WINDHOEK – Government will during this financial year spend N$3.7 billion to protect national key points as well as the “territorial integrity” of the country, while N$377 million will go towards the VIP protection service for the country’s high-ranking political officials and foreign VIP guests.
Some of the national key points include military bases, police headquarters, government offices, the Bank of Namibia, courts, hospitals, residences of VIPs including State House and those of the two former presidents, parliament and other top government agencies.
N$509 million was budgeted to ensure safety in Windhoek and for the provision of ceremonial services, according to the Medium Term Expenditure Framework for 2015/16 to 2016/17 tabled in parliament last week.
The Minister of Safety and Security, Major-General (Rtd) Charles Namoloh said government needs to be vigilant at all times instead of acting when danger has already struck. According to Namoloh, who in the past also served as the minister of defence, some of the key points are guarded by the Namibian Police while the military safeguards others.
“Some points such as State House should be guarded by both the military and the police. The police provide internal guarding while the towers should be manned by the military to guard State House from outside,” he stated.
New Era last year reported that taxpayers forked out about N$300 million for the VIP directorate, which at the time had 1 861 members. The directorate resorts under the Namibian Police.
The figures, which were provided by the police, were only for personnel and not for other work that the directorate has to carry out such as equipping vehicles with safety features, weapons and so forth.
All those dedicated to the protection of the president, prime minister and his deputy, Cabinet, speaker and deputy speaker of the National Assembly, chairperson and vice-chairperson of the National Council, governors and other VIPs have to undergo a four-week VIP bodyguard course.
VIP operations include guarding politicians and visiting dignitaries.
On average each government official classified as a VIP has at least three protection personnel, including a bodyguard, driver and a guard at the private residence.
VIP officers have in the past complained of alleged abuse at the hands of their principals whom they claimed do not take their needs into consideration.
The complaints ranged from working long hours to no meals during working hours and mistreatment by those they guard.
“Sometimes you drive the principal to the restaurant and you wait in the car until they finish eating, while you don’t eat and you are not allowed to go and get food for yourself,” one of the VIP police officers was quoted saying last year by one of the local daily newspapers.
“If you drive away while the principal is eating just to get a quick bite, you get reprimanded for driving the car. But I am hungry because I have been driving and protecting the person the entire day, from morning, without going out of sight.”
Another bodyguard said as part of their job, they are at times asked to taste food before the VIPs eat, to ensure it is not laced with poison.
“We are also human beings. How do we stay hungry the entire day, except for tasting the food and afterwards go outside? The worst part of it all is that you have to stay with the person until whatever time of the day they want to go home,” bemoaned the guard.