EDITORIAL: National service must not become compulsory

The proposal to introduce compulsory national service as a way of tackling youth unemployment, instilling discipline and promoting patriotism deserves exhaustive scrutiny.The first question is whether discipline is something government should be expected to teach, when this responsibility has always rested with families and communities. If a young person grows up without basic discipline, respect and responsibility, it is difficult to see how placing them in a government programme will magically correct everything that went wrong at home.Then there is the argument that national service will instil patriotism. On paper, this sounds great. But who gets to decide what patriotism looks like? Who determines what is patriotic and what is not?Is a young Namibian who questions government policy less patriotic than one who supports it? Is someone who criticises the state, protests against injustice or refuses to conform to the prevailing political narrative somehow less committed to Namibia?In a democracy, patriotism cannot mean unquestioning obedience to authority. In fact, it is often more patriotic to expose wrongdoing and demand better leadership while remaining every bit as Namibian as the person singing the national anthem.We also need clarity on what exactly national service would be expected to achieve. Would it be military training? Community service? Skills development? A combination of these? These questions matter, particularly when compulsory participation is being contemplated.Namibia does not have a national youth discipline crisis. Yes, there are young people who behave irresponsibly – but the same goes for some adults. There are rotten apples in every generation. But it is difficult to sustain the argument that indiscipline among Namibian youth has reached such an industrial scale that the state must compel an entire generation into a national programme to straighten them out.

EDITORIAL: National service must not become compulsory

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Namibian Sun 2026-09-18

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EDITORIAL: National service must not become compulsory

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Namibian Sun 2026-09-18

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