Month: March, 2016
The upcoming 2016 presidential political debacle
| March 30, 2016 | 10:05 pm | Analysis, Bernie Sanders, China, class struggle, political struggle, Russia | Comments closed

Has the US embarked on a path of self-destruction?

By James Thompson

As we observe the perverse insanity of the 2016 presidential election cycle, it is important to take at least a momentary hiatus from the titillating debauchery which never ceases to capture the public attention and try to make some sense of the spectacle.

THE TRUMP PHENOMENON

We are bombarded by the mainstream media’s coverage of every minuscule twist and turn of the revolting campaign of the number one Shaman/showman, Donald Trump. He seems to have hypnotized the American public by his continuous spew of filth, physical violence, and verbal violence against anyone he disagrees with, particularly women, Muslims, Latinos, people with disabilities, and a variety of other major sectors of the US population. Although he is reprehensible, sadly, he appears to have set himself up as a leader of the most disgusting people in the United States today. Someone once told me that in order to be a leader, you must first identify a crowd and then position yourself in front of them. Trump has followed this edict to the letter and it has paid off for him in terms of political support and votes. His campaign and ideology remind me of the nihilism espoused by the Nazi party and more recently expressed by a US rock ‘n roll band called “the Doors”. “The Doors” were followers of the German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, who was the darling of the German Nazi party. Here is a song which embodies the Trump ideology and mystique which has caught on like wildfire and seems to have unified the most degenerate among the US people:

WE COULD BE SO GOOD TOGETHER

Jim Morrison 1968

We could be so good together

Ya, so good together

We could be so good together

Ya, we could, I know we could

Tell you lies

I tell you wicked lies

Tell you lies

Tell you wicked lies

Tell you ’bout the world that we’ll invent

Wanton world without lament

Enterprise, expedition

Invitation and invention

Ya, so good together

Ah, so good together

We could be so good together

Ya, we could, know we could

Alright!

Do da do do do do do bup bup de day

We could be so good together

Ya, so good together

We could be so good together

Ya, we could, know we could

Tell you lies

Tell you wicked lies

Tell you lies

Tell you wicked lies

The time you wait subtracts the joy

Beheads the angels you destroy

Angels fight, angels cry

Angels dance and angels die

Ya, so good together

Ah, but so good together

We could be so good together

Ya, we could, know we could”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBC4dfLlcbI

Although Trump has distinguished himself as a front runner among the decadent Republican mongrels running for president, he has rivals which actually make him look good.

Ted Cruz from Texas is the darling of the Tea Party. He and Trump agree when they both demonize immigrants and Muslims in the most chauvinistic display of racism since the advocates of slavery in the deep South.

More recently, these two pathetic clowns have clashed by debasing each other’s anatomical parts followed by a vicious attack on each other’s wives. Although US politics could never be described as civil and democratic, the current displays reach a level never seen before in bourgeois political campaigns.

Ted Cruz is an unapologetic advocate for the wealthy elite. He makes no bones in calling for the persecution of immigrants and he is no opponent of world war. His election would represent an unprecedented lurch towards world conflagration and the ultimate destruction of the United States.

WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS REGRESSION IN THINKING AND BEHAVIOR FOR THE US?

The childish verbal aggression which has become mainstream politics in the Republican Party struggle for the nomination for president of the United States must serve a useful purpose for the bourgeois Masters of the electoral process in the USA. One possibility is that this grand theater serves as a smokescreen and distraction from real democratic political struggle. As long as workers are focused on the hand size and size of other anatomical parts of the candidates, it is less likely that they will notice that these vicious reactionaries advocate military aggression and disdain world peace. Indeed, no candidate for the office of the president of the United States advocates world peace. They all vary slightly in terms of the degree with which they endorse military aggression on foreign, sovereign nations.

One candidate, John Kasich, has openly advocated funding and supporting the US imposed fascist regime in the Ukraine. This deplorable, fascist government in Kiev calls for the persecution of Russian-speaking people in the Ukraine and certain elements call for the extermination of Russians. These vicious snakes are the front line of the US backed military assault on Russia. No candidate in any credible way argues with this position.

Most candidates call for the confrontation of China and support the US military aggression in the South China Sea. The US military continuously challenges and provokes the Chinese government and denies their right to their sovereign territories.

