EDITORIAL: Accountability or collapse

One of the root causes of Namibia’s decline is glaringly simple, yet persistently ignored: a total lack of accountability. Last week, Landless People’s Movement (LPM) leader Bernadus Swartbooi stirred the hornet’s nest with his suggestion that public servants be placed on fixed-term contracts - a radical proposal to reignite a culture of responsibility and performance. Extreme? Perhaps. But his frustration mirrors a national sentiment: we are tired of impunity parading as leadership. Swartbooi’s call echoes the lonely campaign of urban and rural development minister James Sankwasa, whose recent efforts to call out wrongdoing in local authorities have earned him resistance - not from the culprits, but from within his own party, Swapo. In Katima Mulilo, councillors reportedly exchanged state land for motorbikes - a blatant abuse of power that Sankwasa publicly challenged. In Opuwo, he sought answers over a shady subsistence and travel payment to a chief regional officer who allegedly didn’t even travel. Now, murmurs of discontent echo within Swapo’s inner sanctums - not because corruption was exposed, but because it was exposed too publicly. There are those who would prefer that ministers tiptoe through transgressions behind closed doors, preserving party decorum rather than protecting the public interest. Sankwasa is doing what too few in government dare - governing with transparency. If our officials have nothing to hide, why then are they afraid to be held accountable under the scrutiny of public eyes and camera lenses? Swapo, more than any other party, should know that its electoral support has eroded not because of ideology, but because of inaction and indulgence. If the party truly wants redemption, it must be bold enough to confront the rot within - not protect it.