THE greatest danger our country faces is the prevailing class divisions. A worrying and deeply authoritarian belief is taking root among some senior Swapo officials as well as their Black Economic Empowerment cronies which is poisoning the national atmosphere to such a degree that it could explode to devastating effect for many.
During a recent debate on the education budget in Parliament, Defence Minister Charles Namoloh complained about the fact that his young wife is discriminated against and cannot get a Government bursary.
His remarks drew great laughter from fellow MPs, but left me wondering where we are headed to as a nation.
Minister Namoloh is the same person who was in the news last year after his son Justus got a bursary from the Chinese government along with the President’s daughter, Ndapanda, Ernesto Ndeitunga, son of Namibian Police Inspector General Sebastian Ndeitunga, and Phillip Esau, son of Deputy Minister of Mines and Energy Bernhardt Esau, Minister of Justice Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana’s daughter, Pendukeni, and Nathanael Pashto Nghidinwa, son of Minister of Home Affairs Rosalia Nghidinwa, Lenna ya Kasita, Deputy Minister Henock ya Kasita’s daughter, and Naukalemo Nghimtina, Minister Erkki Nghimtina’s daughter.
With my last check on ministers’ salaries I was informed that they earn between N$51 000 and N$54 000 a month before other luxuries like allowances for their domestic workers (who, by the way, are mostly relatives) and other benefits are added.
A little more than a year ago Cabinet members received 24 per cent salary increases; they are about to get new and bigger cars, their benefits were improved, and many are forever on foreign trips to the extent they can live on generous S&Ts and don’t need to touch their salaries!
Now Minister Namoloh is grumbling about his wife who is not able to get a Government bursary.
I expected at least one free-spirited ‘cat’ in the Namibian political zoo to jump up and take him to task but politicians (even though they might be on the opposing side) remain politicians. Some opposition MPs might be quietly wishing for similar benefits and thus opt to conveniently ignore Namoloh’s spouting.
The Minister and his attitude is just the tip of the iceberg.
People like him get huge salaries, get the State to fund their lavish lifestyles, the education of their children is paid for, and then they tell ordinary poor Namibians to tighten their belts because of things like the global financial crisis.
Their consciences are evidently dead and buried, with small chance of resurrection.
At the time of writing this piece, proponents of the Basic Income Grant (BIG) were still mulling how to proceed with efforts to get Government to agree to an amount of N$100 a month for the poorest families in Namibia.
Those opposed to it, like President Pohamba, claim it will lead to a culture of ‘entitlement’.
Yet there is no talk of entitlement when people like Namoloh and even the President’s daughter are given free bursaries, or when the already rich, connected individuals are given free millions through Black Economic Empowerment, and without them having any responsibilities to create jobs, transfer skills or set up new factories.
Many voices of sanity have become lame ducks and fail to address these types of concerns while a small group of people are involved in get-rich-quick schemes masquerading as BEE deals.
As many know and agree, Namibia has one of highest degrees of income inequality in the world.
Theo-Ben Gurirab, former Prime Minister, addressing a Legal Assistance Centre workshop in March 2004 already said BEE is not about a self-enrichment crusade for a few black fat cats. He said money is good if you have it but we need to use it to help others!
However, it is scandalous that the minority – black or white – in this land of plenty is monopolising the country’s resources and wealth with many continuing to proclaim entitlement at the expense of the poor majority.
As Mihe Gaomab II put it five years ago when he addressed the issue of BEE and its relationship to the national economy: “We are rich but we are poor”.
For now the golden goose that is black economic empowerment has yet to reach and empower the people it was designed to help but the reality of our situation is that the haves who drive around in nice cars are shamelessly wasteful, greedy and utterly selfish.
Privileged ones like Namoloh need to realise that the struggling and poverty-stricken masses from Havana, Babylon, Okahandja Park, Ombili and other locations are not stupid.
They can see when their leaders try hard to meet their hopes and aspirations. They can also see when their leaders try to fool them.
* This column first appeared in The Namibian
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