Tweya: Natural resources must benefit Namibians
Swapo politician Tjekero Tweya is sick and tired of seeing Namibians benefiting little or nothing from the country’s opulent natural resources.
The chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Natural Resources vented his frustrations during a public hearing with the Ministry of Mines and Energy on Tuesday on a petition opposing the oil and gas exploration activities of Recon Africa in the two Kavango regions.
For Tweya, the fact that Recon Africa owns 90% of the project, while the Namibian government, through the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (Namcor), owns a meagre 10%, does not make sense.
“We can’t be orphans of our own resources,” he said.
More so, the politician added that should oil be discovered, the status quo that has seen the two Kavango regions ranked as Namibia’s poverty capitals cannot continue.
“If it is found here; it must happen here, so that our kids can then learn and experience what other countries are experiencing.”
The former Cabinet minister added that it is time for investors to come on Namibia’s turf on the country’s terms.
A rather combative Tweya made one thing clear to investors and the mines and energy ministry: “This committee is not interested in being told ‘yes, that is the law’. We are lawmakers, and we are ready to fix that so that this resource does not become a curse like in any other country but it must be a blessing”.
Tweya’s sentiments reverberated through Swanu leader Tangeni Iijambo.
“Investors are not supposed to leave countries poor but must improve the country’s infrastructure. Nowadays, investors are leaving countries poor after they have milked them dry.”
Their comments come months after President Hage Geingob lashed out at Namibians for their negativity, which he claims drives away potential investors.
Responding, the ministry’s executive director Simeon Negumbo indicated that the ministry is caught between a rock and a hard place as far as striking a balance between attracting investors and ensuring Namibians benefit fully from the country’s resources.
Amendments to the laws
regulating mines and energy are currently underway to address issues of ownership of the country’s resources, he said.
The ministry also refuted claims in the public domain that Recon Africa is drilling in the sensitive Okavango Delta.
“We are not drilling in the Okavango Delta. The delta is in Botswana and 200 kilometres away from Recon’s operations,” said Maggy Shino, the petroleum commissioner in the ministry.
Critics have also voiced their concerns as to why Namibia is considering oil exploration when the rest of the world is going for renewable energy sources, which Shino brushed off.
“We need oil. It will take time to transition to that [other energy sources]. It will take at least 50 years. [At present] we import about 90% of our electricity. We import 100% of our diesel and petrol. We need energy security,” she justified.