We do not trust Namcor – Swartbooi

Landless People’s Movement leader Bernadus Swartbooi has called for the establishment of an ethics and integrity council to safeguard Namibia’s natural resources from looting, saying he does not trust the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia.

Swartbooi was speaking on Thursday during a community meeting at Keetmanshoop where mines and energy minister Tom Alweendo was also present.

The purpose of the meeting was for the ministry to inform the community of an oil find by Shell, comprising 300 to 400 million barrels of light crude oil off-shore from Oranjemund in the //Kharas region.

It was also meant to craft a plan with the community to ensure the upcoming oil and gas industries are not a curse but a blessing, and the revenue accrued from the industries benefit all Namibians.

“Two of our ministers are currently in jail. Fishing companies that used to employ 200 to 300 people now only employ two or three people. The people paying the price are the households of ordinary locals because the quotas were cut and about 600 people lost jobs,” Swartbooi said.

“I would suggest that the ministry of mines and ministry of urban and rural development conduct a socio-economic study across the regions to identify where the greatest needs are because the recent poverty profiles indicate the San, inclusive of Nama, Damara and Herero are the poorest, followed by the Rukavango and then the people of [Zambezi],” he said.

“If you look at how our fish and diamond industries are managed, we do not trust your diamond, petroleum and environmental commissioners and all things Namcor. We are scared of them. Based on this scenario, we need a council,” said Swartbooi.

If the oil find turns out to be as lucrative as expected, the government needs to consider dropping individual income taxes from the current 35% to 25%, as the cost of living has increased drastically over the past three to four years, he said. Another measure the government can introduce is paying a direct cash benefit to every Namibian from the royalties to be earned from the oil and gas industries as a lump sum per year, he said.

Swartbooi added: “Look at the budget allocations of the //Kharas region. Keetmanshoop municipality receives N$9 000 for capital projects compared to the Oniipa Village Council that receives N$10 million, Tsumeb N$20 million. What does that tell you?”

He noted that should the central government sideline the people of the south and their development during the establishment of the new industries, it will have negative repercussions. “It could easily mean a military uprising or a call for complete separation of the Omaheke, Hardap and //Kharas regions from the rest of the country,” said Swartbooi.

Alweendo said it is disheartening to hear that southerners have no trust and confidence in the central government, including the commissioners of the mines and energy ministry, that benefits will reach them.

“Our commissioners have never been convicted of any crimes, therefore, it is disheartening to hear the lack of trust. But most of the times when war breaks out it is because people have failed to talk about issues.

“But I would say since we are saying we have four to five years to engineer this process together to avoid majority of revenue accrued ending up in the pockets of a few, let’s not start with a suspicious mindset and rather work together to build the industry together, our economy together and the well-being of the people,” said Alweendo.

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.