Stefanus Nashama
Independent presidential candidate, Ally Angula has accused the Swapo-led government of causing a national economic disaster and financial struggle.
Angula made this statement on Monday on her digital election campaign platforms.
She believes that, economically, the past 34 years have yet to deliver a satisfactory life for most people.
“The current administration led by the Swapo party has for 34 years slowly created an economic national disaster that has left way too many people out in the cold with no chance at earning an income,” she said.
According to Angula, many regional capitals lack a manufacturing base to support local economies and provide jobs for their residents.
She said government buildings dominate most regional capitals.
She added that many communities are dependent on pensioners’ monthly pensions and teachers’ salaries.
“Local entrepreneurs are struggling daily by selling N$1/2 fat cakes, N$10 eat pieces, N$0.50 sweets, N$5.00. Frozen diluted juice drinks, N$1.00 chips and N$1.00 ice. The majority of businesses have no access at all to capital and are survivalist businesses,” said Angula.
Angula said the government, using taxpayers’ money, has built markets far away from customers, and the existing markets, such as manufacturing sites, are too small and poorly planned.
She added that some of the markets are located in areas where local business people are unaware of their existence.
“Having had a go at starting a business in Namibia, I tasted defeat, largely due to a lack of adequate working capital. However, had I started a smallish business at the time, I would have stood a much greater chance of success,” she said.
According to Angula, the education system prepares children for the streets at the tender age of 15.
She explains that this has led to a large number of unskilled and untrained young individuals wandering the streets without job opportunities for many years.
“The many that did find themselves a job, found themselves in mainly retail and security guard positions where the average monthly salary is N$1 353, which is far below the living wage. We have a crisis of epic proportions on our hands, with the following generations outnumbering many of us. Our children aged 0 to 9 make up 26.22 percent of Namibia’s population, making these elections about them as much as it is about every other Namibian of voting age,” she said.
Angula believes the upcoming elections are about Namibia’s economic future.
