Whither our Beloved Country Nghidipo Nangolo Thursday, July 3, 2014 - 09:30 Off the Desk Our country is said to be flourishing and business is booming, at least on the surface of things. As numerous social teething troubles continue unabated, there’s seems to be no obvious endeavour to find amicable and lasting solutions. It is equally true that not all problems can be solved immediately, but it is confusing when there is not even an iota of an attempt to decipher the complications. Government had thrown N$15 billion towards unemployment three years ago, but the problem lingers on, and to nip in the bud rampant abject poverty no-one is talking about the next concrete steps staring the masses in the face. In the wake of the mass housing initiative and its recent problems, the future looks blurry to ascertain whether there will ever be affordable housing, with escalating prices continuing unabatedly, even for blue-collar workers. Namibia’s socio-economic headaches can be attri-buted to a lack of innovation to fulfill the right of every citizen to decent housing. Today, water, electricity and fuel have turned out to be an expensive affair, to the extent that responsible agencies do not discuss ways of lessening the burden on the consumer, but rather focus on ways of passing on the charges to the most deprived, in the name of ‘cost-recovery’. The problems of the ‘struggle kids’ have come and gone for the last decade and yet still linger on, despite preferential job placements, bursaries to study and grants to start small businesses. The land issue has been on the table since 1992 and has been complicated by the greed of the very same people who were supposed to oversee a smooth land-reform programme. The problems have worsened, since high-ranking officials have exhausted the affirmative-action loans meant for the disadvantaged groups to acquire commercial farms. The top brass have started unashamedly raiding communal land, where thousands of families living with their animals have been indirectly denied access to water points, grazing and wild fruits. There is no doubt that the country needs foreign investment. However, some pretentious investors are proposing projects not accepted anywhere else in the world, while others are in it for a quick buck. Our foreign policy has completely collapsed, since it is still largely guided by the defunct Cold War mindset. There is so much emphasis on solidarity with certain countries that will add no value to the economic development of our country, or mutual benefit for the people of Namibia and the citizens of those countries. Behind the facade of peace and tranquility lurks complacency, a lack of accountability and sheer contempt for the poor. The leaders of the Land of the Brave seem to have no remedy for the social ills affecting its people, but there is money and time to silence divergent views, sanction senseless international trips and tolerate endemic corruption and crime. This has given rise to a widespread sense of hopelessness and despair, and a visible contempt for authority. In a time when the disheartened have no hope, it should be clear that another future cannot be promised, but hopeful transformation will be recognised through action at all levels of society by the new dispensation taking over next year.
Posted on: Sat, 05 Jul 2014 08:00:00 +0000
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