Political Perspective

SMALL wonder Namibia still has a problem with the former combatants, returned exiles, war orphans and the unemployed in general, to name but a few of the presently disadvantaged groups.

The resettlement policy as applied by Government is totally out of keeping with any reality because ‘advantaged’ Namibians are clearly benefiting from it. Ultimately this must also, and probably is already, negatively impacting on our economy because a mishmash of ‘advantaged’ owners are not going to farm commercially, but instead use their farms as weekend retreats for leisure purposes.”THERE’s no money,” Veterans’ Affairs Minister Ngarikutuke Tjiriange told the protestors who have been camping outside his Ministry’s headquarters for several days.Why should they believe him when they look around and see the waste incurred through corruption and mismanagement of our precious resources? I’m not going to go into the merits or demerits of the demonstrators’ demands, because I’ve been there before, but the point is more why the truly disadvantaged are forced to remain in a state of perpetual deprivation when the already prosperous continue to benefit simply because being black is the key to receiving handouts, no matter your status in life.The recent revelation (and he is by no means the only one) of former Deputy Inspector General of Police Fritz Nghiishililwa, for example, being a resettlement beneficiary is unacceptable in my opinion.There are many others like him, some of them top earners in Government and elsewhere, and if they continue to benefit at the expense of the really poor, then our leadership is discriminating against the people, just as the apartheid regime did before.Government simply has to change its definition of ‘disadvantaged’.They cannot simply say that everyone with a black skin is eligible for benefits, such as resettlement.It is blatantly unfair to place a senior Government official in the same category as an unemployed peasant or former combatant for that matter! If anything, the list of ‘previously disadvantaged’ should have been carefully drawn up and scrutinised, and people helped on the basis of those most needy first.Government is therefore to blame for the current situation of former fighters, orphans and others who feel a sense of entitlement as they see some of the already privileged reap benefit after benefit, and protest that they’ve been ignored.Had Government somehow prioritised and made resettlement a pro-poor exercise, then I doubt we would have had this crisis situation on our hands right now, as more genuinely needy people would have been helped than is currently the case.As things stand now, people who feel they’ve been overlooked for any kind of Government assistance don’t believe the ‘there’s no money’ excuse proffered by Tjiriange.And they’d be right in their scepticism.The waste of resources on non-essentials at many levels continues unabated.Point is: there’s money for some things, but not for others.Face it too: the current Government is not pro-poor in fact, even though they pay lip service to this lofty goal.If our money was well spent, and everyone knew it, people would be less inclined to make demands.If President Hifikepunye Pohamba can afford the magnanimous gesture of giving 75 000 civil servants a paid half-day off, at the taxpayers’ expense, then it is a blatant insult to those who have no jobs at all and a ‘gift’ to those who have something.He is rewarding the haves at the expense of the have-nots, and then allows his Ministers to tell the underprivileged that ‘there is no money’.We cannot practise double standards and then complain when they come back to haunt us! Neither can we live, in all conscience, with a broad definition like ‘all black people are disadvantaged’.It is simply untrue.And we cannot continue to apply this kind of discrimination.I would urge Government to re-visit this as a matter of priority and change things before one or other group does something that will throw the country into turmoil.We need a Government that scrutinises its expenditures and does away with wastage where it (so often) occurs.Look at all the foreign trips for workshops and conferences and other less than essential gatherings, where travel, S&Ts and huge amounts are expended.Put a moratorium on all but the most crucial and ensure the money is better spent.This is just an example of what we can do.Imagine the positive reaction of our people, and the international community too no doubt, if a country like Namibia says: “We want to put things right at home.We want to help the poor.We will suspend foreign trips until we’ve made a difference.”Additionally, we could make the corrupt pay, instead of protecting the privileged as we tend to do, even when they commit financial misdemeanours.The list is endless.I believe we can and must do more to give jobs and capacity to the impoverished if we only but put serious effort into doing so.Ultimately this must also, and probably is already, negatively impacting on our economy because a mishmash of ‘advantaged’ owners are not going to farm commercially, but instead use their farms as weekend retreats for leisure purposes.”THERE’s no money,” Veterans’ Affairs Minister Ngarikutuke Tjiriange told the protestors who have been camping outside his Ministry’s headquarters for several days.Why should they believe him when they look around and see the waste incurred through corruption and mismanagement of our precious resources? I’m not going to go into the merits or demerits of the demonstrators’ demands, because I’ve been there before, but the point is more why the truly disadvantaged are forced to remain in a state of perpetual deprivation when the already prosperous continue to benefit simply because being black is the key to receiving handouts, no matter your status in life.The recent revelation (and he is by no means the only one) of former Deputy Inspector General of Police Fritz Nghiishililwa, for example, being a resettlement beneficiary is unacceptable in my opinion.There are many others like him, some of them top earners in Government and elsewhere, and if they continue to benefit at the expense of the really poor, then our leadership is discriminating against the people, just as the apartheid regime did before.Government simply has to change its definition of ‘disadvantaged’.They cannot simply say that everyone with a black skin is eligible for benefits, such as resettlement.It is blatantly unfair to place a senior Government official in the same category as an unemployed peasant or former combatant for that matter! If anything, the list of ‘previously disadvantaged’ should have been carefully drawn up and scrutinised, and people helped on the basis of those most needy first.Government is therefore to blame for the current situation of former fighters, orphans and others who feel a sense of entitlement as they see some of the already privileged reap benefit after benefit, and protest that they’ve been ignored.Had Government somehow prioritised and made resettlement a pro-poor exercise, then I doubt we would have had this crisis situation on our hands right now, as more genuinely needy people would have been helped than is currently the case.As things stand now, people who feel they’ve been overlooked for any kind of Government assistance don’t believe the ‘there’s no money’ excuse proffered by Tjiriange.And they’d be right in their scepticism.The waste of resources on non-essentials at many levels continues unabated.Point is: there’s money for some things, but not for others.Face it too: the current Government is not pro-poor in fact, even though they pay lip service to this lofty goal.If our money was well spent, and everyone knew it, people would be less inclined to make demands.If President Hifikepunye Pohamba can afford the magnanimous gesture of giving 75 000 civil servants a paid half-day off, at the taxpayers’ expense, then it is a blatant insult to those who have no jobs at all and a ‘gift’ to those who have something.He is rewarding the haves at the expense of the have-nots, and then allows his Ministers to tell the underprivileged that ‘there is no money’.We cannot practise double standards and then complain when they come back to haunt us! Neither can we live, in all conscience, with a broad definition like ‘all black people are disadvantaged’.It is simply untrue.And we cannot continue to apply this kind of discrimination.I would urge Government to re-visit this as a matter of priority and change things before one or other group does something that will throw the country into turmoil.We need a Government that scrutinises its expenditures and does away with wastage where it (so often) occurs.Look at all the foreign trips for workshops and conferences and other less than essential gatherings, where travel, S&Ts and huge amounts are expended.Put a moratorium on all but the most crucial and ensure the money is better spent.This is just an example of what we can do.Imagine the positive reaction of our people, and the international community too no doubt, if a country like Namibia says: “We want to put things right at home.We want to help the poor.We will suspend foreign trips until we’ve made a difference.”Additionally, we could make the corrupt pay, instead of protecting the privileged as we tend to do, even when they commit financial misdemeanours.The list is endless.I believe we can and must do more to give jobs and capacity to the impoverished if we only but put serious effort into doing so.