Erasmus Shalihaxwe
The leader of the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), Panduleni Itula has cautioned political leaders against making promises that they cannot deliver on.
Itula made these remarks on Wednesday during a panel discussion on Namibia’s economy from a social protection perspective at the Namibia University of Science and Technology’s hotel school in Windhoek.
Itula, who is the IPC presidential candidate for the elections in November, specifically discussed the increment of the old age pension grant and the introduction of a social grant that the government promised to give to each unemployed Namibian between the ages of 18 and 59.
Vice-president and Swapo presidential candidate Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has promised to increase the pension grant from the current amount of N$1 600 to N$3 000 if she is voted into power, a promise first made by late President Hage Geingob.
During the discussion, Itula stated if Namibia is going to consider introducing a universal basic grant to give to everybody, then leaders should consider the country’s population, which stands at over three million.
According to Itula, the basic grant should be above the poverty line of N$1 180, which will result in the government giving out N$42 billion from its coffers.
‘’This year alone, we collected N$ 78.6 billion. If you have a universal basic income grant, you have already depleted half of the money you have collected. However, if you are saying you are only going to give to those who are above the age of 18, we have got 1 731 790 people above the age of 18 in Namibia. If you are only giving those ones, you will be dishing out N$24 billion.
Now the N$78.6 does not include the SACU contributions, so when we make those policies, we must cause them. We need to make absolutely sure the promises we make will be physical. And if not, it’s immoral and an insult to the dignity of the electorate to promise them something we cannot deliver,’’ said Itula.
He added that if the government decides to increase the old age pension grant, people should keep in mind that there are 24116 beneficiaries, according to statistics, and it will cost N$8 billion. He also stated that he is not against the proposal.
He questioned if the government could afford it.
‘’I have visited over 500 villages across the country, and that is when I established the social needs and national interests. So leaders need to be very factual and objective in what they are proposing and also avoid emotional approaches to the problems because it can be very dangerous to promise something that is not there,’’ cautioned Itula.
The discussion also focused on what citizens should expect in political party election manifestos this election year.
Political analyst Ndumba Kamwanyah, who was part of the panel, said the public needs to compare political parties’ current manifestos to previous ones, especially those of the ruling party, and see which promises have been achieved and which ones have not been achieved.
‘’What we have observed from previous manifestos is the gap between manifestos and reality, mainly on empty promises due to unfulfilled implementations,’’ said Kamwanyah.
Another political analyst, Rui Tyitende, said Namibians don’t have a reading culture, so they don’t bother to demand manifestos from their political parties to know what they will be voting for, and political parties are taking advantage of that.
‘’That is a fundamental problem we have in Namibia. How are you going to assess the intention of a new party or even the old ones if you don’t read?’’ he questioned.
Social activist Rinaani Mushutua said it is sad that the government is using social protection issues for elections, when the implementation date gets close, it’s postponed further to years ahead.
‘’We keep wondering why the implementation plans are being prolonged into the future when people are really struggling now and they need those grants now,’’ she stated.