The circus in the US political arena obfuscates US military aggression around the world. US provocations in the Middle East, and against Russia and China are the most dangerous and could lead to nuclear war. No one in the US seems to be aware that nuclear war could pave a clear path to the total destruction of the human race as well as many other species which inhabit the world. Indeed, the US, China and Russia could turn each other into cockroach food in a matter of hours. “We can all be cremated equally.”

WHAT IS TO BE DONE?

Hopefully the US has not reached the point of no return in spite of the blatant madness of the political candidates and mainstream media. Only working people can lead the struggle out of the ideological mire in which we find ourselves. Let us stop wallowing in the mire.

It is clear that the current candidates for the president of the United States do not advocate a path away from the self-destructive attitudes of the most degenerate sector of the population. We must ask ourselves as people of conscience if there is anything to be done to oppose the destructiveness of the anarchic, nihilistic collective consciousness of the people in the US. Bernie Sanders advocates a “political revolution”. It is not clear what he means by this but it is clear that we need a mass movement to propel our backward nation forward towards world peace, healthcare for all, education for all, full employment, housing for all and an end to mass incarceration. We need a new political system to meet the needs of working people and preserve progressive political gains. US working people of conscience need to unite in the struggle for peace and against the aims of the reactionaries. Education is needed to help working people see through the obfuscation of the neofascists. Without the opposition of working people, it is clear that the mass media and their bourgeois Masters will do everything they can to propel neofascist reactionaries into positions of political power wherever possible.

It is important to remember that support for neoliberals does not equate to opposition to fascism. Indeed, some neoliberals are the most effective champions of fascism which have ever raised their ugly heads. Both liberal and conservative voices supporting fascism must be fought. Fascism equates to self-destruction and the most notable examples are German Naziism and Italian fascism. We all know what happened to the supporters of Hitler and Mussolini. Do US people want to meet the same fate as the followers of Hitler and Mussolini?

A mass movement needs to be organized starting now which has the power to oppose the anti-working people policies of whatever candidate is elected to the office of president. What is done before the election appears to be irrelevant. What matters is what will happen after the election.

Interview Del Berg (part 1), Veteran of the Abraham Lincoln Brigate
| March 26, 2016 | 6:52 pm | class struggle, political struggle | Comments closed

Too many riff-raff, who abhor political struggle, infest Left organizations
| March 26, 2016 | 6:25 pm | Analysis, Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton, political struggle | Comments closed
By A. Shaw
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders fights to win the nomination, as critics ask him why doesn’t he quit and endorse Hillary Clinton.
There are a number of reasons why Sanders doesn’t quit and endorse her.
(1) The race for the DP nomination isn’t over. Clinton hasn’t clinched.
(2) Sanders aims to build a mass movement that parallels his campaign for the Democratic Party (DP) nomination.
(3) The mass movement is different from the Sanders campaign.
Whether Clinton wins or loses the DP race, the outcome of the DP race will not determine anything that belongs to the mass movement.
From the 2015 beginning of the mass movement and campaign, Sanders emphasized that the mass movement, not the Sanders campaign, will continue its operations after the November 2016 general election.
Sanders has never said that the mass movement that parallels his campaign is a part of the DP, like his campaign.
The mass movement is an independent political force outside the DP and campaign is an independent political force within the DP.
Some critics question whether Sanders campaign is independent within  the DP.
Before an opponent clinches the DP nomination, Sanders can either endorse or not endorse the DP opponent. In practice, most losing candidates don’t endorse their opponents.
After an opponent clinches, Sanders can either endorse or not endorse the victorious DPÂ opponent. In practice, most defeated candidates don’t endorse their opponents.
The political independence lies in the right of the candidate to choose whether to endorse or not endorse his or her opponent.
If a candidate chooses to endorse, his choice doesn’t show dependency or lack of independence.
Party rules, especially the rules of bourgeois and left opportunist parties, often forbid its candidates from endorsing candidates who represent OTHER parties.
Some people have difficulty with the difference between “a party” and “another party.”
The function of the Sanders campaign is to win a slice of state power, like for instance the office of USA president.
The function of the mass movement is to train liberal and leftist operatives how to win slices of state power or, in other words, how to win elections.
The training that the mass movement supplies to receptive revolutionaries and other political operatives entails training in both political theory and political practice.
There are a number of elements within both the campaign and mass movement that are at least attempting to perform these complex tasks.
Clinton may or may not win the DP nomination.
If she wins, her campaign for the general election Clinton will then offer splendid opportunities for revolutionaries and other operatives, affiliated with the mass movement, to get additional practical political training, regardless of theoretical differences between revolutionaries and Clinton.
In the Manifesto, Marx and Engels warned the proletariat that the bourgeoisie may prove to be a better source for the type of “weapons” necessary to wage practical politics. Marx and Engels pointed out that sectors of the bourgeoisie may first have to “drag” the proletariat into the political arena where “weapons” of practical politics are commonly used.
Surely, Clinton now represents a sector of the bourgeoisie and, surely, the youth now campaigning as well as fighting in the mass movement for Sanders represent the best of the liberal working and middle classes.
Here are Marx and Engels’ own words on this question of the source of the tools of practical political training:
“In all these battles, it [the bourgeoisie] sees itself compelled
to appeal to the proletariat, to ask for help, and thus, to drag
it into the political arena. The bourgeoisie itself, therefore, supplies
the proletariat with its own elements of political and general
education, in other words, it furnishes the proletariat with weapons
for fighting the bourgeoisie.”
Marx and Engels evidently drew the conclusion that too many riff-raff, who abhor political struggle with an insane passion, infest Left organizations, preventing such organizations from supplying the proletariat with “weapons” necessary for struggle in the political arena
Namibia: Meeting Expectations?
| March 23, 2016 | 8:19 pm | Africa, political struggle | Comments closed
AfricaFocus Bulletin 
March 23, 2016 (160323) 
(Reposted from sources cited below)

