Corruption continues unabated
‘Unsafe to be a whistleblower’
“Corruption is a social disease. It is like cancer. It damages and breaks the soul of a society, and it is the poorest who can least afford it. Actually, corruption is systemic and endemic; it will take a long time to curb. We trust each other and the government less and less as this monster swallows society.”This according to Prof Johan Coetzee, political scientist and corruption researcher at the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST).
The Namibian Institute for Democracy (NID), Olupale and the Hanns Seidel Foundation recently held a public talk to discuss tools against the desensitisation of the population towards corruption.
Graham Hopwood of the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) and Dimbulukeni Nauyoma, who describes himself as a recently freed political prisoner and activist, took part in the dialogue with Coetzee.
Hopwood agrees that corruption in Namibia is a systemic feature of society. “And it is happening more and more,” he said.
According to Nauyoma, corruption is gradually chipping away at necessities. “Here in Windhoek, life is just a rubbish bin. Even water is expensive in the settlements. Corruption is the reason why you have to share textbooks,” he told students in the audience.
“What is the impact of corruption in a country like Namibia? Because of corrupt practices in the country, we have shortages. We have not built any hospital, as a country, since independence. Yes, we were able to build a few clinics, but those clinics are without pills because someone in a position of trust who had to buy Panados and high blood pressure pills left and the money disappeared into private pockets,” he said.
‘People’s lives at stake’
All three experts are wary of encouraging people to become whistleblowers.
“We have to tread carefully because people's lives are at stake,” Nauyoma said. “Nobody likes whistleblowers. It is not in the Namibian culture, it is not popular. It is dangerous,” Coetzee warned.
Hopwood said the Act on the Protection of Whistleblowers was already adopted in 2017, but no money has been budgeted for its application.
“Why is there a gap? Why was nothing done to enforce the law? It comes back to politics, with legislation that is simply a smoke screen, while we do nothing,” he said.
The fact that the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) does not want to apply its own law regarding the financing of political parties is another example of tolerance towards corruption, he added.
Regarding the safety of individuals who expose corruption, Hopwood said: “I have my doubts about the ACC. I don't have much faith in constitutional institutions like the ACC and the ombudsman.”
Nauyoma added: “Namibia is a small country, and we all know each other.”
Coetzee opined that legislation offers no reward to justify the risk involved in exposing corruption.
In America, a whistleblower can recover between 15% and 24% of the money that results from the prosecution of corruption. In Namibia, the minister has the authority to decide who gets a reward and what the reward will be.
Nauyoma highlighted the part of the law that makes providing inaccurate information punishable. “It’s discouraging,” he said.
They agree that the media offers a better choice. “A professional journalist will protect his source,” Nauyoma said. – [email protected]