REPUBLIC OF NAMIBIA
STATEMENT BY
HIS EXCELLENCY DR HAGE G. GEINGOB,
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF NAMIBIA
ON THE OCCASION OF THE FIRST CABINET MEETING OF HIS TERM OF
OFFICE
MARCH 31, 2015
WINDHOEK
Your Excellency Dr. Nickey Iyambo, the Vice President,
Right Honourable Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, Prime Minister,
Honourable Netumbo Nandi Ndaitwah, Deputy Prime Minister,
Honourable Ministers,
Secretary General of the SWAPO Party,
Secretary to the Cabinet,
Members of the Media,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I would like to begin by welcoming all of you to State House and to the Cabinet
Chamber in particular. Some amongst you are familiar with this room and have
become accustomed to attending Cabinet Meetings on a regular basis.
However, for a number of you, this marks the beginning of a new chapter in
your careers and I have these words to share with you. Joel Osteen said the
following about new beginnings and I quote, “Let go of yesterday. Let today be
a new beginning and be the best that you can, and you’ll get to where God
wants you to be.”
Comrades, as the quote says, forget about yesterday, focus on the path ahead
and fulfill your God given destinies. Many of you have the potential to become
part of the leadership legacy of this country in future, but the hard work begins
here, in Cabinet. So I congratulate all of you on your appointments as
members of Cabinet. You are here based on merit, not luck, so carry
yourselves with pride, loyalty and a collective spirit as we open a new chapter
in our nations history.
I am proud to see how far we have come as a country when I look at the mix of
our Cabinet and the government in particular. We have seven (7) women in
Cabinet up from five (5) that we had in the past and in total we have twenty-two
(22) women in total when you combine ministers and deputy ministers. As far
as men are concerned, we have a total of thirty - five (35) men in total when
you combine ministers and deputy ministers. So in terms of gender balance
we are making progress.
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Members of Cabinet,
Based on the Cabinet Handbook, the role and importance of Cabinet in terms
of the functioning of the State is clearly defined as follows, “Cabinet as the
focus of executive power is not only responsible for policy formulation but
also for overseeing its implementation. Effective operation of the Cabinet is
therefore essential to the smooth running of the state machinery which, in
turn, requires, as a first step, the establishment of appropriate procedures for
its efficient functioning.”
I therefore urge all of you, whether new or experienced, whether young or old,
to familiarize yourselves with the Cabinet Handbook. Make it an essential part
of your briefcases and revisit it regularly. As the final sentence in the foreword
of the Handbook reads, “Adherence to these rules, regulations and procedures
by all ministers and civil servants will contribute greatly to facilitating the
smooth running of the government business.”
It is important to realize that members of Cabinet are required to carry out their
individual as well as collective responsibility. Know what a team is and how it
works because this is an essential part of success. Individual and collective
responsibility requires that each member of the Cabinet fulfills his or her
personal duties and functions and his or her obligation as a member of the
Cabinet. The Cabinet Handbook states, “As administering and executing the
functions of the government require, in large measure, the determination and
execution of policy, it is in these areas where the collective responsibility of
the Cabinet is most acute.” Therefore it is crucial that we work together and
form a dedicated unit, built on the principles of commitment and
professionalism.
Members of Cabinet,
For the Cabinet to work efficiently, a systematic approach is necessary. We
can only have a systematic approach if we are familiar with the role that we
play in the system. All Ministers should note that their responsibilities as
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members of the Cabinet are laid down in Article 40 of the Constitution. I advise
that you all familiarize yourselves with these detailed roles but let me highlight
some of them briefly.
“Ministers are expected to direct, coordinate and supervise the activities of
ministries and government departments including parastatal enterprises
and to advise the President and the National Assembly on the desirability
and wisdom of any prevailing subordinate legislation, regulations or orders
pertaining to such parastatal enterprises, regard being had to public
interest;”
There are eleven other roles clearly outlined in the handbook. As for the
Deputy Ministers, their primary function is to assist their ministers in the
running of their ministries on a day-to-day basis. The deputy ministers should
therefore be fully briefed by their permanent secretaries about the activities of
their ministries.
I was therefore perplexed when I read in the Namibian Newspaper of March 27,
2015 that several Deputy Ministers claimed that, “they have become models
who just come to the office to read newspapers throughout the day because
they have nothing else to do.” To such individuals I must appeal that if they
are uncomfortable, they should resign. We have a collective responsibility to
handle matters of Government through the relevant structures and ministers
should not run to the media as soon as there is a hint of difficulty or
disagreement.
The Cabinet Handbook is clear and I quote, “As clarity of purpose and focus
on the scope and functions of their ministries are vital for effectively executing
ministerial responsibilities, ministers are invited to consult the President or
the Prime Minister in case there is any doubt on any of the basic policy
issues.”
Therefore it is clear as to what the sources of recourse are for
Ministers should they have any queries or doubts about policy issues. So if
there are Ministers who disagree with these guidelines or have any doubts
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about their role, it is best for such individuals to do the honourable thing and
resign. I will even help them resign.
