Democracy And Social Progress

The Rally for Democracy and Progress is the latest major political party to emerge on the Namibian political scene.

Launched on the 17th November 2007, the RDP was founded by a group of forward-looking Namibians in response to a host of socio-economic and political problems confronting Namibia today. These problems include wide-spread poverty, a stagnant economy, inequity, rising unemployment, steadily declining quality of health and education, political stagnation, incompetence and lack of developmental progress. Taken together, all these problems underline the ugly reality of bad and inefficient governance, which must be addressed with urgency and passion to prevent the country from sliding deeper into a worse state of underdevelopment quagmire.

The founders of the RDP understand fully well that surmounting or overcoming this prevailing state of affairs calls for courage of conviction and single-minded resolve, hence the party's decision to rise to this historic challenge.

The organization's name, Rally for Democracy and Progress, sums up what it stands for. Rally means, in this specific context, the coming together of Namibia's social forces to renew common effort towards the institutionalization and consolidation of democracy in the country. Democracy means government in which supreme power to govern is vested in the people and is exercised by them through a system of representation. Being the main tenet of democratic governance such representation must be periodically validated through genuinely free and fair elections.

A corollary of democratic life is social progress. The concept of progress denotes a movement forward; and it serves here as an indication of the party's firm commitment to moving Namibian society to a higher, better and more advanced stage of development. Hence the party is called the Rally for Democracy and Progress, namely the coming together of Namibia's progressive forces to entrench democracy and achieve socio-economic progress.

1. RDP is a legal political party founded and based on the principles and provisions of the Namibian Constitution as well as those of the Namibian Electoral Commission. The RDP and its membership shall therefore remain prepared and ready to defend the Namibian Constitution and the principles of democracy in the country.

2. RDP is a political party which is inclusive and its membership is open to all Namibian citizens over the age of 18 years. Those Namibians below the age of 18 years will be accorded space to express their support for the Party.

3. RDP shall defend peace in Namibia, Africa and the world at large. The leaders and membership of RDP will strive to promote peace, good relationship between peoples and nations. In their day to day work, they will shun the use of aggressive and debating language against their political opponents.

4. RDP shall promote and strengthen true democracy and the rule of law in the country. RDP shall fight against autocracy or totalitarianism in the country, including the promotion of personality-cult or hero worshiping.

5. RDP will uphold the truth and the principles of transparency in both the political arena and the sphere of government. RDP will not mislead the Namibian population by way of false promises and lies.

6. RDP will promote development in the fields of economy and politics and will strive for social harmony throughout Namibia.

7. RDP shall uphold and promote a government based on the rule of law and the principle of justice for all.

8. RDP shall fight relentlessly against the evil of corruption and corrupt practices and all Namibian citizens shall be treated equally before the law and shall have access to national resources.

9. RDP will uphold the human rights of all Namibian citizens irrespective of their ethnic, political, social or religious background. "All flowers will bloom" under the rule of RDP.

10. RDP believes that the future prosperity of the country lies with its citizens in whom the ultimate powers are vested by the Constitution. But for the people to achieve success, they must use their voting right wisely. They must therefore vote on the basis of issues and not personalities.

11. RDP shall promote and protect the freedom of the media because RDP believes that an enlightened and informed electorate is capable of making correct decisions for the good of the nation.

12. RDP will fight for the welfare of all Namibian citizens. RDP will fight poverty and the causes of poverty. RDP will protect and promote the interests of orphans, the disabled and the senior citizens to live a descent life. Namibia is not a poor country what is lacking is an equitable distribution and sharing of the available resources. Only RDP has the quality and resolve to eradicate poverty in Namibia.

13. RDP has vowed to transform the education system in Namibia and to bring it to an acceptable standard. It is close to criminal negligence that the current government has allowed the rotting of the system that today Namibia is at the bottom of the ladder as far as education is concern. RDP believes that the future of our country belongs to our children and the youth and that we owe it to them to prepare them for a better future.

14. RDP believes that a population which is suffering from calamities, including HIV affliction can not be expected to be truly productive. Thus, RDP shall place the health system in Namibia at the top of the list.

15. RDP shall strive to improve agricultural production in the country. Apart from training farmers, especially communal farmers shall be assisted with seeds and fertilizers. The process of land distribution will be reexamined and be revised to benefit those that the programme was intended to help. The present system is a dismal failure. Now, resettled farmers are poorer than before their resettlement. This can not be allowed to continue.

16. RDP shall undertake concerted efforts to promote the technical expertise of our farmers and general business entrepreneurship in the country. Success of our farmers and investors depends on their access to information, capital and expertise and not on wishful thinking.

17. RDP will fight for the rights of all Namibian workers against unfair treatment by their employers. But the rights of our workers, including salaries, will be linked to the training and productivity of our work force. Under the RDP government, trade unions shall not be married to political parties as the case is today. The above points are only but a few indicators of what RDP shall strive to achieve when it is put in power by the Namibian electorates. You will hear more of RDP.

18. Since the formation of RDP, the pressure on the Government has increased, hence the following changes:

a) Potable water for human and animal consumption was opened in rural areas.
b) Old age pension was increased from N$370 to N$450 per month.
c) Grade 10 failures of 2007 are permitted to repeat the same grade this year.
d) Pensioners, orphans and vulnerable children starting June 2008 will receive free medication in all hospitals and clinics across the country.
e) The war veterans fund has been increased from N$500 to N$2500.
f) It is only now that the Government has realized that the southerners in Namibia have been neglected and discriminated in terms of job opportunities and economic participation.

19. The time is now for you to join the ranks and files of the new dynamic political party, the RDP. Be ready to cast your vote, to ensure a bright future for Namibia.