Eewa! Yebo! YES! Si!

That's much better! Now you actually do justice to your name!!

The power to struggle is the struggle to power

Tre

That joy (to me) is like ice cream. Keep in the freezer (inhospitable conditions and it flourishes). Give it warmth and comfort and it will soon form a puddle of milky water. And that puddle will soon be absorbed by the sun of greed ... until there is nothing left.

It is in itself not a bad thing. Politicians around the world struggle for power. That's why they are in politics. To have and to hold power is what politicians pursue. But how they pursue this power, and what they do to "get into" power is what makes or breaks a society.

In truly functioning and successful democracies around the world - but particularly in the Nordic countries - power is indeed pursued by any means, but not violence, or coercion, or threads of physical intimidation or violence.

Violence, and the threat of violence, is where the buck stops. THey are considered wholly immoral and inappropriate as part of political conduct.

The real challenge we face in Namibia - and the real problem too - is that many politicians continue to regard the use of violence and threats of physical violence as legitimate means to pursue and to hold power.

Witness the speeches by members of SWAPO's youth wing and the more radical SWAPO members. They are full of threats of violence if something or other were to happen - or not.

If ours was a civil, functioning democracy there would be an outcry from the President down to ordinary members of society and SWAPO about this sort of crude, hateful, mistrusting, cynical talk. BUT THERE IS NOT, reason being that violence, even armed conflict, remains an option for politicians in our part of the world when it comes to the pursuit and maintenance of politicial power.

Until, and unless that changes, our societies will continue to be blighted and shaken by political and social instability and upheavals with disastrous consequences. It happened not far away from us, in Zimbabwe, Angola, DRC..... Let's face it, and let's be completely honest here: Our politicians and the supporters of politicial parties have not convincingly and unreservedly and in totality committed themselves to the PEACEFUL PURSUIT AND MAINTENANCE OF POLITICAL POWER.

That is why, my people, there is always a dark cloud over our future.

I wait with great anticipation and bated breath for the day that a SWAPO Youth leader is publicly hauled over the coals by President Pohamba and the collective leadership of the SWAPO Party downward for threatening, violent language towards other sectors of the society - My brothers and sisters: We shall wait, and wait.....

Disagree with me, if you will.

Disagree? Not on your life!

The reason these people are not put in their place is because what they have to say resonates with some Namibians. No politician in their right mind will cut of the arm that feeds them. But I agree, Uncle Paul, this threatening talk and lanuguage remains a bad aspect of our political culture.

And they are playing to the gallery - hoping for jobs. Once they have them (the jobs), they forget their brethren and keep as quiet as a mouse - so that they don't upset anyone and could (possibly) be fired!

We need to understand true democrasy first. Once we understand this, we need to take an inventure where our leaders have failed. Then we should rectify the failures with more positive and vibrant ideas and put these ideas into practice.

Do not aim to high, start at the very beginning, the grass root level, with the easiest of tasks, the unemployed and the lowest paid ones. But please do not forget about our senior citizens, create opportunity for them with good pensions from the tax payers money as well as proper health care.

Cut on expenditure of a lame government force. Invest in education, and stop with lip service, its just a burden. A dedicated work force equals a strong nation.

So what is a true democracy, mindfactory? Where is Nam a true democracy, and where not? You sound like you have a good idea about this, and it would be good to hear more.

namibia will never have leaders!!!! we believe too much in swapo ,swapo is not god we know that soo stop saying that swapo will rule forever only uneducated person can think like that....we are gone have changes in namibia when it comes to leaders because at this moment we dont have any (sorry to say that but it the reality.) polititions in namiba need to put up .....