1.          Thirteen years after independence I am telling myself every day not to be overwhelmed by negative things but to count our blessings.  I am still glad to say that I think Namibia is still the best country in Africa to live in, I am still glad that we can have a budget as was introduced by the Honourable Minister of Finance and I want to congratulate him and his helpers with the product.  But I also believe that we must not be so shortsighted as to close our eyes for red signal lights.  In any case I believe there are enough professionals to scrutinize the budget.  I want to use my time today to say something about Vision 2030.

1(a)    A few years ago the government of Namibia announced Vision 2030 without indicating itself what it actually concerns.  Everybody was asked to deliver an input.

2.       I do not think it is wrong to have dreams and aspirations.  Although I also do not always agree with the interpretation thereof, I think it is important to refer to the saying that politics is the art of what is possible.  People are asking bread to eat now and they are not interested in the recipe of bread that will be only ready baked in thirty years time.  Academic exercises can anyhow serve a good purpose.  Whether it can be achieved is something else.  Almost without exception our various Ministers of Finance during the last thirteen years indicated that one of the most important reasons for them not to achieve their yearly targets was international and other circumstances beyond their control.  In that case it will play a much bigger role over a period of thirty years.

3.       When I read for the first time about Vision 2030 I could not help to think about what the apostle James wrote in the Bible.  James 4:13-17:  “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit’;

          Whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow.  For what is your life?  It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.

          Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.’

          But now you boast in your arrogance.  All such boasting is evil.

          Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.”

4.          Therefore, what is very important, is not what we intend to achieve but our point of departure.  Few of us will be still living in 2030 to take responsibility.  And to whom will we report back.  Only uninformed and immature voters will allow politicians to take them in tow with such promises.

5.       For purposes of this Budget debate I nevertheless decided to play the game and also to give a few of my prophecies or visions for what will happen with the governments Vision 2030.  In the year 2030 I will be hardly 95 years old and therefore still quite in a position to remind you of my forecasts.  Otherwise students of those years who are yet not born may look it up in the Minutes of the National Assembly of the year 2003.

6.       Please note it is not about my dreams for the year 2030, but the inevitable and the fatal results of government policy as I see it.  Without been complete I want to sum it up as follows.

6(a)    Under the influence of globalisation and the secular state philosophy of SWAPO the new Namibian culture will be a collective result of mostly everything negative in the world, the humanistic West and mainly America.

6(b)          Although it will still be the popular criticism of politicians that the white man is responsible for everything that went wrong the real friction will not be longer between white and black, but between those advantage and those disadvantage, between rich and poor and it will be keep under control by the power of the rich and the elite.

6(c)    The campaign against aids according to the present method of safe sex would have failed.  Only those with stabile and high moral values will survive.  That also concerns the prevention of crime and unemployment.  It will not succeed without law enforcement and a capable police force.

6(d)    On regional and continental level in Africa, Namibia, will as a result of the number of its population plays approximately the same roll as the Monitor Action Group at present in the National Assembly of Namibia.  Namibia will not have any numerical voting power except, maybe, as a result of an influx from Eastern countries.

6(e)          Education will succeed as far as the accommodation of numbers are concerned but fail as far as balanced results are concerned.  The emphasis will be on the training of well-equipped workers and the richness of the state and not balanced and worthy citizens.

6(f)    The last, and you may shout hurrah!  There will not be a single white Afrikaans speaking teacher left in the public schools of Namibia.

6(g)    In conclusion there is anyhow a positive ray of light.  The institution, in which hands it still humanly lies to restore stability, is the black Christian Churches.

          Let me elaborate on these six points.

