Government has lost fight against corruption

ELLANIE SMITWINDHOEKThe majority of Namibians are of the opinion that the government is failing in the fight against corruption and that even if they report it, they will face retaliation.According to Afrobarometer’s report; ‘Government performance on fighting corruption’, 70% of Namibians believe the government has fared poorly in fighting corruption.Meanwhile, 67% of Namibians fear risk of retaliation should they report corruption, according to the report.Afrobarometer surveyed 34 African countries and a majority of citizens said corruption had increased in their country during the previous year. Police are the worst offenders in citizens’ eyes.The report showed that 73% of Namibians believe that corruption has increased somewhat in the country over the past 12 months and 15% felt that corruption increased a lot.Police not trustedFurther findings indicated that 37% of Namibians perceive that there is corruption among the police, while 8% of Namibians say they have been exposed to bribery to obtain a public service.According to the report developing countries lose $1.26 trillion a year to corruption, theft, and tax evasion, according to analysts’ estimates – a sum large enough to lift 1.4 billion people above the poverty line for six years.“Yet corruption scandals make almost daily headlines, in Africa as elsewhere. South Africa continues to wrestle with the fallout of state capture during Jacob Zuma’s presidency.“Namibians are gearing up for one of their most prominent court cases ever, involving two ministers accused and imprisoned in the #Fishrot corruption scandal.“Allegations of corruption involving Covid-19 pandemic relief pour in from Zimbabwe, Somalia, Kenya, Nigeria, and other countries.”On average across the 34 countries, almost six in 10 Africans (58%) say that corruption increased in their country during the previous year, including 40% who say it “increased a lot.Perceptions of increased corruption levels are most widespread in Gabon (82%), Lesotho (78%), and Mauritius (77%) (Figure 2). At the other extreme, large majorities in Tanzania (77%) and Benin (70%) say corruption decreased.Among key public institutions, the police are most widely seen as corrupt; on average, almost half (47%) of Africans say “most” or “all” police officials are involved in corruption.ellanie@namibiansun.com

Government has lost fight against corruption

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Namibian Sun 2026-04-01

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Government has lost fight against corruption

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Namibian Sun 2026-04-01

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