Presidency clarifies stance on ghettos and colonialism
In May 2017, President Hage Geingob, on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, warned that the press should not become a lapdog and should remain a watchdog for the fourth estate.
The president has frequently said that irrespective of the lies, the untruths, and the bias by omission, for as long as he remained president of the Republic, freedom of the press would be guaranteed and no journalist would be made a martyr.
Even if some in the press do not play their part in nation-building, the press has an important role to play in creating a peaceful, informed and prosperous Namibia.
They would fail if they took on the role of lapdogs, which they often do, inciting Namibians and seeking to create a wedge between the sovereigns and those elected by the sovereigns, of whom the president is the primus inter pares.
Certain English dailies have been in campaign mode, intentionally publishing misleading articles that cite bits from statements made by the president on various platforms.
Two issues – the effects of colonialism and informal settlements – have enjoyed press headlines with the clear objective of creating a certain impression about the president allegedly blaming colonialism for the challenges facing the nation.
Regrettably, certain newspapers frame these issues lightly and unreflectively in terms of their impact on public policy and the transformation agenda President Geingob has been pursuing since 2015.
In light of the fact that these issues are framed sensationally, with the clear intention to harm and misinform the Namibian public, the presidency finds it necessary to provide clarity.
There are facts that cannot be contested or erased.
Brutal occupations
In 1886, following the Berlin Conference, our territory was annexed as a colony of Imperial Germany.
It is safe to assume that some reporters don’t know that among all the colonies, German colonialism in Namibia was the most brutal, and its impacts on livelihoods was atrocious, with the first genocide of the 21st century and similar massacres committed against Namibians.
Many were displaced from their land, robbed, enslaved, raped and chased into arid lands with limited potential for subsistence farming.
Following the brutality of Imperial Germany, the territory of South West Africa was placed under the South African regime in 1915, which unleashed another chapter of violence through the policy of apartheid, deepening inequalities and creating ethnic Bantustans through the ghastly Odendaal Commission of 1964, of which the perverse effects of ownership are visible today.
No editorials or headlines are dedicated to these perversities of the past and how they undermine nation-building.
There is no headline when a German family sells tracts of stolen land in Windhoek for N$300 million.
Regrettably, the dehumanising effects of apartheid and separate development are still evident in such transactions.
Yet, blacks have been signed up as apologists and afro-pessimists, made to behave as if Namibia didn’t experience a long and brutal occupation in the form of colonialism.
When we consider the fact that our territory was barbarically colonised in 1886 and only became independent in 1990, we arrive at over a century of colonial domination of the black majority by racists who had no regard for the lives of the black majority.
The black majority went through 104 years of racial inequality.
Historic inequality
Economists have strenuously traced the history of inequality to patterns of property ownership dating back centuries.
Yet, The Namibian and Namibian Sun report spuriously and falsely that explaining inequality and poverty within the context of a century of colonialism is "blaming colonialism" for our ills.
In fact, the president, with the experience and education that he brings to the table, is not in a position to frame a problem in such simplistic terms.
Yes, our housing challenges and our spatial and economic inequalities are structural. They are a consequence of beasts with names: 104 years of brutal German imperialism and apartheid occupation.
Since white people have perpetrated the inequalities, certain newspapers have taken the decision never to call out inequalities by their right name – racial inequalities.
President Geingob has spoken candidly about the challenges facing Namibians after 32 years of independence.
The president has also been candid about the fact that Namibia today is different from the underdeveloped and racially segregated country we inherited as a black majority in 1990.
Under apartheid and German colonialism, Namibia was preserved and designed for a white minority to thrive through land ownership and access to resources and all the opportunities that lead to a decent life.
The black majority was subservient to this small, white, but brutal minority.
It is therefore logical and entirely honest for the president to say – yes, we have worked hard over the past 32 years to redress the wrongs of 104 years of brutal German and South African occupation."
However, we will not be able to redress those pervasive wrongs in 32 years. It is an honest assessment because to say the contrary would be a lie.
Key goals
The presidency has prioritised poverty eradication and housing provision since 2015, when the president declared that poverty eradication would be a key priority of the government.
Also, following the landmark Second Land Conference of 2018, President Geingob prioritised the upgrading of informal settlements by declaring that they constituted a humanitarian disaster.
Through a collaborative approach, the government is currently strengthening the environment for housing delivery.
The revised national housing policy and the implementation action plan provide a responsive framework to deliver affordable housing.
Through the urban and rural ministry, in conjunction with the Khomas regional council, National Housing Enterprise and the Windhoek municipality, a pilot project, the Informal Settlement Upgrading Pilot Project (ISUPP), aimed at constructing 1 200 incremental housing units over two years, is being implemented in two phases (600 houses in phase 1 and 600 houses in phase 2).
These are tangible steps in a long journey of housing provision and requires support from all stakeholders.
In light of the above, the president is well within his mandate to speak honestly to Namibians about challenges in the implementation of public policy when he says that people settling illegally are undermining efforts by government in housing provision.
It is correct to say that individuals should not settle on unserviced land, only to claim later that there is no sanitation and other amenities.
It is a call that should be supported by newspapers and all of us, especially in a country that emphasises processes, systems and institutions.
The presidency welcomes constructive and honest conversations from journalists about policy challenges and his role in resolving issues facing Namibians.
The president has never shied away from engaging Namibians honestly and dealing with their problems with urgency.
Unfortunately, but not unsurprisingly, certain newspapers feel no obligation to the truth and have abandoned the core principles of journalism by posing bias and opinions as news.
The credibility of news has been eroded because some journalists have replaced news for citizens with rumours and have reneged on the core tenets of journalism as a discipline of verification and truth telling.
