Job Shipululo Amupanda
Last August I was scheduled to address Heroes Day in Manchester. Due to sabotage, I could not make it.
Understandably, organisers – the Community of Namibian in Great Britain (CNGB) – were disappointed.
Last week, one of CNGB members contacted me regarding the Russian land deal. She was concerned about her British business friends who interpreted the deal as an indicator that Namibia is, in her own words, the ‘The Real McCoy’ for foreigners.
They too, like the Russians, are planning to visit politicians to get their land for 99 years. I told her that Namibia is a 24 hours brothel for rich foreign imbeciles. I had to explain this discomforting comparison.
A brothel, a place of commercial sexual acts, has the following stakeholders; the manager and bouncers, the prostitutes and the clients. The prostitute is central in the brothel enterprise.
To a client, a prostitute is a tantalising object of desire, conquest and indulgence. A client is not concerned with the prostitute’s humanity. To a brothel manager and bouncers, a prostitute is a gold mine, a source of income.
Like the client, managers are not concerned with the prostitute’s humanity. Then there are relatives and parents who await God’s intervention for their own to terminate her relationship with the brothel.
Our country is in a similar state. Our country (brothel) has become a paradise for rich foreign imbeciles (clients) whose eyes are set on our resources (prostitute). Our leaders (managers and bouncers) stand ready to make our resources (prostitutes) available to rich foreign imbeciles (clients) for use (sexual exploits).
This has been happening from 1990 to date (24 hours) resulting in foreigners benefiting handsomely at Namibia’s expense (endless orgasms).
Our departed ancestor Frantz Fanon had long warned us about post-colonial Africa falling for neo-liberal universalism because of the unpreparedness and distance between the masses and the political elites.
The result, he argued, of “their cowardice at the decisive moment of the struggle will give rise to tragic mishaps.” It is as if he was looking at Namibia whose economic constitutional content was designed by foreigners, for foreigners.
For seven years from 1990 to 1996, the Bank of Namibia was ran by foreigner governors: Netherland’s Bernard (1990 -1991), Sweden’s Karlsson (1991 – 1993) and Malaysia’s Ahmad (1994 -1996). During the formulation of Vision 2030, a Nigerian consultant was appointed to be the brain behind Namibia’s then long-term strategic vision.
In the 2000s, an Indian consultant played a domineering role in the formulation of Namibia’s foreign policy, resulting in the 2004 adopted foreign policy white paper. Before feeble minds find cover in xenophobia, let’s immediately be clear that a country’s constitution, foreign policy and long-term development vision are not auction areas.
Indeed, these cannot be compared to waste management policy or photography. No serious country hands over these sovereign and patriotic spaces to outsiders. While a good neighbour can enter your kitchen and sitting room, it is extraordinary if they proceed to your bedroom. However, in a brothel all rooms are available to clients.
To Africans, pain and grief are personal. Foreigners were consulted by government and paid millions to ‘advise’ Namibians how to redress the results of the pain from the 1904 Herero and Nama genocide.
Foreigners are busy, for millions of dollars, drafting the crime prevention strategy. A few months ago, President Hage Geingob effectively disclosed that it was the Queen of England who caused government to abandon the 25 peercent clause in the New Equitable Economic Empowerment Framework (NEEEF).
To government, foreigners are royalty. Those who disagree must answer this simple question: Who enjoys access and trust of the head of state between tax fraud-accused Chinese national Jack Huang and Damara King Justus //Garoeb?
Both Johnny Johnson Doeseb (Namibian) and Chinese Stina Wu (Chinese) are in the construction and property development industry. While Doeseb has several qualifications, Wu was a mere alphabet teaching kindergarten teacher in China.
She is now a millionaire who donated N$600 000 to a private foundation of President Geingob’s wife. A simple question must be asked; between Wu and Doeseb, who has gotten more land for business from government?
How many Namibian companies got an opportunity to present their business ideas to Cabinet like the Chinese company, the Namibia Oriental Tobacco CC, that want to plant drugs, not food, on the fertile land of Zambezi?
Consider the Malaysian multinational group Ramatex that came to Namibia in the 2000s. The company got Windhoek land on a 99-year lease at a cost of only N$1 188.
The municipality spent N$80 million to service this land for the Malaysians, who were also allowed not to pay tax. The results were disastrous. After contaminating the Windhoek Aquifer (layer of underground water), flouting environmental laws, subjecting female employees to undergo pregnancy tests and other exploitations, Ramatex took the money made and left.
It was speculated then that pockets of Swapo elites were decorated by Malaysians. The Russian deal is the same. From the 99-year lease, flouting of environmental laws (given reports of disappearing wild animals and the burial of anthrax-infected rhinos) and the exploitation of workers.
It will not be surprising, given the high-gear defence of the dubious deal, that politician pockets were again populated. Our politicians can be bought for personal use, like a loaf of bread. While everyone is being asked to tighten their belts under supposed economic “headwinds”, the elite are loosening theirs in full gratification.
In 2012, Australians concluded a deal, outside Namibia, selling the country’s land to the Chinese for N$20 billion to set up Husab uranium mine. The Chinese gave Namibia only 10 percent shares in its own resources. To get this 10 percent share, Namibia got a loan about N$ 2 billion, from the same Chinese to buy these shares.
This loan will be repaid for 15 years, likely meaning that Namibia’s share would not yield anything for the country for the 15 years of the investment. Scandalously, Husab’s lifespan is between 20 to 25 years. Imagine Chinese packing up and leaving at the 16th year when Namibia is supposed to start benefiting.
In a brothel, a client can demand and do as he wishes to a prostitute. The Husab deal corroborates a brothel scenario.
The leaders will not help us. They have always been willing bouncers at the door of the brothel. As a Swapo chief whip in the National Assembly and later as a trade minister, President Geingob was paid by foreigners to facilitate the smoothening of their deals.
These same ‘investors’ are in French courts answering their relations with our president. He is a business partner with tax fraud accused Chinese Jack Huang. He recently, as chairperson of Cabinet, presided over the agreement that gave multiple farms to the Russian for 99 years.
There is now consensus that the brothel must be shut and prostitutes rescued for rehabilitation and reintegration in the new society. The bouncers and clients will not close the brothel but young men and women, with talent and energy.
The options are limited. In fact, there is only one option; radical. The 2018 gimmick land conference has demonstrated foolishness inherent in sitting with managers/bouncers, and clients, to discuss the negative impact of the brothel.
Without a radical intervention things can get worse – instead of losing a toe we may lose a leg. Without doubt, Namibia is a 24-hours rich foreigner’s brothel.
* Job Shipululo Amupanda is de-colonial scholar and activist from Omaalala village in northern Namibia.