Ministerial Accountability is another matter that the Cabinet Handbook is very
clear on. Let me quote the following, “All ministers are individually
accountable to the President and the Parliament for the policies and
administration of their own ministries.” It goes on to say, “…ministers must
accept responsibility for the administration of their ministries, and, if not
satisfied with the administration, take corrective action.”
In order to assist Ministers and Deputy Ministers in the areas of accountability,
they will soon receive their Terms of Reference outlining Key Performance
Indicators on which their performance will be gauged.
It is crucial that Ministers and their deputies know what is expected from them.
They should have a work plan and vision. The vision and work plan will map
out a five year delivery system with clear and well defined deliverables. Similar
to Vision 2030 and the National Development Plans, leaders in Government will
have to develop five year annual plans with work schedules that should be
reviewed weekly, monthly, quarterly and annually to gauge themselves. This
system calls for leadership from top down, meaning everyone from the
President, Vice President, Prime Minister, Ministers and Permanent Secretaries
should work according to a clear-cut plan.
For long there has been a culture of people not owning up to their
responsibilities. It is what I term, “Passing the buck syndrome.” This must be
eliminated as soon as possible because it seems we have become experts at
passing the buck. We need to weed out this ugly culture and adopt a more
progressive approach in which those who perform will be rewarded and those
who don’t perform will have to bear the consequences of non-performance. In
other words, I want Ministers must to take charge of their Ministries and lead
from the front.
Members of Cabinet,
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The second-phase of the struggle is well and truly underway. We need to make
haste and fire the first salvo, in unison, in the spirit of harambee. This is why I
have declared all out war on poverty, making it a priority to remove our most
vulnerable citizens from cruel grip of hunger, homelessness and squalor. The
focus of this administration is therefore to address the prevailing inequalities
in the socio-economic architecture. This will involve looking at a range of
choices of how to go about redressing a myriad of imbalances which exist due
to the policies of past systems which promoted racial of exclusion.
During my recent discussions with the Minister of Finance, we were looking at
low hanging fruit which could help make an immediate impact that could set
the tone for our fight against poverty and inequality. There is an opportunity,
with the upcoming budget, for us to increase the old age pension from N$ 600
to N$ 1000. The psychological impact of such an increase should not be
underestimated.
According to a paper by Ousmane Faye titled Basic Pensions and Poverty
Reduction in Sub-Saharan Africa, it states that it is now common knowledge in
developing countries that an important role in supporting and improving the
lives of older people and reducing poverty. The study also mentions that
poverty among older people is generally low in countries where a generous
pension exists such as in Brazil, Chile or South Africa.
In South Africa, the old age pension is 1350 Rand and 1370 Rand for those
who are over 75 years of age. According to Word Bank statistics, South Africa
has a GDP per capita of US$ 6,618 while Namibia’s GDP per capita stands at
US$ 5,693. So if we are able to increase our old age pension to N$ 1000, we
would place ourselves in an advantageous position given the fact that South
Africa has a much larger economy than Namibia.
Members of Cabinet,
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My predecessor Comrade Hifikepunye Pohamba has left in place a solid
foundation on which we can build the next level of the Namibian House. And
that level will be of prosperity and equitable wealth distribution. It is a tall
order, given the global economic and geo political flux. However, it is not an
insurmountable one. I believe that we have an opportunity before us to form a
formidable Executive Branch that will be able to achieve and surpass the most
ambitious targets. We have the right mix of age, experience, wisdom and
energy. If we are prepared to trust one another, confide in one another, mentor
one another and support one another, then I am sure that in future, we will
look upon this moment as a moment in which we began sketching out the
blueprint for prosperity.
So let’s form a united front. Like Mattie Stepanek said, “Unity is strength ...
when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved.”
I encourage you as Members of the Executive branch to adopt the culture of
unity and transfer it to your staff in all Offices/Ministries/Agencies. Let’s
ensure that there is no O/M/A where management meetings don’t take place
and let’s ensure that the spirit of harambee becomes a part of our
organisational DNA.
As President I avail myself to inspire, guide, motivate, instruct, mentor and
spur you on to achieve your God given potential. But I can only be successful
in doing so if you make a concerted effort to meet me halfway. I am excited to
begin this next mission in my life and it is a challenge I am approaching with a
sense of renewed vigour and exuberance.
When I took the oath of office on Saturday 21 March 2015, I declared all out
war on poverty with confidence not only in my own abilities as the Head of
State but with confidence in all the members of the Executive Branch knowing
full well that you possess the strength in character, the patriotism and the
talent to ensure that we win this war.
I look forward to working with you as we prepare to write a new chapter in the
book of Namibia history. Let us dedicate ourselves to serving the nation and
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remain vigilant to ensure that the scourges of apartheid, tribalism and
colonialism do not again manifest themselves in any form.
Long live the Republic of Namibia and God bless you all.
I thank you.
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