EDITORIAL: Traditional leaders deserve respect and dignity
Throughout African history, traditional leaders have served as the bedrock of society. They were the custodians of customs, moral order, and collective identity - holding communities together with wisdom passed down generations. In today's Namibia, where moral decay and cultural erosion are common headlines, their role is more vital than ever.
Colonial rule disrupted this governance fabric, introducing foreign systems that relegated traditional leaders to symbolic status. Post-independence, the trend continued. Former president Hage Geingob once told traditional leaders, “Namibia is not a monarch” - technically true, but tone-deaf to the deeper significance and continued relevance of these institutions.
As Gaob Immanuel /Gaseb, chairperson of the Council of Traditional Authorities, laments in our edition today, chiefs are surviving on a pitiful N$2,500 monthly allowance - a disgrace for leaders who remain at the frontline of community life. That’s not remuneration; it’s an insult.
To add salt to injury, these leaders last received official vehicles in 2009 - a once-off donation conveniently made ahead of a general election, now seen in hindsight as a tactical ploy for votes. After emphatic victory was secured that year, those in power never looked back. Meanwhile, ministers and MPs regularly receive new fleets, as if their contribution weighs heavier than those holding fractured communities together in the harshest of conditions.
Yet it is these very villages - dismissed as backward and primitive - that birthed leaders like Sam Nujoma, Hifikepunye Pohamba, Nangolo Mbumba, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, and yes, Hage Geingob too. The presidency may lie in the capital, but its foundation was laid in the villages.
If Namibia is serious about healing its social fabric and grounding its development in dignity, then traditional leaders must be treated not as relics - but as respected, resourced partners in building the nation.
Colonial rule disrupted this governance fabric, introducing foreign systems that relegated traditional leaders to symbolic status. Post-independence, the trend continued. Former president Hage Geingob once told traditional leaders, “Namibia is not a monarch” - technically true, but tone-deaf to the deeper significance and continued relevance of these institutions.
As Gaob Immanuel /Gaseb, chairperson of the Council of Traditional Authorities, laments in our edition today, chiefs are surviving on a pitiful N$2,500 monthly allowance - a disgrace for leaders who remain at the frontline of community life. That’s not remuneration; it’s an insult.
To add salt to injury, these leaders last received official vehicles in 2009 - a once-off donation conveniently made ahead of a general election, now seen in hindsight as a tactical ploy for votes. After emphatic victory was secured that year, those in power never looked back. Meanwhile, ministers and MPs regularly receive new fleets, as if their contribution weighs heavier than those holding fractured communities together in the harshest of conditions.
Yet it is these very villages - dismissed as backward and primitive - that birthed leaders like Sam Nujoma, Hifikepunye Pohamba, Nangolo Mbumba, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, and yes, Hage Geingob too. The presidency may lie in the capital, but its foundation was laid in the villages.
If Namibia is serious about healing its social fabric and grounding its development in dignity, then traditional leaders must be treated not as relics - but as respected, resourced partners in building the nation.
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Namibian Sun
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