EDITORIAL: The republic must bare its teeth
Corruption is corrosive wherever it occurs – but when it contaminates police stations, courtrooms and prosecutor offices, it becomes nothing short of treason. A fraudster stealing from his employer injures a balance sheet; a police officer, magistrate or prosecutor colluding with criminals injures the republic itself. Such actors are not merely corrupt – they are enemies of the state.
That is why Namibia can no longer respond with polite outrage and press statements. We are at a point where the state must draw a hard line in the sand. If criminal syndicates succeed in infiltrating our justice and security systems, Namibia as we know it will collapse.
The response must be unmistakable: those entrusted to uphold justice who instead aid criminals must face harsh, compulsory, deterrent punishment. No mercy. No administrative slaps on the wrist.
Consider Ondangwa prosecutor Justine Shiweda, shot in October for refusing to bow to a syndicate’s demands. If we cannot protect those whose courage keeps the justice system upright, then we must confront an uncomfortable truth – the criminals are calling the shots. If rapists, murderers and extortionists get to write the rules, society ceases to exist.
A police officer who pockets money to look away while a child is raped; a magistrate who sells verdicts to crime bosses – these are not mere offenders. They are saboteurs. They must face the full wrath of the law and exemplary sentences that warn others that betrayal of the republic comes at the highest price. In many jurisdictions, that offence comes with a death penalty.
We must stop coddling criminals who test the state’s resolve. We must arm those who confront them – with law, with consequence, with political will and with the assurance that Namibian society stands firmly behind them.
That is why Namibia can no longer respond with polite outrage and press statements. We are at a point where the state must draw a hard line in the sand. If criminal syndicates succeed in infiltrating our justice and security systems, Namibia as we know it will collapse.
The response must be unmistakable: those entrusted to uphold justice who instead aid criminals must face harsh, compulsory, deterrent punishment. No mercy. No administrative slaps on the wrist.
Consider Ondangwa prosecutor Justine Shiweda, shot in October for refusing to bow to a syndicate’s demands. If we cannot protect those whose courage keeps the justice system upright, then we must confront an uncomfortable truth – the criminals are calling the shots. If rapists, murderers and extortionists get to write the rules, society ceases to exist.
A police officer who pockets money to look away while a child is raped; a magistrate who sells verdicts to crime bosses – these are not mere offenders. They are saboteurs. They must face the full wrath of the law and exemplary sentences that warn others that betrayal of the republic comes at the highest price. In many jurisdictions, that offence comes with a death penalty.
We must stop coddling criminals who test the state’s resolve. We must arm those who confront them – with law, with consequence, with political will and with the assurance that Namibian society stands firmly behind them.
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Namibian Sun
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