Editor's Note

"During his first year as President," according to a new report from 
Namibia's Institute for Public Policy Research," Geingob has been 
saying all the right things – from declaring an all-out war on 
poverty and declaring his assets as a means of promoting 
transparency and accountability, to providing tangible action [on 
other issues]." The actual record is mixed, however, and the 
president himself has stressed that "it is time to turn words into 
reality."

For a version of this Bulletin in html format, more suitable for
printing, go to http://www.africafocus.org/docs16/nam1603.php, and
click on "format for print or mobile."

To share this on Facebook, click on
https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=http://www.africafocus.org/docs16/nam1603.php

With a Gini index of income inequality of 59.7, Namibia ranks among
the most unequal in the world (http://tinyurl.com/mn8how), only
slightly below South Africa's rating of 62.5 (for comparison, China
is 46.9, Mozambique 45.6, the United States 45, and the Netherlands,
Sweden, and Denmark all approximately 25). Now in its second
quarter-century after gaining independence from South Africa,
Namibia still faces the legacy of the apartheid system embedded in
its social and economic structure. Yet the mood is still one of
cautious optimism, as President Hage Geingob begins his second year
in office, and Namibia is rated by Afrobarometer as the most
tolerant among 33 countries surveyed (
http://www.africafocus.org/docs16/tol1603.php).

This AfricaFocus Bulletin contains excerpts from a review of
Geingob's first year, by Nangula Shejavali of Namibia's Institute
for Public Policy Research. The IPPR report contains commentary and
ratings from 10 Namibian commentators, as well as an overview by the
author.

For background articles with an analytical and critical perspective
on the dominance of Namibia's ruling party, written before the
election of President Geingob, see Henning Melber, "Post-liberation
Democratic Authoritarianism: The Case of Namibia" (
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02589346.2015.1005790) and "From Nujoma to
Geingob: 25 years of presidential democracy,"
http://tinyurl.com/h3vel3k

++++++++++++++++++++++end editor's note+++++++++++++++++

One Year Of Geingob: An Analysis of the Namibian President's Hits 
and Misses during His First Year in Office

Special Briefing Report No. 11 , March 2016

By Nangula Shejavali

Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR)

http://www.ippr.org.na

"After 25 years they (Namibian citizens) want food, clothing and 
shelter. They want jobs, better housing and good nutrition. They 
want a leader who will bring prosperity to the nation and they want 
that leader to act quickly." President Hage Geingob, 21 March 
2015

Introduction

On 21 March 2015, President Hage Geingob was inaugurated as the 
third President of the Republic of Namibia. Having received an 
overwhelming 87 per cent of the vote in the Presidential election 
on 28 November 2015, the popular Geingob assumed the role of Head 
of State with an enormous level of public confidence and great deal 
of public expectation.

