Munyungano Musisanyani
Sibuku Malumbano
The Republic of Namibia gained its political independence on 21 March 1990 with its Constitution being adopted on the 9th of February 1989. In terms of legislation, Namibia is a democratic State in which democratic elections are held every after five years whereby political parties and leaders are to be elected to political power at all three levels of government namely, local, regional, and national.
In 1992, Namibia, through the legislative branch of government, the National Assembly, passed the Local Authority Act, Act 23 of 1992, which allowed for the establishment of local authorities and local government in Namibia. The Local Authority Act, Act 23 of 1992 makes provision for Local Authorities in Namibia to exercise both operational and financial obligations independently from the central government. By this, local political leaders are required to ensure service delivery to the people of Namibia. Hout (2015) observes that political leaders are virtually important through the authority of government because they facilitate the distribution of power and resources, build relationships with other stakeholders and make decisions that can have a great impact on the well-being of a nation and its people (Cohen, 2018).
Moving forward, the main purpose of any public service globally is to promote the general welfare of the citizens of that specific country (Keyter, 2019). As far as the strongly felt organisational goal of public service is concerned, it should be most evident in the local and regional sphere of government since it represents the place in government where people’s most basic needs should be taken care of. High levels of underdeveloped communities, especially in far-off, remote and rural communities, mean that there is often a high level of dependence on government. There are many policy directives that emphasise the need for a strong sense of service delivery in local and regional government.
These include the provisions in the Local Authority Act, section 30, and Regional Council Act, section 28, stating that local and regional government should ensure the provision of services to local-regional communities in a sustainable manner and that services must be provided impartially, fairly, equitably and without bias. Despite these provisions and other legislative prescriptions regarding service orientation, there are many views that suggest that local-regional government falls short as far as service orientation is concerned (Scholtz, 2021).
Having said that, service delivery entails the socio-economic provision of goods and services such as roads, schools, and hospitals (Zinyama, 2021). Accordingly, this peace gives a synopsis of service delivery in the Sibbinda Constituency of the Zambezi region.
Background
Sibbinda constituency is one of the electoral constituencies of the Zambezi region. Unlike other constituencies, which are homogeneous, Sibbinda is a sundry and manifold ward. It has a population of about 10 182 people (Namibia Statistics Agency, 2011). It is worth noting that, when the population of a community increases the demand for services increases as well. As there has been change in the population size of Sibbinda, there has also been a change in the local political leadership of the constituency. During the November 2020 Regional and Local Authority elections, Mumbali Lukaezi of the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) was elected as the new councillor for Sibbinda after defeating the long-standing South West Africa People’s Organization (Swapo) incumbent councillor, Ignatius Chunga. Lukaezi’s victory brought euphoria and many expectations in anticipation of greater social and economic development. As a former Swapo member, the newly elected councillor was seen as the man to transform the Constituency because he worked under the incumbent councillor with the forecast that he was familiar with the role. However, after three years in office, the constituency seems to be on autopilot with no social and developmental initiatives taking a centre stage.
According to the Namibian Index of Multiple Deprivation (NIMD) (2015), which is a composite index reflecting five dimensions of deprivation: material deprivation, employment deprivation, health deprivation, education deprivation and living environment deprivation, Sibbinda is ranked among Namibia’s twenty poorest constituencies, claiming the 12th position. Furthermore, Sibbinda is ranked poorly on the overall NIMD thus withering in the 14th position. Moreso, Sibbinda is one of Namibia’s twenty most environment-deprived constituencies succumbing to 10th position. The living environment deprivation domain measures both inadequacy in housing conditions and a lack of basic services to the home by determining the proportion of people living in a household without electricity, paraffin or solar power for lighting and/or without adequate toilet facilities and/or without adequate water provision and/or living in a shack and/or in overcrowded conditions (Namibia Index of Multiple Deprivation Report, 2015). Shockingly, Sibbinda with its agricultural potential due to flat and well-drained soils remain one of the least developed in the Zambezi region. Initiating agricultural projects can improve people’s living conditions. Worryingly, the current political leadership in charge of the affairs of the constituency has been accused of gross incompetency and ignorance, and the constituency head is hardly seen to attend to public concerns. Worst of all, the previous councillor was accused of allocating constituency resources to his close cronies which left the general populace fuming!
