Political perspective

GUESS what? I think we’re not serious at all about fighting corruption in Namibia, and this time around, I challenge the politicians to prove me wrong. Why do I say this? Because time and again people in high office abuse public funds and their only ‘punishment’ is to be put on paid suspension.

And also because we create monolithic institutions to give the impression that we’re tackling this issue, and they are themselves as incapacitated as the organisations and top officials they should be investigating! THE latest case in a litany of them, is that of revelations of alleged wrongdoing on the part of the NBC’s Director General, Gerry Munyama. And what do we see on NBC-TV? The impeccably dressed Munyama (why does this saga remind me so strongly, and in more ways than one, of the Kandara case?) getting into his latest-model luxury car with sunroof, after fond farewells by weeping NBC staffers (forgive them for they know not what they do!), going off on what amounts to a paid holiday.Poor fellow, you might say, he had to eke out a living on a paltry N$90 000 a month, and it simply wasn’t enough! Doesn’t it strike anyone as odd that we keep jawing away on ‘innocent until proven guilty’ but mainly about the high-flyers? Man steals goat and he gets arrested for it, and can face up to 20 years in prison.Woman steals sandwich from a supermarket and gets a fine of hundreds of dollars more than she can afford.But the rich thieves get paid suspension.Justice? The term simply doesn’t even apply right now.The directors of Avid, of which the late Lazarus Kandara was one, should have been arrested, but never were.There are many other examples.The CEO of the Social Security Commission was allowed to resign and go quietly.Charges of fraud and forgery have now been laid against Munyama.But he’s on full salary and benefits, and there’s no jail for him! Man who steals goat is arrested and THEN investigated.Usually no money for bail, so he sits.With the higher-ups, if there’s an investigation at all, it takes months, if not years, while they’re on full pay and then fizzles out…The Munyama case really makes me mad.Why? Because it’s happened at an institution that has been crippled through decades of mismanagement (and not for lack of Government funding as some may allege!).They’ve had enough money to cut their coat according to their cloth, but no, they’re too obsessed with worrying about whether the packages for the chief executive/s are ‘market related’.And Munyama took the job knowing the state of near-collapse that the NBC has been in for years now.And if he did what he is alleged to have done, then he also did this (knowingly) at the time when the Avid-SSC saga was already unfolding, and at an institution (if you can call it that!) which is floundering at best! So I would recommend that there be no paid suspension for such a man.There is provision for this in the Labour Act, so do it.Why throw good money after bad, and presumably the Board Chairperson, Ponhele ya France, will earn the same salary and perks, and I doubt the NBC can afford the additional burden of a double CEO salary.And lest we forget, our beleaguered public broadcaster does fall under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, so there should be culpability there too.And let the Police do what they should be doing and make an arrest.Remember, take his shoelaces away and don’t make the exceptions they’ve made in the past and allow him to go home to fetch medication or other essentials.Those can be brought to him.And, for once, let justice be seen to be done.And on a brighter note, someone brought this wrongdoing to the fore, in the face of some resistance, I’m told.So full marks to that person.These are the people who should be getting medals!And what do we see on NBC-TV? The impeccably dressed Munyama (why does this saga remind me so strongly, and in more ways than one, of the Kandara case?) getting into his latest-model luxury car with sunroof, after fond farewells by weeping NBC staffers (forgive them for they know not what they do!), going off on what amounts to a paid holiday.Poor fellow, you might say, he had to eke out a living on a paltry N$90 000 a month, and it simply wasn’t enough! Doesn’t it strike anyone as odd that we keep jawing away on ‘innocent until proven guilty’ but mainly about the high-flyers? Man steals goat and he gets arrested for it, and can face up to 20 years in prison.Woman steals sandwich from a supermarket and gets a fine of hundreds of dollars more than she can afford.But the rich thieves get paid suspension.Justice? The term simply doesn’t even apply right now.The directors of Avid, of which the late Lazarus Kandara was one, should have been arrested, but never were.There are many other examples.The CEO of the Social Security Commission was allowed to resign and go quietly.Charges of fraud and forgery have now been laid against Munyama.But he’s on full salary and benefits, and there’s no jail for him! Man who steals goat is arrested and THEN investigated.Usually no money for bail, so he sits.With the higher-ups, if there’s an investigation at all, it takes months, if not years, while they’re on full pay and then fizzles out…The Munyama case really makes me mad.Why? Because it’s happened at an institution that has been crippled through decades of mismanagement (and not for lack of Government funding as some may allege!).They’ve had enough money to cut their coat according to their cloth, but no, they’re too obsessed with worrying about whether the packages for the chief executive/s are ‘market related’.And Munyama took the job knowing the state of near-collapse that the NBC has been in for years now.And if he did what he is alleged to have done, then he also did this (knowingly) at the time when the Avid-SSC saga was already unfolding, and at an institution (if you can call it that!) which is floundering at best! So I would recommend that there be no paid suspension for such a man.There is provision for this in the Labour Act, so do it.Why throw good money after bad, and presumably the Board Chairperson, Ponhele ya France, will earn the same salary and perks, and I doubt the NBC can afford the additional burden of a double CEO salary.And lest we forget, our beleaguered public broadcaster does fall under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, so there should be culpability there too.And let the Police do what they should be doing and make an arrest.Remember, take his shoelaces away and don’t make the exceptions they’ve made in the past and allow him to go home to fetch medication or other essentials.Those can be brought to him.And, for once, let justice be seen to be done.And on a brighter note, someone brought this wrongdoing to the fore, in the face of some resistance, I’m told.So full marks to that person.These are the people who should be getting medals!