6(a)    A SECULAR STATEPHILOSOPHY

          I cannot explain how the President of Namibia, during recent years accused negative cultural influences from the West to be responsible for the going down, the decay in Namibia’s culture and discipline while it was exactly the SWAPO-party who proposed it for our constitution and even state schools.  Shortly after independence it was also His Excellency the President himself who announced that secularism would be the state philosophy of Namibia.  About secularism there are different interpretations.  For example,  the separation of state and church as institutions and based on tolerance.  (In 1996 I have for example read the following in an “India Perspective”:  “…. Secularism in India, therefore, is not an imported concept.  It does not envisage a Godless society.  It is a typically Indian concept evolved as a result of centuries of common living by different communities and sects.  Over the passage of time a composite culture emerged in India which was based on secular principles and whose chief features were tolerance, peace, non-violence, synthesis, continuity and growth.  A secular society is essentially a tolerant society.”

          The other example is that of the separation between state and religion.  (That is the American and Western way.)  Namibia opted for the last approach.

          Approximately ten years ago I had the privilege to visit Australia.  I then asked an Australian Member of Parliament whether Australia is strongly influenced by the English culture.  To my surprise he answered, “No!”  Australia and especially its youth is stronger under American influence.

          Well, Namibia decided against mother tongue education and with that prepared the road for our children to be subjected from a very young age to a world language carrying good as well as bad influences.  Please remember the saying that one can only dream and pray in his mother tongue.  The same concerns the carrying over of traditional history, culture, habits and practises.

          I therefore foresee that in the year 2030 we will have a Namibian culture, which will be strongly based on an American secularism.

          SECULARISM

          What is of interest is that there is interesting and important differences between the humanistic Western form of secularism and the real Christian or even Moslem approach.   The humanistic West with America in a leading position believes in the separation of state and religion and that religion is a private aspect for every individual, practising it only in his private life.

          On the other hand you have the approach that state and church have different tasks and areas of jurisdiction but that you can never separate your state philosophy from your religious believes.  About this Christians and Moslems feel alike.

          What is also not so well known is that the “Bahai International community to the World Summit on Sustainable Development, 2002” in Johannesburg, seriously appealed to the United Nations to bring back religion in its activities.  That is exactly what I am pleading for in Namibia.   They asked for a permanent religious forum at the United Nations and said inter alia:  “The creation of this body would be an important initial step toward fully integrating religion into the UN’s work of establishing a peaceful world order”  (One Country/ July-Sept, 2002)

6(b)    RICH AND POOR

          In 1930, that is 73 years ago the population figures for the then S.W.A. was about 32 000 whites against 260 000 black and brown.  Today it is about 50 000 whites against

1 776 854 black and brown.  In percentage there thus was 12,30% white people in 1930 against 2,8 % white people in 2001 in Namibia.

          Spokesmen of SWAPO and especially Ministers like to allege that the richness of Namibia is in the hands of only 10% of the population and then to implicate that those 10% are the whites.  Please note that from those 10% less than 3% are white.

          Black and brown in Namibia have the “richness” of numbers (votes) in their favour with which they could take over the government and “buy” many other advantages.  Unfortunately the high population rate has as a result also unemployment and lower income for the masses.

          At the same tempo the whites will be less than 1% in 2030.  If the government has, after thirteen years, not succeeded to narrow, the gap between rich and poor, it will also not succeed towards 2030.  Ten percent of a mainly black population will possess and control.

          SAFE SEX

6(c)    Mainly the fight against aids and crime cannot succeed if the causes are not removed.  In both cases a normless community without values and law enforcement are the reasons.  Only think about the violence and abuse of women and children.  The pornographic manner in which the so-called “safe sex” is propagated, even in our schools, rather encouraging sex than something else.  Please go and look at the tremendous big advertisement on the Centaurus school grounds, which encourage the use of condoms and you will recognise what I am trying to say.

Quite incidentally I laid my hand on a newspaper clipping of The Namibian, 3 December 1991.  The heading was, “Shejavali shuns condoms at World AIDS Day rally”.  And it inter alia reads:   “Despite worldwide medical opinion to the contrary, CCN Director Abisai Shejavali has decided ‘condoms are not a safeguard (against AIDS)’ and feels ‘they should not be promoted’.

