The President and Swapo Should Listen

LET ME first congratulate president Hage Geingob for his victory as our head of state following the recent elections and the Supreme Court judgement. I have a concern to share with our president, the leadership of Swapo, as well as the entire public.

Namibia is going through a difficult time whereby many people appear to be unhappy and frustrated. The good thing about Namibians is that they can express their feelings and views through newspapers and other different platforms of social media. That way one is able to detect the problem.

I would like, therefore, to make a humble request to the president of the Republic of Namibia and the entire Swapo leadership to listen keenly, kindly and attentively to the public’s complaints and pleas because I think this is just the right time to hear from them.

Let the Swapo leadership sincerely and honestly become aware of their strengths and limitations. And if the public is pointing this out to them through social media and other means of communication, it should not be ignored. Whether such views or critique come in the form of advice, correction, suggestions, criticisms or complaints, let it be prudently perused and fairly judged and if necessary, be acted upon.

There will be destructive criticism but there might be some positive and constructive ones too. This can give the leadership a clue on the feelings of the people and how they can act on those issues expressed. Such views come from the people who are more exposed to the reality on the ground. And these are the people who voted them into office.

Namibians are not really a complaining nation, but whenever they start to complain, then you know something somewhere is wrong. I feel that if the ruling party has been listening to the people, Namibia would not be where it is today.

All in all, people are suffering because of the state of abject poverty, unemployment and corruption in this country.

In the light of all these I would like to make a humble request to the president, especially in the next five years of his second term, and the entire Swapo leadership to kindly look at such challenges and problems that are currently haunting the nation and find solutions.

Mr President, unemployment among the Namibian youth is a serious problem that requires your urgent attention. When you have 46% of the youth without employment it is a loss to the country. Equally, it is a serious loss in their lives because they are growing old without benefiting from the cake of their beloved independent country. The youth are seriously suffering.

They have the courage and strength to work (that is why you see some selling in the streets, guarding cars, etc) but they are almost suffocating under the current situation. If this situation is not urgently addressed, it will continue to contribute to more crime, gender based violence, prostitution and even to the spread of HIV-AIDS.

The president assured the nation several times after the election that: “I have heard you”. Now the nation expects something concrete in your second term. Action speaks launder than words.

Let the government, from this year onwards, walk the talk in fighting poverty, unemployment and corruption for the benefit of the whole nation so that no one will be left out and your legacy, Mr President, will continue to be upheld.

Father Wilhelm Eita

St Charles Lwanga Major Seminary, Windhoek

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.