Taking place on Namibia's 25th Independence Anniversary, Geingob's 
inauguration was a euphoric occasion, and the excitement in the air 
was palpable. Perhaps it was the promise of a fresher approach to 
governance. Or it may have been the fact that the new President 
hailed from a minority ethnic group, signalling a new era of 
tolerance and a profound sense of national unity. Geingob's 
inauguration speech set an impressive and inspiring tone that 
stressed inclusivity, promised that, "No Namibian should feel left 
behind!", and cemented this euphoria.

The new President committed to addressing a number of priorities for 
his administration, clearly stating that addressing "the 
socioeconomic gaps that exist in our society" would be the main 
focus of his administration. In this vein, he declared an "all-out 
war on poverty and concomitant inequality" and promised to work 
towards "catapulting the economy into a new period of faster 
growth, improved job creation and improved service delivery". 
Beyond the socioeconomic priority stated (and presented in more 
detail below), the President also promised to strengthen the 
governance architecture to ensure that government is able to 
effectively respond to these priorities; and called on the Namibian 
people to "stand together in building this new Namibian House."

It is against this background that this briefing paper provides a 
critical assessment of President Geingob's first year in office, 
drawing insights from a slew of documents, speeches, press releases 
and media reports issued since the President's inauguration. The 
paper also incorporates insights and scorecards from a handful of 
political, social and economic commentators. In his State of the 
Nation Address on April 21, which coincided with the opening of the 
6th Parliament in 2015, Geingob made a recommitment to the many 
promises made in his inaugural address, this time adding more 
specifics to his plans.

...

The President's Promises

During Geingob's first few weeks in office, he delivered some key 
speeches that set the tone for what his priorities would be during 
his presidency. Chief amongst these speeches – in terms of 
highlighting his administration's priorities early on – were his 
inauguration speech |21.03.2015| and his State of the Nation 
Address (SoNA) |15.04.2015|. These two speeches form the basis for 
this analysis.

In his inauguration speech, in addition to emphasising continuity 
(President Nujoma had represented peace, President Pohamba 
represented stability, and Geingob would represent prosperity), 
Geingob clearly outlined his priorities.

"The main priority for the next administration will be addressing 
the socio-economic gaps that exist in our society. Therefore, our 
first priority will be to declare all-out war on poverty and 
concomitant inequality. Our focal point will be to address 
inequality, poverty and hunger and that will involve looking at a 
range of policies and inter- ventionist strategies to tackle this 
issue."

In this regard, he noted a revised Government structure for his 
first term, that would better align existing Ministries to 
Government's objectives, enhance efficiencies, and make government 
more responsive in meeting these goals, i.e.: "poverty eradication 
and reduction of inequalities and disparities; sustainable economic 
growth and economic diversification; job creation; and improved 
service delivery."

In his State of the Nation Address on April 21, which coincided with 
the opening of the 6th Parliament in 2015, Geingob made a 
recommitment to the many promises made in his inaugural address, 
this time adding more specifics to his plans.

Eradicating poverty again featured prominently as a national 
priority, and the President used the opportunity to announce 
various initiatives in this regard, including an increase in the 
old age pension, and the introduction of a food bank. He also 
highlighted the need to tackle poverty using a multifaceted 
approach. "We will, therefore, tackle poverty from all fronts, 
through safety nets, access to quality education, and by creating 
jobs and growing the economy," he said, highlighting the renaming 
of the Labour Ministry to the Ministry of Labour, Industrial 
Relations and Job Creation.

With regards to overcoming inequalities, he noted that the 
finalisation of the economic empowerment policy framework was long 
overdue and that consultation would resume on this policy 
framework. In this vein, in his comments on the economy, he also 
noted efforts to "raise the bar regarding transformation of 
ownership structures" including the restriction of ownership over 
natural resources, the finalisation of policies such as the 
Procurement Bill and the Retail Charter, the implementation of the 
Industrial Policy and the Growth at Home Strategy; and the support 
for local business.