Challenges
Lack of planning to build a constituency. It is of paramount importance to ensure that, before you stand for any political leadership role, learn about the challenges faced by the electorates. There are a lot of challenges which are facing the Sibbinda ward such as lack of economic activities, poor service delivery such as information provision on constituency affairs, lack of health facilities, lack of community projects to enhance the living standards of the electorates, skewed water infrastructures (especially boreholes), skewed electricity supply, lack of capacity building, lack of youth-related activities and the list is endless. What is the constituency head doing to address these challenges?
Lack of dedication: Taking up the challenge to run the constituency is easy, but continuing with the pace to do so is the most difficult part. The constituency councillor should be dedicated to igniting active participation of the electorates in decision-making. However, what one can observe is that the councillor only associates himself with those he can dribble and corner only. Once he associates himself with only those he can easily manipulate, the councillor loses his ultimate mandate as a constituency representative. The Hon. councillor should be available to all.
Lack of community engagement: As the constituency leader, there is a need to concentrate on the interactions between community members for its growth and strengthen the community participation in decision-making. It is important to identify unique and diverse thinkers who are willing to contribute tremendously to the growth of the constituency. Constant engagement with the electorates creates room for social cohesion and local participation in decision-making. When we speak about a constituency from a co-working perspective, where the personas and needs are rather diverse, it requires consistent fact-finding, experimenting and tracking of the value/engagement to deliver it. Something we dream to see in the Sibbinda. A constituency is not a commodity. Sibbinda consists of unique and diverse people who yearn for quality services and economic emancipation. Surprisingly, all that we have seen is that the Sibbinda head is working in isolation and only seeing on social media.
Lack of dedicated village development committees/Constituency development committees: A good and dedicated ground team is required for the smooth administration of the constituency businesses where tasks can be delegated. Disengaging VDCs/CDCs can be called a one-man army, hence getting everything done by the same person sabotages the concerns of the electorates. Electorates cannot even recall when the feedback was ever given in their various village committees. Who is failing here? Success can be achieved if the ground team is capable and empowered to take up all the challenges for further handling.
Lack of social and economic developmental initiatives: Sibbinda is one of the poorest wards in Namibia by default. As a constituency representative, the councillor should fight for business opportunities and real development by providing equal resources to all, and creating a more equal and fair distribution of opportunities in the constituency. The councillor should have intimate knowledge of the constituency and should quickly learn what the people want and identify priorities. As an elected leader, he can help organise and initiate development projects that address the most pressing concerns of the electorates through a constituency program, have information on potential partners on specific projects and the councillor have the mandate to collaborate with these partners on development and constituency issues on behalf of the constituency.
The way forward
We are fully aware that, local authorities in Namibia receive limited funding from the central government for specific projects and the recurrent cost support on an ad hoc basis, but this cannot be an excuse. Why are other Constituencies flouring? A good constituency councillor should coordinate and mobilise resources to develop his ward. In doing so, he should maintain good communication with the people he is leading. A constituency councillor is a most direct conduit to the central government; therefore, the councillor’s engagements should be built on a commitment to share information and resources openly on government actions, how decisions are being made, what the costs are, and the impact. Moreover, accessibility is another aspect, making himself available to the constituency through a variety of inclusive platforms. Constituency electorates should be able to easily submit their requests, comments or questions and should take steps to ensure that they are all fully able to do so, regardless of other barriers.
The councillor should create a feedback loop, in which his constituency members can integrate and apply their inputs, grievances and aspirations. In addition, the constituency councillor should apply authenticity by building credibility with his constituency members by being honest and authentic. Speaking candidly (yet respectful) can be particularly important when there are differences of opinion. Equally important, inclusivity is essential to engage the full range of individuals and communities within the constituency, including those who traditionally have been marginalised.
Constituency engagements with the councillor must happen in a timely manner. It should not only be during campaign season to canvas votes or when a controversial issue arises. The councillor who is a member of the National Council is urged to fight for his people as other fellow councillors are doing otherwise Sibbinda will forever remain a ward on its knees.
*Munyungano Musisanyani and Sibuku Malumbano hail from Sibbinda constituency, Zambezi region.