call on the Speaker of Parliament to immediately brief himself on this incident and ensure it does not happen again.The media are there to inform the public.While they would have taken notes during the Minister’s (brief) speech, there are nevertheless vital facts and statistics contained in the Budget which she did not mention and which the Namibian people need to be informed about, as they are most directly affected.Government has a direct responsibility to the people, and it is first and foremost the media who inform them.To treat media practitioners in such a disgraceful fashion is unacceptable, and Parliamentary staff must be instructed to make such documentation available to the media without delay.