“Shejavali claimed the current drive to make condoms more easily available ‘ will only excite the people and incite them to commit adultery’.”

“The only way to combat AIDS was to promote the idea of ‘one husband one wife’, he said.”

          That was prophetic words.  Even more so at the year 2030 it will be very clear that Namibia with its secular and neutral schools have produced serious negative results.

          In passing, as far as the campaign against Aids are concerned Namibia is also trespassing, “The African Charter on the rights and welfare of the child” because Art. 1(1)(a) prohibits the “inducement, coercion or encouragement of a child to engage in any sexual activity.”

          Also towards 2030 the failure or unwillingness of the government to apply law-enforcement, especially also as far as the actions of the masses are concerned, will have taken its toll.

6(d)          NUMERICAL FACTOR

          Towards 2030 Namibia will be numerically chopped down in the Regional and African Parliaments.  Although now, with the departure, there will be equal representation, Namibia has already agreed that the one-person one vote could already be installed towards 2030.  Namibia will be in an even worst position than Monitor Action Group at present in the National Assembly.  If Namibia at that stage would ask for another formula, the question may arise why was it  never implemented at home?

          Why the continuous efforts to eliminate MAG and other minority groups on the strength of numbers while the same fate is awaiting Namibia?

6(e)          EDUCATION:  UPBRINGING AND TRAINING

          Towards 2030 it would be proved clearly that education of the masses has failed.    The only children who will remain standing will be those in which education and upbringing by the parents and churches could play the major role.  In the New Era of 13-16 January 2003, under the heading, “Brains alone not good enough”, I inter alia read the following:  “To succeed in the world, it is not enough to be intelligent, but one must also be well mannered,’ goes a quotation from French philosopher, Voltaire.” That is exactly what I am saying all the time.

          I have often referred to the fact that we must clearly distinguish between training and education or upbringing.  Right through I got the impression that the government of Namibia rather wants to emphasise the training of workers, especially in the field of technology to exploit the riches of the country for the benefit and prestige of the state.  Often   I have warned that we are dealing with human beings and not with animals.  One can train a dog or a monkey to fulfil certain functions, but you can never educate an animal to develop a certain character like a human being.  Upbringing and education that do not succeed to provide balanced, norm orientated, disciplined and citizens full of character, have failed.

          To achieve this you need teachers to convey, to transfer it to other.  It therefore starts with the kind of education of your teachers.  It is in this connection where Namibia stands to fail.

6(f)    NO WHITE AFRIKAANSSPEAKING TEACHER IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS

          Interesting enough when I was responsible for White Education on our Executive Committee during the seventies and eighties, we tried in vain to motivate English-speaking learners to study for teachers in our Windhoek Teachers College.  Because we understood that they may feel they might not be at ease in an Afrikaans speaking Teachers College we even offered them bursaries at English-speaking Colleges in the R.S.A.  But even then they were not interested.  During my time always more than 50% of the teachers at for example the Centaurus School were Afrikaans and German speaking teachers teaching in English.

          I will therefore accept that personal choice (which is not necessarily based on race) is also playing a role why Afrikaans speaking students do not go to an English University to be taught as teachers in a humanistic and secular way in a total strange cultural environment.

          I also accept that the secular kind of education is discouraging many students.  Nobody wants to teach against his/her will strange philosophies of life.  No Roman Catholic Priest will for example think it is acceptable for him to get his education at a Protestant theological school.

          Which is playing a bigger role than is recognised, in the resignation of teachers, is the provocation under which black learners (and in an increasing sense also white learners) are placing the teachers.  With discipline out of the window and no appropriate way to maintain authority in our schools, it is not agreeable for any teacher to bear the stress anymore.

          Sometimes I also get the impression that senior officials, who are working with teachers, very easily confuse conciliation with revenge!  With fortunate exceptions there are many teachers as well as parents who are not prepared to speak out, out of fear for requital. 

