Works and Transport minister Veikko Nekundi has accused senior managers, board of directors and executives under the ministry of failing Namibians through delays, excuses and lack of urgency.
He went further to warn that accountability will be enforced without fear or favour.
Addressing executives last week, Nekundi said the ministry was operating “in a neutral gear”, despite the suffering of citizens caused by outdated laws, poor service delivery and stalled reforms. Nekundi said the era of delays, excuses and what he called “neutral gear” leadership must come to an end.
He warned that accountability would be enforced from the top.
“In simple terms, meaning that those who will in any way contribute to any failure of a critical assignment will be called to task,” Nekundi said.
The minister said inefficiency had been allowed to thrive in the public service, with serious consequences for citizens.
“Many a time we have allowed inefficient ambassadors to walk freely in the corridors of public environments, most of which have negatively affected this ministry’s performance and agency,” he said.
Using a vehicle analogy, Nekundi said the ministry was failing to move forward because leadership was operating without urgency. “We are doing things in a neutral gear to not move. Gear 1: by June, the system will collapse. People have suffered,” he said.
Nekundi said the time for “business as usual” had passed, and that the 8th administration demanded a complete shift in attitude and performance.
“We are all called upon to ensure that we adhere to the set timelines. We must be reminded of the 8th administration measure, business as usual, and indeed, business as usual must be reloaded,” he said.
He warned that failure would no longer be tolerated.
He stressed that ministries and agencies exist to perform specific functions, and failure to do so has consequences.
“If we are not performing, we are not important here,” he said.
Nekundi warned that non-performance must carry consequences at all levels, including ministers, boards, CEOs and managers.
He criticised a system where employees at non-performing entities still receive bonuses, saying accountability must apply equally to everyone under Article 18 of the Constitution.
He accused management of lacking dedication and discipline, particularly in handling legislation. “We find more reasons to send them back. We find more reasons to knock off at 17h00 or quarter to. We find more reasons to be in offices at 8h00 and not 7h54,” he said.
Critical bills
Nekundi said the ministry had failed to deliver several key bills that are meant to improve road safety, transport regulation, construction empowerment and maritime security.
“Last year, we were set to deliver on bills and regulations, such as the Road Bill, Public Passenger Transport Bill, Road Safety Management Bill, Quality Surveyors Bill, Construction Industry Bill, and the Merchant Shipping Amendment Bill,” he said. He added, “All these bills I’ve mentioned, none of them have entered the doors of Parliament.”
The minister said the failure to finalise legislation was directly harming citizens. “Some laws are outdated.
People are suffering because of those laws,” Nekundi said. He said the delays had real consequences, including high traffic fines, unsafe roads and weak regulation.
“Analysing these bills will solve the outcries such as the high traffic fines and the associated fines that our citizens are suffering from on a daily basis,” he said.
Nekundi said Namibia was losing marine resources because the law governing shipping and maritime surveillance dated back to 1951.
“These vessels are now coming here, switching off their systems, but we cannot detect them, and they are stealing our fish,” he said.
“Our fish has been stolen because of an outdated law… 1951. Economically, we are suffering,” Nekundi said.
Namibians first
The minister said the construction industry must be transformed to benefit locals.
“These bills are required for us to empower our people in the construction industry and not this current scenario where we have the dominance of foreign-owned companies dominating the construction industry at the expense of our own people. Namibians first. Namibians first,” he stressed.
Nekundi reminded managers that public office was not about comfort. “We cannot allow our people to suffer while we are buying air-conditioned homes, driving beautiful cars and living in nice houses,” he said.
He said he would resign if he failed to serve the public.
“I volunteer to resign if I’m not acting in the best interest of our people,” Nekundi said.
Maintenance
The minister said inefficiencies in procurement and maintenance were unacceptable.
“We cannot have a procurement of a wiper or a simple fuse taking six months,” he said.
On government vehicles, he issued a direct order.
“Any car that is not roadworthy must pay the fine. Accountable managers must pay personally,” Nekundi said. He warned managers to resolve labour issues or face direct intervention.
