Political Perspective

GOOD to hear that parastatal board members will in future be held accountable for investment decisions once an amendment to the Act governing State-owned enterprises becomes law, but it may be too little and too late, given the millions that have already gone missing! But better late than never, one supposes, although I’d believed that directors were all aware of the fiduciary responsibilities, or should have been, amendment or no amendment! That is, after all, why they are paid usually handsome amounts for such positions of responsibility.

I DON’T at this point know though what will staunch the flow of monies into the pockets of the corrupt and greedy. We’ve talked ad nauseum about corruption in this country, and we’ve finally got an Anti Corruption Commission in place, but it now appears as if this fact has lulled us into complacency.So it appears we’ve given up the fight.Any detected wrongdoing is immediately reported to the ACC, and then is conveniently forgotten.The ACC probably won’t ever have the resources or personnel to investigate all acts of corruption in this country, but it seems we’re content that this is the way to continue.No one really seems deterred by the ACC, and I doubt that research would show graft has diminished since they started their work.We have to do more, and it has to be systemic and endemic to work.We can’t just use the fact of the existence of the ACC to show that we are serious about corruption.In fact we know we’re not.And corruption, coupled with the lack of a serious work ethic and a general feeling of entitlement, is simply going to take us from bad to worse.The amendment to the State Owned Enterprises Act, tabled by Prime Minister Nahas Angula in the National Assembly, is a case in point.It should have been done long ago, and this should in no way absolve those who have been responsible to date for the missing millions in multiple figures.Right now the middle and lower classes are seriously feeling the pinch of fuel and price hikes across the board.This is a time when we should be doing what we can to help them make it through, and the VAT exemptions on a few items aren’t going to go very far if the status quo continues to deteriorate as it does at present.But we will probably argue we don’t have the resources.Why we don’t of course, is the leading question.It does not take much time to figure out that the rape and pillage of our economy through graft and mismanagement may be one of the foremost reasons.We should rather focus on why, we as a nation, steal so much and why we don’t want to work hard for our money to build ourselves and a better future, and why we feel we owe ourselves the best in life even if we have to connive to do it.I’ve said before and I say again, it has to do with the very fabric of our society.The answer to the rot, unfortunately, does not lie in the creation of institutions to contain it, such as the ACC and others, but in our hearts and minds as a nation.And we go on about zero tolerance, but many of those uttering these slogans are themselves deeply embroiled in illegal activities in one way or another.Few get to face the full wrath of the law.Of all the manifold types of corruption and graft and abuse of public funds, so few people comparatively are held accountable, and so little becomes known to the general public.Our ethics as a nation have been so badly compromised that its hard to see how we can mend the fabric of our society which has become so intermeshed with graft at all levels.We don’t know wrong from right anymore and there is no upstanding leadership to show us the way.If our political elite, who along with many in this country, fought not only the fight to topple apartheid, but also for a just, honest, equal society, have forgotten these ideals, what can be done to restore them? Who do we have to look up to? Who will show the way from darkness into light? Where is the courage, the principles, we had in the past, but seem to have lost along the way? We could have started with taking a stand on an African tragedy unfolding in Zimbabwe, for example, but we failed.Our political leadership in both executive and legislature have let down the people of this country who stood for a better life, both in Namibia and on the rest of the continent.We are wallowing in the material mire, and we seem to care nothing for ideals and causes anymore.What a travesty for our nation.We’ve talked ad nauseum about corruption in this country, and we’ve finally got an Anti Corruption Commission in place, but it now appears as if this fact has lulled us into complacency.So it appears we’ve given up the fight.Any detected wrongdoing is immediately reported to the ACC, and then is conveniently forgotten.The ACC probably won’t ever have the resources or personnel to investigate all acts of corruption in this country, but it seems we’re content that this is the way to continue.No one really seems deterred by the ACC, and I doubt that research would show graft has diminished since they started their work.We have to do more, and it has to be systemic and endemic to work.We can’t just use the fact of the existence of the ACC to show that we are serious about corruption.In fact we know we’re not.And corruption, coupled with the lack of a serious work ethic and a general feeling of entitlement, is simply going to take us from bad to worse.The amendment to the State Owned Enterprises Act, tabled by Prime Minister Nahas Angula in the National Assembly, is a case in point.It should have been done long ago, and this should in no way absolve those who have been responsible to date for the missing millions in multiple figures.Right now the middle and lower classes are seriously feeling the pinch of fuel and price hikes across the board.This is a time when we should be doing what we can to help them make it through, and the VAT exemptions on a few items aren’t going to go very far if the status quo continues to deteriorate as it does at present.But we will probably argue we don’t have the resources.Why we don’t of course, is the leading question.It does not take much time to figure out that the rape and pillage of our economy through graft and mismanagement may be one of the foremost reasons.We should rather focus on why, we as a nation, steal so much and why we don’t want to work hard for our money to build ourselves and a better future, and why we feel we owe ourselves the best in life even if we have to connive to do it.I’ve said before and I say again, it has to do with the very fabric of our society.The answer to the rot, unfortunately, does not lie in the creation of institutions to contain it, such as the ACC and others, but in our hearts and minds as a nation.And we go on about zero tolerance, but many of those uttering these slogans are themselves deeply embroiled in illegal activities in one way or another.Few get to face the full wrath of the law.Of all the manifold types of corruption and graft and abuse of public funds, so few people comparatively are held accountable, and so little becomes known to the general public.Our ethics as a nation have been so badly compromised that its hard to see how we can mend the fabric of our society which has become so intermeshed with graft at all levels.We don’t know wrong from right anymore and there is no upstanding leadership to show us the way.If our political elite, who along with many in this country, fought not only the fight to topple apartheid, but also for a just, honest, equal society, have forgotten these ideals, what can be done to restore them? Who do we have to look up to? Who will show the way from darkness into light? Where is the courage, the principles, we had in the past, but seem to have lost along the way? We could have started with taking a stand on an African tragedy unfolding in Zimbabwe, for example, but we failed.Our political leadership in both executive and legislature have let down the people of this country who stood for a better life, both in Namibia and on the rest of the continent.We are wallowing in the material mire, and we seem to care nothing for ideals and causes anymore.What a travesty for our nation.