          But I am not afraid to say that the action of the bureaucracy sometimes reflects an attitude which is not the same as that what we experienced in this august House and from the Honourable Minister and his Honourable Deputy Minister of Education.

          Often in the past I said it, and I want to repeat it.  If I would ask all the Honourable Ministers in this Assembly, as well as their officials, which international agreements concerning their ministries did this august House ratify, they will not know.  If I would ask the officials what the contents of these agreements are, they would not know.  If I would ask them whether there are any of these agreements available in their ministerial libraries, they will not know.  If I would ask them and in particular the education officials, if they know whether according to these international agreements, communities, that is also Christian communities, are entitled to educate their own teachers to teach their children, they will be very surprised and say they were not aware of it.  If I would ask them whether they know that Art. 144 of the Constitution of Namibia read, “Unless otherwise provided by this Constitution or Act of Parliament, the general rules of public international law and international agreements binding upon Namibia under this Constitution shall form part of the law of Namibia.” they will tell me that their Minister has never told them about the importance of it.

          I foresee that the disregard of certain international agreements will also be the reason why certain Christian communities, who are worried about the education of their children, will be more and more restricted the liberty to establish private schools.

          In the year 2030, forced secular public schools will be the reason why education of the majority of our youth will not be a success, although they may be successful robot workers for the state.

 

6(g)    THE INFLUENCE OF THE BLACK CHRISTIAN CHURCHES

          But let me acknowledge that if it was not for the black Christian churches (and let me add Christian politicians) Namibia would have failed to a bigger degree.  The influence of the black churches on government over the last 13 years of independence must not be underestimated.  It is in sharp contradiction to the apparent disinterest of a big group of our white, black and brown parents as far as their children are concerned.

          After the murder on the 17 year old schoolgirl (Ipula Akwenye) of the Delta Secondary School, Windhoek, it was inter alia reported:  “Nandi-Ndaitwah appealed to religious organisations to give spiritual counselling to their members and other people in their communities.”  (The Namibian, 5 February 2003)

I appreciate this attitude of the Honourable Minister but I have to point out that it is the schools that have to fulfil this function because they are mainly occupying our children’s time.  Parents and mainly parents of children in hostels, as a result of the time factor does not any more have that influence, while the churches are seeing the children about one hour in a week.

          The philosophy of life of our children will be determine by the fact whether black Christians and other religions will succeed in striking the balance between rights and responsibilities.  Millions of dollars are spent in Namibia to teach our people and learners about their rights according to Western humanistic concept.  At the same time not much is being done to emphasize the very important aspect of responsibilities.  The obvious outcome is the collapse of moral values and discipline.  The Bill of Responsibilities of the Christian is the Ten Commandments.

8.       One of the reasons why I could not agree 100% with the Constitution of Namibia was just as a result of this.  But in Volume 1, p. 175 of the “Constituent Assembly of Namibia”, 29 January 1990, and please remember it was before independence, I read the following interesting statement by myself, “Recently the honourable member Mr Nahas Angula, in one of his requests, appealed to the teachers, parents and children, asking them to accept their responsibilities.  I cannot do otherwise than to welcome it and to fully agree which are giving me hope for the future.

‘Mr Chairman, if members of this Assembly feel that they are not capable of dealing with such a delicate and complicated matter, as for example the question of responsibilities itself, then please leave it to the honourable member Mr Angula and myself.  LAUGHTER.  But please, try and make it easy for us.’”

9.       After 13 years I have not given up hope.  The Honourable Nahas Angula and I will continue our fight in solidarity!

10.     In Conclusion.  The principle point of view of Monitor Action Group is Unity in Diversity on a non-compulsory basis, in line with the concerned articles in the Namibian Constitution as well as international agreements, in which the balance between rights and responsibilities is looked for.  If this is not taken into account we foresee problems for Vision 2030, even if it is dish up in whatever nice terms.