Access to land and affordable housing has been a major theme on the 
national agenda, with the Affirmative Repositioning movement 
further placing the issue particularly of urban housing – front 
and centre of much of the policy discourse. In this regard, the 
President reaffirmed his "personal commitment to addressing land 
reform and provision of affordable housing to all Namibians", and 
highlighted various (possible) measures to accelerate the delivery 
of serviced land and housing.

In the SoNA, Geingob also announced the introduction of free 
secondary school education, encouraged the private sector to do 
more with regards to skills development and training, and noted the 
importance of quality and affordable health services.

He touched on the issue of combating corruption, encouraging the 
nation to report instances of corruption in its many forms to the 
Anti Corruption Commission. He also highlighted the need for public 
officials to avoid conflicts of interest, and encouraged them to 
disclose their assets. In this vein, in a much welcome move, he 
announced that he would disclose his assets through an independent 
assessment by PWC.

...

In both his Inaugural Speech and the State of the Nation address, 
Geingob highlighted and drove home a metaphor to illustrate his 
presidency's emphasis on inclusivity – the analogy of The Namibian 
House. In the SoNA, he stated, "We are intent on building and 
maintaining a high quality house in which all its residents have a 
sense of shared identity. We are determined to build a house that 
will be a place of peace and refuge for all its children and a 
house in which no Namibian will be left out."
 
...

Overall Assessment

On the whole, President Geingob's performance in his first year of 
office has been a mixed bag made up of some great rhetoric, 
wonderful intentions, interesting policy pronouncements, and some 
sound action and consultation on certain policies. There have also 
been actions that have seemingly contradicted the positive rhetoric 
and some inaction on certain issues, raising question marks about 
how much progress can be achieved.

During his first year as President, Geingob has been saying all the 
right things – from declaring an all-out war on poverty and 
declaring his assets as a means of promoting transparency and 
accountability, to providing tangible action with respect to 
national reconciliation, initiating consultation and early action 
on the urban land/housing crisis and reviving the policy review on 
economic transformation. That said, however, the President's first 
year in office has been focused on laying the grounds for the 
action and change he wishes to implement.

In a way, the President has admitted as much, stating during the 
opening of the third session of the current parliament that 2015 
was a year of talk, and 2016 would have to be a year of action. In 
the regard, he stated: "The year 2015 can be described as a call to 
arms. It was the year in which as President, I endeavoured to rally 
the nation behind a shared Vision through themes such as, War on 
Poverty, War against corruption, No Namibian Must feel left out and 
Harambee. I am certain that by embracing these themes and applying 
them to our policy making decisions, one day we will be able to 
eradicate poverty. In 2016, it is time to turn words into reality, 
it is time to implement and therefore I refer to this year as the 
Year of Implementation." That said, although the groundwork was 
being laid in his first year in office – seen with the stating and 
restating of the Poverty Eradication, Harambee, and Namibian House 
mantras, there is still plenty to assess of the President's 
performance based on the promises made when he came to office.

The Hits

Geingob entered office on a titanic wave of support and with huge 
public expectation, and before taking the helm (i.e. during his 
time as President-elect), made some announcements that helped to 
set a strong tone for his presidency. In terms of service delivery, 
these included instructing those on the Swapo party list who would 
be serving in Parliament to submit their CVs to ensure that they 
were placed in offices where their expertise would best serve the 
nation. This was certainly a welcome move, which he noted in his 
100 days self-assessment by stating: "As you are aware, Cabinet 
Ministers were selected and allocated to various ministries based 
on their qualifications and level of expertise, after thorough 
analysis of their Curriculum Vitae, which I had requested. These 
appointments have rejuvenated the people as well as the ministries 
themselves." The President underlined the seriousness of this 
approach by naming and shaming those who had not submitted their 
resumes by the deadline.

As President-Elect, Geingob also announced the creation of the 
Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare to fast-track 
efforts to address poverty, wealth inequality and food insecurity. 
In his words: "The establishment of the Ministry of Poverty 
Eradication and Social Welfare is meant to ensure the co- 
ordination, implementation and evaluation of government programmes 
aimed at poverty eradication. This Ministry comes as a realisation 
that poverty eradication programmes are cross-cutting, and are 
developed and implemented by various government ministries but 
requires focus and co-ordination."

