The latest foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in the Zambezi Region is a serious warning that Namibia cannot afford complacency in protecting its livestock industry. The disease is highly contagious, economically disruptive and capable of devastating livelihoods, trade and food security if it is not contained swiftly.
Government is therefore right to act decisively.
But decisive action and lawful action are not mutually exclusive.
The recent High Court judgment concerning the veterinary cordon fence in the //Kharas Region should remind government and all public institutions of a fundamental principle of constitutional democracy: urgency does not suspend the rule of law.
The court did not order the disputed construction to stop. Judge Boas Usiku found that the balance of convenience did not favour granting the interdict sought by China Jiangxi International (Namibia) and Homefin Properties, particularly given the escalating threat posed by FMD and the fact that the emergency contractor had already mobilised and commenced work.
That decision should not, however, be misread as an endorsement of the manner in which the procurement process was handled.
Quite the opposite.
The judgment delivered a pointed criticism of the Central Procurement Board of Namibia for failing to provide proper reasons for cancelling the original tender. The explanation that the tender “does not create or achieve the expected outcome” was, in the judge’s view, effectively no explanation at all.
This is not a minor administrative technicality.
It goes to the heart of public accountability.
When government cancels a competitive procurement process after one bidder has been notified that it has been selected, the affected parties are entitled to know why. When the state subsequently resorts to emergency procurement and awards a substantial contract to another party, the public is entitled to understand the circumstances and justification for that decision.
The state is spending public money.
That money belongs to taxpayers.
The procurement process must therefore be transparent, defensible and capable of withstanding scrutiny.
Namibia must resist the dangerous temptation to regard procurement rules as obstacles to government efficiency. Proper procurement procedures exist precisely because public resources are vulnerable to abuse, favouritism, waste and corruption.
The argument that a crisis requires speed is legitimate. But speed must be accompanied by accountability.
Indeed, emergencies make transparency even more important.
The FMD situation demonstrates why. Government understandably fears that delays in constructing the cordon fence could allow the disease to spread from South Africa into Namibia. That is a legitimate and urgent public interest.
But urgency cannot become a blanket justification for abandoning competitive processes or failing to explain decisions.
If emergency procurement is necessary, government must explain why it is necessary, document the reasons, demonstrate that the legal requirements have been satisfied and ensure that the process remains subject to oversight.
That is how a constitutional democracy operates under pressure.
The alternative is dangerous.
Once institutions become accustomed to bypassing established procedures whenever circumstances are described as urgent, the definition of an emergency can gradually become elastic. What begins as an exceptional measure can become normal practice.
That is precisely what the rule of law is designed to prevent.
The High Court’s criticism of the CPBN should therefore be taken seriously, not defensively. Public institutions should not wait for courts to tell them that their explanations are inadequate. They should make decisions in a manner that would survive judicial scrutiny from the outset.
The principle is simple: if a decision is lawful and defensible, there should be no fear of explaining it.
The government also has a responsibility to protect the integrity of the country’s procurement system while protecting the livestock sector. These objectives are not contradictory.
Namibia can build the fence urgently and still follow the law.
Namibia can respond to an outbreak swiftly and still document its decisions.
Namibia can use emergency procurement when genuinely necessary and still ensure that the process is transparent.
The newly confirmed FMD outbreak in Zambezi makes the stakes even higher. With 20 cattle showing clinical signs and all 12 samples submitted for testing subsequently returning positive, authorities have understandably activated the national contingency plan. Livestock movement has been restricted, permits cancelled, trade and slaughter activities suspended in affected areas, roadblocks established and emergency vaccination initiated.
These measures will inevitably impose costs on farmers, traders and communities.
Government must therefore ensure that every intervention is credible and trusted.
Public confidence is an essential weapon in fighting an epidemic. Farmers must believe that restrictions are necessary. Businesses must believe that decisions are being taken fairly. Contractors must believe that procurement is competitive and predictable. Citizens must believe that public institutions are accountable.
The rule of law is not an inconvenience standing between government and effective action. It is the framework that gives government action legitimacy.
The cordon fence may be necessary. The urgency may be genuine. The FMD threat may be real and escalating.
But none of these facts should diminish the importance of lawful governance.
If anything, a crisis should strengthen our commitment to it.
Namibia has built its democratic reputation on institutions, constitutionalism and respect for the law. That reputation must be protected not only when circumstances are comfortable, but especially when government is under pressure to act quickly.
The lesson from this judgment should therefore be clear to every public institution: act urgently, but act lawfully; spend quickly when necessary, but account for every cent; and make difficult decisions, but explain them properly.
The fight against FMD requires decisive leadership.
It also requires clean hands.
Namibia cannot protect its livestock industry by weakening the very principles of good governance that protect the public interest.
The rule of law must always remain the fence that no emergency is allowed to cross.
