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Want some insight in Namibian politics? I am no expert but have 16 years (1995-2011) of writing on Namibian politics in The Namibian newspaper and can probably offer you a bit more than you know about the who's who in the Namibian political zoo. You will also find a few articles commenting on other issues of concern in the country. Hope you find it interesting. - Christof

Friday, June 3, 2011

Flood Aid: Forgetting Why We Give

THE flood disaster which took over 60 lives and left thousands homeless in the North this year is being turned into a for-profit venture.

Daily our newsdesk is harassed by those who are supposedly making donations to the flood victims. They insist that we should use our front page to proclaim how compassionate their companies are towards the needy masses. But in many instances they get more out of the free publicity in newspapers and television than they actually give to the flood victims.
That is not all. As floods seem to be hitting the North with scary regularity, I wonder about the coordination of donations, whether all such donations actually reach the people and how much is spent on the administration part (such as the salaries) of those who raise the funds.
That is not to say that there are some real Samaritans out there. Not all who donate do it to get something out of it for themselves.
Since the beginning of the year we have been exposed to strong visual images in newspapers as well as on the television. There was a picture of a family being transported in a boat as they moved to a cemetery to bury their relative; another of some school pupils and a policeman who drowned after a boat in which they were travelling capsized. There were others, each as traumatic as the last.
In central Namibia as well as the southern parts of the country, the situation was not as bad as the North but still several lives were lost through drownings.
I also remember the Karasburg/Ariamsvlei road which was washed away almost overnight leaving trucks stuck on either side of the Namibia/South Africa border and some restaurants who could not serve spare ribs for a couple of days!
This week Cabinet announced that it has allocated N$35 million to repair roads damaged by floods and that up to N$500 million will be needed for the total restoration of the permanent road network in Namibia.
It is thus clear that the floods have washed away the surface of society and the settled way things have been done in the past!
But each year the floods also keep on exposing the injustices and patterns of how corrupt our society has become. It is striking how many individuals and companies just want to cash in on the inequalities facing the poor.
The thousands of people forced to abandon their homes to floodwaters are becoming victims not just of nature but of human selfishness as well.
Their troubles stem from the fact that some municipalities, especially those in the North, mismanaged or blundered in how the people were located in low-lying areas. Settling people in low lying areas or building houses there has made the damage worse than it might otherwise have been.
While it is a good thing that individuals and companies come forward to assist those in need, let us avoid that the rot setting in on how we deal with the flood victims' plight. Let us not try to cash in on the tragedy.
This we can do through more coordinated efforts. Not every Adam and Eve needs to come up with a fund, for instance. And someone needs to account for how the money is spent, which families it is given to on a properly-managed basis and arrangements made for monies that are left over once people have been assisted.
As for the future, let's us ensure that when and if this happens again, we are better prepared to withstand, or at least minimise, the negative effects of flooding.
We should learn from our mistakes.

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