This column earlier this year had a headline ‘How does Namibia mirror itself?’ – where I took issue with the fact that none from our country made it on the New African magazine’s list of most influential African personas, released last December.
I was adamant that the conspicuous absence of any fellow Namibians from this list could not have been because surely there must have been, and many for that matter, women and men from our country who at one time or another during 2014 must have been noticeable in terms of their humble if not distinctive contributions in Politics and Public Service, Business and Economy, Civil Society and Activism, Religion and Tradition, Science and Academia, Media, Arts and Culture and Sport. This was predicated on the fact that our various media houses were abound with reviews of highlights of the year, with one or the other personas standing out for their remarkableness in one respect or another. Only to realise that as far as Africa is concerned, the Land of the Brave apparently did not seem last year to have produced any persona of note, even the bad ones if the country could not produce any good ones. Because the most influential in this regard in terms of the New Africa magazine did not only entail positivity but also negativity. Still not a single Namibian reached this list of honourables, let alone dishonourables, beaten in this regard by some unimaginable neighbouring countries with the media in the developed world making us believe that not any good shall ever emerge from our Continent, painted as the dark continent, for a long time until heaven knows, what happens.
Our neighbouring countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC), countries like Angola, South Africa, Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe, seemed to have received mixtures of positive and negative accolades in terms of influential personas in their midst in 2014. But not Namibia, whether positive or negative?
This made me wonder whether the praises that the local media and all and sundry have been showering on our would-be achievers or achievers and shakers, and even which the achievers have been showering on self, have been the only mirror through which we have been reflecting and mirroring ourselves as a people and a country? Hence, the question how Namibia mirrors herself? Less than three months down the line comes the good news of President Hifikepunye Pohamba receiving the Mo Ibrahim Achievement in African Leadership Award for 2014. This partly may squarely have answered my question and underlined that after all there is a global yardstick out there through which we can mirror ourselves as a people and as a country other than hollow and empty self-praises without any scientific yardstick or criteria on which to base such self-praises and/or own judgements of achievements and achieving.
Following the announcement of Pohamba receiving the Mo Ibrahim Prize, a debate followed as to what the criteria may have been, whether he is deserving it and that pitted against those shortlisted with him, he must have been an automatic choice. Some even hinted that given the close association with Namibia of some members of the Prize Committee, HE must have been an obvious choice which implies questioning the integrity of the Prize Committee.
But other than that one cannot but put much more premium on HE deserving the Mo Ibrahim Prize. If only for the prize laying the foundation and standard on which future and/or successive leaders would be judged on, and below which they would be conscious and conscientious not to degenerate. And this I consider the ultimate good for Namibia of President Pohamba winning the Mo Ibrahim Prize as Namibia embarks on seemingly uncharted waters of Hagenomics and Hagepolitics. The Founding Father, albeit with others, spearheaded the country towards freedom and sovereignty, as well as laying the first foundations for stability. President Pohamba solidified this but went further in putting governance on a close to sound foundation, hence the Mo Ibrahim Prize. Thus the former two, each in his own unique way, distinguished themselves. The onus is now on the next crop starting with Dr Hage Geingob. And like with the former two, one expects the country to rally behind him and not to have unprecedented higher and utopian expectations and hopes without rendering him the necessary backing, advice and even patience afforded his predecessors. But surely the Mo Ibrahim Prize lays the foundation for Namibian leaders to keep the standard that has been laid. There’s no reason at the end of his tenure, whether one or two, why Dr Geingob cannot be deserving of the Mo Ibrahim Prize? He has simply what it takes to deserve. It is his to lose at the end of his tenure!