Alfredo Tjiurimo Hengari is the presidential spokesperson.
The president has frequently said that irrespective of the lies, the untruths, and the bias by omission, for as long as he remained president of the Republic, freedom of the press would be guaranteed and no journalist would be made a martyr.
Even if some in the press do not play their part in nation-building, the press has an important role to play in creating a peaceful, informed and prosperous Namibia.
They would fail if they took on the role of lapdogs, which they often do, inciting Namibians and seeking to create a wedge between the sovereigns and those elected by the sovereigns, of whom the president is the primus inter pares.
Certain English dailies have been in campaign mode, intentionally publishing misleading articles that cite bits from statements made by the president on various platforms.
Two issues – the effects of colonialism and informal settlements – have enjoyed press headlines with the clear objective of creating a certain impression about the president allegedly blaming colonialism for the challenges facing the nation.
Regrettably, certain newspapers frame these issues lightly and unreflectively in terms of their impact on public policy and the transformation agenda President Geingob has been pursuing since 2015.
In light of the fact that these issues are framed sensationally, with the clear intention to harm and misinform the Namibian public, the presidency finds it necessary to provide clarity.
There are facts that cannot be contested or erased.
Brutal occupations
In 1886, following the Berlin Conference, our territory was annexed as a colony of Imperial Germany.
It is safe to assume that some reporters don’t know that among all the colonies, German colonialism in Namibia was the most brutal, and its impacts on livelihoods was atrocious, with the first genocide of the 21st century and similar massacres committed against Namibians.
Many were displaced from their land, robbed, enslaved, raped and chased into arid lands with limited potential for subsistence farming.
Following the brutality of Imperial Germany, the territory of South West Africa was placed under the South African regime in 1915, which unleashed another chapter of violence through the policy of apartheid, deepening inequalities and creating ethnic Bantustans through the ghastly Odendaal Commission of 1964, of which the perverse effects of ownership are visible today.
No editorials or headlines are dedicated to these perversities of the past and how they undermine nation-building.
There is no headline when a German family sells tracts of stolen land in Windhoek for N$300 million.
Regrettably, the dehumanising effects of apartheid and separate development are still evident in such transactions.
Yet, blacks have been signed up as apologists and afro-pessimists, made to behave as if Namibia didn’t experience a long and brutal occupation in the form of colonialism.
When we consider the fact that our territory was barbarically colonised in 1886 and only became independent in 1990, we arrive at over a century of colonial domination of the black majority by racists who had no regard for the lives of the black majority.
The black majority went through 104 years of racial inequality.
Historic inequality
Economists have strenuously traced the history of inequality to patterns of property ownership dating back centuries.
Yet, The Namibian and Namibian Sun report spuriously and falsely that explaining inequality and poverty within the context of a century of colonialism is "blaming colonialism" for our ills.
In fact, the president, with the experience and education that he brings to the table, is not in a position to frame a problem in such simplistic terms.
Yes, our housing challenges and our spatial and economic inequalities are structural. They are a consequence of beasts with names: 104 years of brutal German imperialism and apartheid occupation.
Since white people have perpetrated the inequalities, certain newspapers have taken the decision never to call out inequalities by their right name – racial inequalities.
President Geingob has spoken candidly about the challenges facing Namibians after 32 years of independence.
The president has also been candid about the fact that Namibia today is different from the underdeveloped and racially segregated country we inherited as a black majority in 1990.
Under apartheid and German colonialism, Namibia was preserved and designed for a white minority to thrive through land ownership and access to resources and all the opportunities that lead to a decent life.
The black majority was subservient to this small, white, but brutal minority.
It is therefore logical and entirely honest for the president to say – yes, we have worked hard over the past 32 years to redress the wrongs of 104 years of brutal German and South African occupation."
However, we will not be able to redress those pervasive wrongs in 32 years. It is an honest assessment because to say the contrary would be a lie.
Key goals
The presidency has prioritised poverty eradication and housing provision since 2015, when the president declared that poverty eradication would be a key priority of the government.
Also, following the landmark Second Land Conference of 2018, President Geingob prioritised the upgrading of informal settlements by declaring that they constituted a humanitarian disaster.
Through a collaborative approach, the government is currently strengthening the environment for housing delivery.
The revised national housing policy and the implementation action plan provide a responsive framework to deliver affordable housing.
Through the urban and rural ministry, in conjunction with the Khomas regional council, National Housing Enterprise and the Windhoek municipality, a pilot project, the Informal Settlement Upgrading Pilot Project (ISUPP), aimed at constructing 1 200 incremental housing units over two years, is being implemented in two phases (600 houses in phase 1 and 600 houses in phase 2).
These are tangible steps in a long journey of housing provision and requires support from all stakeholders.
In light of the above, the president is well within his mandate to speak honestly to Namibians about challenges in the implementation of public policy when he says that people settling illegally are undermining efforts by government in housing provision.
It is correct to say that individuals should not settle on unserviced land, only to claim later that there is no sanitation and other amenities.
It is a call that should be supported by newspapers and all of us, especially in a country that emphasises processes, systems and institutions.
The presidency welcomes constructive and honest conversations from journalists about policy challenges and his role in resolving issues facing Namibians.
The president has never shied away from engaging Namibians honestly and dealing with their problems with urgency.
Unfortunately, but not unsurprisingly, certain newspapers feel no obligation to the truth and have abandoned the core principles of journalism by posing bias and opinions as news.
The credibility of news has been eroded because some journalists have replaced news for citizens with rumours and have reneged on the core tenets of journalism as a discipline of verification and truth telling.
Alfredo Tjiurimo Hengari is the presidential spokesperson.
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