The poverty eradication mantra has been present in most of the 
President's speeches, and in his March 2016 meeting with former 
Presidents Sam Nujoma and Hifikepunye Pohamba, he made sure to 
explain that the Harambee Prosperity Plan "will complement our 
National Development Plans and Vision 2030. 6 It therefore, 
recognises and builds on your successes and achievements. It is 
designed to have high impact and take us closer to the attainment 
of Vision 2030." The President has announced plans to reveal the 
Harambee Prosperity Plan during his 2016 State of the Nation 
Address in mid-April 2016.

Encouragingly, there has also been positive action to follow on the 
promises made in his unifying inaugural speech. For example, he 
took action on increasing the old age pension grant from the measly 
N$600 previously granted to the elderly to N$1,000 in 2015 and 
N$1,100 for the current budget year (with another increase expected 
in 2017), in an effort to help reduce poverty; and has announced 
the creation of food banks to reduce food insecurity in the 
country, which has now been budgeted for in the 2016-2017 budget. 
Analysts have cautioned that the food banks should not become a 
bureaucratic burden and efforts should be made to ensure the 
intended recipients of food aid are the ones who receive the 
support. In this regard, the exact modalities of the plan are still 
unknown, although the Cuban government will provide support and 
advice based on their own experiences. He has also announced the 
introduction of a Basic Income Grant, although the details are 
still far from clear.

Related to poverty reduction efforts and the extension of 
opportunities for all, the President has also done well in seeing 
through reforms set out by his predecessor for free secondary 
education. His major challenge with regards to education, however, 
is ensuring that learners receive high quality education to enhance 
their life chances, and to fully exploit their potential. A clear 
strategy to enhance educational outcomes remains unclear.

With regards to governance, President Geingob has also made various 
efforts to ensure that his administration is delivering on the 
promises made to the people. He requested all Ministers to submit 
their Declarations of Intent to "outline their promises to the 
public". He held an induction seminar for Cabinet members early on 
in his Presidency "to take Cabinet through key important concepts, 
thinking and approaches that will mark the tenure of my Presidency. 
These include: good governance and ethics, poverty eradication, 
reduction of income disparities, accelerated economic growth, job 
creation and rapid industrialization." And he ensured that 
Performance Agreements (in line with the Declarations) were set in 
place to monitor the performance of his Ministers.

President Geingob has worked hard to ensure he remains a true 
ambassador of his Namibian House analogy, in which "no Namibian 
should feel left out", and, as promised, the focus of his efforts 
have remained on mending socio-economic gaps in Na- mibian society 
(particularly on poverty reduction). His public engagement through 
town hall meetings was evidence of this. According to his reports 
on these meetings, "During the period under consideration, we 
covered close to 14 thousand kilometers on road and by plane, sat 
into a collective 93 hours of town hall meet- ings, listening 
attentively to participants and meticulously documenting questions, 
observations and suggestions. We received in excess of 2400 
questions and ideas from Namibians from all walks of life. We are 
committed to respond to all questions in a formalized manner." At 
this stage, we can only assume that the formalized manner in which 
these questions will be responded to is in the embodiment of the 
Harambee Plan.

The President's consultative approach could also be seen in his 
meeting with members of the Affirmative Repositioning movement on 
the issue of urban housing, engaging the public on social media 
platforms (particularly on his Facebook page), and ensuring that 
public input is sought on critical Bills such as the New Equitable 
Economic Empowerment Framework, which deals with the economic 
transformation he spoke of in his 2015 SoNA. He has noted that, "We 
will continue engaging and consulting with stakeholders like 
farmers, the media, trade unions, youth, women and the private 
sector. These consultations will go hand in hand with a drive 
towards implementation and transformation of workable suggestions 
into actions." The 24 July 2015 consultations with the AR movement 
resulted in a plan to clear tens of thousands of plots countrywide 
for forthcoming housing projects aimed at low earners.

