Dr Kennedy Kaumba Mabuka
In the modern era, discussions surrounding security, crime prevention and law enforcement have evolved to encompass a more inclusive perspective that acknowledges citizens’ vital role in addressing societal insecurities.
While the police remain essential in upholding law and order, it is crucial to emphasise that the responsibility for ensuring security should not be solely vested in their hands. I now re-evaluate Thomas Hobbes’ State of Nature theory, which posits a pre-political period marked by chaos, fear and an
absence of governance. In this state, human life was perpetually threatened, with no authority to enforce natural laws, resulting in conflict, brutality and a life characterised as “solitary, poor, nasty and brutish”. Hobbes argued that to escape this dire state, humans entered a social contract, forming a government that took on the responsibility of ensuring the safety and security of citizens through the military and the police. This concept of a social contract implies that citizens surrender
some individual freedoms in exchange for protection and order provided by the government.
However, despite this arrangement, there is a cause for concern to witness the escalating incidents of passion killings, gender-based violence, baby dumping, murders, robberies and civil disorders, with numerous other security challenges in our country occurring almost daily.
These issues have reached an alarming and unmanageable level, likely exacerbating the fragile, yet calm internal security situation.
Like many African nations, Namibia grapples with a complex web of factors, including an expanding wealth gap, generational poverty, technological advancements, porous borders and unemployment.
Furthermore, economic disparities persist, exacerbating discontent and intensifying security concerns. On the other hand, the erosion of traditional social norms and values within Namibian society has fostered a prevailing sense of anomie. This narrative can be sustained and substantiated by the alarming and most worrying security concerns, resulting in some citizens not adhering to the prescription of our law systems. This, in turn, contributes significantly to the overarching sense of insecurity and a breakdown of communal bonds.
Upon closer examination of these multifaceted factors, it becomes unmistakably clear that they cannot be adequately addressed by the police alone.
Therefore, it is unrealistic to expect law enforcement agencies to fully address these insecurities when these underlying factors,
which are the root causes of insecurity, lie beyond their control and jurisdiction.
This farfetched reality can only contribute to an unachievable policing mandate if left unaddressed, as opposed to lifting these unwarranted factors and invoking stakeholder’s inclusivity theory in the policing spheres.
Only then can we effectively tackle the gruesome realities posed by crime and civil disorder when we, as a collective society, step up and play our part in ensuring security.
It is a well-established fact that local and foreign investments thrive in an environment of peace and stability. The state of nature, as described by Hobbes, no longer characterises the Namibian society in its entirety, as certain causal elements persist. It is imperative to recognise that addressing these challenges should not solely be the responsibility of law enforcement agencies.
* Dr Kennedy Kaumba Mabuku shares these thoughts from a personal perspective, independent
of any security institutions in Namibia.