EDITORIAL: N$3 000 old-age pension is dangerous rhetoric
Vice-president Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has pledged to fulfil late president Hage Geingob’s controversial promise of increasing the monthly old-age grant to N$3 000 if elected to State House in November.
This is despite finance minister Ipumbu Shiimi saying in April that it would cost at least N$15 billion to implement Geingob’s promise. N$15 billion is 15% of the N$100 billion national budget that Shiimi tabled this year.
Shiimi, who increased the grant by N$200 this year to N$1 600, is a practical man. Driving his point home, he said: “If we are going to increase to N$3 000, that means we need close to N$15 billion that we have to find, so where will that money come from? That is almost equivalent to the ministry of education’s budget. It means we have to close all the schools – no child can go to school any more because this money has to come from somewhere.”
Closing schools, even metaphorically, is a scary scenario to contemplate. But it’s a real possibility if we go the populist route to appease the voting masses. While senior citizens deserve our tender love and care, we cannot rob Peter to pay Paul.
If there is a constituency that political leaders must appease in their campaigns this year, it’s young people. Not only are they the majority voters that politicians can ill afford to further disenfranchise, but they are also the most socially neglected.
Instead of these extravagant promises, how about sharing a plan on how to absorb 8 000 young graduate teachers who are selling boiled eggs to make ends meet?
This is despite finance minister Ipumbu Shiimi saying in April that it would cost at least N$15 billion to implement Geingob’s promise. N$15 billion is 15% of the N$100 billion national budget that Shiimi tabled this year.
Shiimi, who increased the grant by N$200 this year to N$1 600, is a practical man. Driving his point home, he said: “If we are going to increase to N$3 000, that means we need close to N$15 billion that we have to find, so where will that money come from? That is almost equivalent to the ministry of education’s budget. It means we have to close all the schools – no child can go to school any more because this money has to come from somewhere.”
Closing schools, even metaphorically, is a scary scenario to contemplate. But it’s a real possibility if we go the populist route to appease the voting masses. While senior citizens deserve our tender love and care, we cannot rob Peter to pay Paul.
If there is a constituency that political leaders must appease in their campaigns this year, it’s young people. Not only are they the majority voters that politicians can ill afford to further disenfranchise, but they are also the most socially neglected.
Instead of these extravagant promises, how about sharing a plan on how to absorb 8 000 young graduate teachers who are selling boiled eggs to make ends meet?
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