Kae Matundu-Tjiparuro
How accountable are community organisations? Yours Truly Ideologically is posing this question disturbed greatly by news and complaints that have been filtering through for some time now from the peripheries concerning the lack of accountability among our community institutions.
Concerned because community organisations, ideally, are and should be the first among the firsts to usher in and spearhead egalitarianism as well as all the way guard, guide and protect such where and whenever it is realised among our communities. However, nascent such realisation may be.
In the belief and orientation of “to each according to his/her needs and from each according to his/her ability.” Best placed to usher in socio-economic transformation where it is most needed, which is the local level.
Socialism cannot be ushered in and fostered among the broader Namibian society, other than starting from the base, which are our rural economic backyards, a situation imposed on them by capitalism. Which remains, to the detriment of the masses, including our rural peasants, the harsh and undesirable status quo.
Community institutions in many respects and aspects, such as farmers associations, at whatever level, from water points in villages, you name them to farmers associations, not to mention community development committees.
“What’s good for the goose is good for the gander,” the idiom goes. Simply meaning that if a particular action, rule, or treatment is acceptable for one person, it should be equally acceptable for another in a similar situation.
But this does not seem to be the case when it comes to accountability in and at the low levels of our various institutions, entities and organisations.
Be they farmers associations, water point committees and/or village committees. Where, worst of all, financial discipline is unheard of and community funds are spent unscrupulously without accountability and without following given financial accountability procedures, even the basic ones.
Where community funds are reported missing without anybody being called upon to account, despite particular and specific person(s) being in positions of responsibility and accountability regarding the given funds.
This is not only with reference to the funds of a specific organisation but pertains to the running and management and/or governance of all the affairs, including its assets and properties.
In the case of waterpoints, the prudent use of resources such as diesel for the engine. The maintenance of the waterpoint infrastructure, etc.
Yours Truly Ideologically is very much aware of even the state of dilapidation of water points in villages, including his own, as if this village does not have a waterpoint management committee.
It is the responsibility of such to ensure the infrastructure is in a good condition. Thereby causing its regular upkeep, even if in doing so calling upon contributions from the villagers. All its take is an initiative by the management committee.
Likewise on a different level and pertaining to the Constituency, it is the responsibility of the local farmers association that farmers get every assistance possible to buttress their farming activities.
Like helping the farmers during droughts in any way possible, be it subsidising feed and/or any help necessary to help them through the drought, including helping farmers with relocation to better grazing during the drought.
Yours Truly Ideologically admittedly, perhaps due to his own ignorance, or being detached and remote from his rural surroundings euphemised as his home, despite being an economic banishment dating back to the days of colonialism, including Apartheid South Africa’s occupation of the then South West Africa, is not aware of the efforts of, particularly, the farming association in the Epukiro Constituency in this regard.
Calling upon the association to help farmers where it can in this regard, is by any means not asking for a favour. But there is and should be a standing demand and expectation for the association to carry out its obligations in this regard.
When any farmer sells an animal, a levy is deducted which goes into the coffers of the association, the Eastern Epukiro Farmers Association (EEFA). Meaning the association is obligated to plough back into the farming community. This levy, in the first place, is its very lifeline financially.
Except for the association drawing on the fund so accumulated to help farmers in times of need, it has a fiduciary obligation to not only account regularly to its shareholders, the farmers, how such a fund is spent but equally how it is handled.
This obligates the association to issue its shareholders, the farmers, with regular financial reports, as may be prescribed by its rules and regulations having given rise to its existence. Not to mention the fact that such financial statements must be audited.
At least the association is, once a year, having an annual general meeting as may be the case. If for one reason or the other it is unable to hold this, this cannot be forever, but just a matter of delay until it is in a position to.
But, “in one way or the other” means accountability must be in place. But it looks like for some associations, failure of financial accountability has become the rule rather than an exception.
It remains to be seen in the case of EEFA when last it produced an audited report. Not just for the farmers but for the broader EEFA’s publics, internal as well as external.
If it is to gain the necessary trust and confidence, be that of its immediate shareholders, the farmers, and/or that of the general public beyond its immediate environment.
One vehicle for such public information, because its financial statement is certainly public information, is its WhatsApp group. Yours Truly Ideologically, for one, surely must have missed it if it was ever posted.
EEFA must have been sourcing funds from all and sundry to help farmers. If its financial books are not an open book, certainly it does not auger well for the necessary trust and confidence should it wish to source funds from any other financial institution for whatever purpose it may wish to source such funds in the future.
Needless to say, EEFA, and any other farmers associations, for that matter, are better advised to up their games in this regard.
This does not only pertain to finances, but even to properties like farms, in the case of the associations which may possess farms and/or pieces of land.
How are they utilised and who benefits from them, other than a few individuals who may be close to whatever powers may be?
The same way we are quick to blame the government for lack of financial prudence and/or accountability, we must equally hold our own local institutions accountable in every respect and aspect.
Managers of such institutions who have fallen into the habit of being a law unto themselves through contagious camaraderie based on whatever non-transparent and unholy relationships.
Be it by virtue of their closeness to traditional authorities and/or whatever authority they may, they are simply running the risk of being arraigned by the law for corruption, mismanagement, misappropriation, and/or misuse, abuse and misapplication of public properties.
So they are better advised to wake up and smell the coffee.
To shape up or ship out. Let it be known, if such associations are not coming to the party, farmers can reserve their rights and obligation to hold them accountable.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is an option in this regard.