The President received praise – along with First Lady, Monica 
Geingos – for setting a personal example in declaring his assets. 
In his speech on that day, he stated that, "It is clear that in 
administering a nation, one has to be transparent and accountable. 
It is for this reason that I have decided to declare my assets in 
public, for your scrutiny." During that press conference, it was 
declared that, "Geingob's assets are worth over N$50 million while 
the First Lady's assets range from N$45 to N$60 million in equity."

...

The Misses

Despite the above-noted 'hits', the President has also missed some 
key opportunities to really shine, and to respond to the pressing 
needs of our time.

While pushing the poverty eradication agenda, he has been seen to 
spend excessively on a big government (with some Ministries having 
more than one Deputy Minister), as well as highly paid advisors, 
some of whom reportedly earn more than Ministers. While the 
Constitution does provide for the President to have advisors, the 
pay packages awarded to these advisors and to the extra Deputy 
Ministers have raised concern amongst analysts, and has added an 
extra burden on the state's coffers at the same time as Namibia's 
debt rises to worrying levels. While the amounts themselves may not 
be huge in terms of the budget as a whole, an expanded executive is 
symbolic and potentially sends the wrong message about priorities.

...

The size of the Executive, and the seeming excesses afforded to the 
President's advisors – dubbed the A team – have perhaps been the 
cause of the heaviest criticism the President has faced thus far. 
And while he means well in surrounding himself with the people he 
believes can best effect the change he wishes to create, many have 
continued to question the 'value add' of some of the advisors and 
what change they will actually effect. Indeed, given the expense of 
this team, and the clear need for transformation voiced by the 
President himself in his inaugural speech, one would hope for more 
concrete action. The President has announced that he will unveil 
the details of the Harambee Prosperity Plan during his second State 
of the Nation address, and there is hope that the socio-economic 
transformation that will come about as a result of the plan will 
bring about the prosperity the President has promised, and in so 
doing assure the nation of the advisors' value.

In response to the criticisms levelled with regard to the expense of 
the A-team (specifically responding to the criticism raised at The 
Namibian's #100DaysOfGeingob event), the President defended his 
selections, stating that: "There was commentary that the Namibian 
House is too expensive. I would like to say that any good house is 
expensive. Furthermore, one only worries about the expenses if the 
resources are being wasted without any delivery. It is therefore 
fair to give the Team Hage a chance and if it fails to deliver then 
you can pass a verdict. I have high expectations on the performance 
of these individuals, and will therefore be the first person to 
take them to task in case of non-performance."

...

The President has shown his defensive nature on several fronts, 
often claiming the media bends the truth, tells outright lies, or 
fails to understand his vision.

...

On fighting corruption, although the President set a positive 
personal example in declaring his assets, he has not insisted that 
members of Cabinet and other MPs be publicly accountable, and a new 
National Assembly asset register has yet to be published a year 
after MPs were sworn in. In this regard, although he has – in word 
– encouraged the disclosure of assets, he has missed important 
opportunities to show broader transparency and accountability by 
enforcing this practice at a broader level. Further, while his 
rhetoric on the fight against corruption has been strong, real 
action has been lacking, and there is some public skepticism about 
certain tenders that the President has been reported to have 
defended – e.g. the controversial airport tender and the Xaris 
deal, amongst others.

...

Unemployment (particularly youth unemployment) remains effectively 
unattended to, despite mentions of the problem in various speeches. 
Although the President has engaged the private sector on various 
platforms, this has not produced results in terms of job creation. 
Unlike the plans announced for welfare projects to ensure poverty 
reduction, when it comes to job creation and enterprise 
development, equally if not more important in reducing poverty and 
inequality, the Geingob administration has done little.

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Close all US military bases overseas!
| March 23, 2016 | 8:08 pm | Action | Comments closed

Please support this effort:

 

http://community.sumofus.org/petitions/close-all-u-s-military-bases-overseas

Neo-Nazi thugs confronted by socialists
| March 20, 2016 | 7:08 pm | Discrimination against communists, political struggle, Ukraine | Comments closed

https://www.facebook.com/redlondon17/videos/1989793131246068/?fref=nf

Condecorado Nicholas Maduro con la Orden Jose Marti
| March 20, 2016 | 2:50 pm | Cuba, political struggle, Venezuela | Comments closed