Africa-Press – Namibia. PRESIDENT Hage Geingob and his confidants were yesterday allegedly leaning towards supporting prime minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila as their preferred Swapo vice president candidate.
Geingob’s other possible candidate is minister of defence and veterans affairs Frans Kapofi.
The ruling party’s soviet-style politburo held a meeting yesterday and confirmed the nominations of deputy prime minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah and Kuugongelwa-Amadhila for the Swapo vice-president position.
Kuugongelwa-Amadhila was nominated by parliamentarian Tobie Aupindi and seconded by minister of agriculture, water and land reform Calle Schlettwein.
Minister of labour, industrial relations and employment creation Utoni Nujoma has failed the test for the vice-presidency.
They were nominated but were not seconded.
Oshikoto regional coordinator Armas Amukwiyu and current party secretary general Sophia Shaningwa were nominated to vie for the ruling party’s secretary general position.
Because Nandi-Ndaitwah and Shaningwa are incumbents, they did not need to be nominated.
Amukwiyu was nominated by Namibia’s ambassador to the United States, Margaret Mensah-Williams, and seconded by Shifeta.
Geingob’s team in the politburo, such as Mensah-Williams, Aupindi and Schlettwein, all made nominatins and secondments that created a camp of support for Amukwiyu and Kuugongelwa-Amadhila.
Parliamentarian Lucia Witbooi, Evelyn Nawases-Tayele and Kavango West regional coordinator Hamutenya David were nominated for the deputy secretary general position.
Nawases-Tayele was supported by Kuugongelwa-Amadhila.
The politburo meeting yesterday will be followed by a central committee meeting on Saturday, where the final decision on who will stand for top Swapo positions will be taken.
Other contenders, such as Kapofi, could still be in the race to challenge Nandi-Ndaitwah and Kuugongelwa-Amadhila for the vice president position.
Whoever gets this position will succeed Geingob as Swapo’s next presidential candidate.
Kapofi yesterday declined to comment on whether he is still in the race.
“My position has not changed. There are impediments [Helmut Amendments] that are there. It is fruitless to comment now,” he said.
ENDORSEMENTS
Geingob has over the years told close confidants he would not dictate who Swapo’s leader should be.
Last week, the Presidency insisted that Geingob would not endorse a candidate for the vice presidency.
Previous presidents have endorsed their successors.
Former presidents Sam Nujoma and Hifikenpunye Pohamba have publicly endorsed their candidates.
Nujoma endorsed Pohamba at the 2002 Swapo congress.
“History is made by people,” he began. “This man . . ,” he said, turning to Pohamba, the then Swapo secretary general, “. . . this man risked his life two times.
Nujoma eventually backed Pohamba as Swapo vice president.
In 2012, Pohamba endorsed Geingob to take over the party and as state president.
Now, the president appears to have the dilemma of who to support.
Geingob’s power brokers believe he will play a key part in deciding on the successor or risk losing the decision to other political brokers.
“Edu ola mwena natango [The ground is still quiet],” a Swapo leader yesterday said about whether the regions have started aligning themselves to Nandi-Ndaitwah or Kuugongelwa-Amadhila.
Kapofi has held several senior positions, such as running the Cabinet as secretary, a position which some believe gave him political powers to run the government. He is said to have been the de facto president in Pohamba’s last term.
As it stands, Kapofi does not qualify because of the restrictive Helmut Amendments, which dictate that candidates vying for the top positions should have “consistently and persistently” served as a member of the ruling party’s central committee for 10 years.
There is still a push among Geingob’s close associates to remove the rules to open the door for Kapofi.
Kuugongelwa-Amadhila qualifies if the Helmut Amendments are not removed. However, some of Geingob’s associates are not sure if she has the gravitas to offer them political protection.
Geingob is advised that the prime minister has the upper hand over the other candidates because of her experience in running the treasury and the civil service in the past 20 years, they say.
Others warned Geingob that Kuugongelwa-Amadhila has in the past failed to get her hands dirty by campaigning for the party’s throne. Kuugongelwa-Amadhila has the age advantage and is seen as a safe pair of hands to take over from Geingob.
However, Nandi-Ndaitwah’s supporters are boasting about how her name has not been linked to any corruption scandal.
Former deputy minister of works and transport Sankwasa James Sankwasa says he supports Nandi-Ndaitwah.
“I support a corrupt-free candidate, because this country is going to the dogs because of corruption. I will not mention any names, but I will let the public judge for themselves. Between the two, who do you think is corrupt free?
“I support Nandi-Ndaitwah, it’s a fact, I need not hide it. When it comes to corruption in Namibia, she is free of that,” he says.
THE FALLOUT
Nandi-Ndaitwah is said to have fallen out of favour with Geingob.
But the Presidency issued a statement last week pleading ignorance about the sour relationship.
“Geingob and Nandi-Ndaitwah enjoy a warm, cordial and professional relationship at government level, including in their respective roles as the top-two leaders of the Swapo party,” the Presidency said.
The statement issued on 1 September insisted “there is simply no truth in the allegation of fallout between the two leaders”.
Geingob’s other possible candidate is minister of defence and veterans affairs Frans Kapofi.
The ruling party’s soviet-style politburo held a meeting yesterday and confirmed the nominations of deputy prime minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah and Kuugongelwa-Amadhila for the Swapo vice-president position.
Kuugongelwa-Amadhila was nominated by parliamentarian Tobie Aupindi and seconded by minister of agriculture, water and land reform Calle Schlettwein.
Minister of labour, industrial relations and employment creation Utoni Nujoma has failed the test for the vice-presidency.
They were nominated but were not seconded.
Oshikoto regional coordinator Armas Amukwiyu and current party secretary general Sophia Shaningwa were nominated to vie for the ruling party’s secretary general position.
Because Nandi-Ndaitwah and Shaningwa are incumbents, they did not need to be nominated.
Amukwiyu was nominated by Namibia’s ambassador to the United States, Margaret Mensah-Williams, and seconded by Shifeta.
Geingob’s team in the politburo, such as Mensah-Williams, Aupindi and Schlettwein, all made nominatins and secondments that created a camp of support for Amukwiyu and Kuugongelwa-Amadhila.
Parliamentarian Lucia Witbooi, Evelyn Nawases-Tayele and Kavango West regional coordinator Hamutenya David were nominated for the deputy secretary general position.
Nawases-Tayele was supported by Kuugongelwa-Amadhila.
The politburo meeting yesterday will be followed by a central committee meeting on Saturday, where the final decision on who will stand for top Swapo positions will be taken.
Other contenders, such as Kapofi, could still be in the race to challenge Nandi-Ndaitwah and Kuugongelwa-Amadhila for the vice president position.
Whoever gets this position will succeed Geingob as Swapo’s next presidential candidate.
Kapofi yesterday declined to comment on whether he is still in the race.
“My position has not changed. There are impediments [Helmut Amendments] that are there. It is fruitless to comment now,” he said.
ENDORSEMENTS
Geingob has over the years told close confidants he would not dictate who Swapo’s leader should be.
Last week, the Presidency insisted that Geingob would not endorse a candidate for the vice presidency.
Previous presidents have endorsed their successors.
Former presidents Sam Nujoma and Hifikenpunye Pohamba have publicly endorsed their candidates.
Nujoma endorsed Pohamba at the 2002 Swapo congress.
“History is made by people,” he began. “This man . . ,” he said, turning to Pohamba, the then Swapo secretary general, “. . . this man risked his life two times.
Nujoma eventually backed Pohamba as Swapo vice president.
In 2012, Pohamba endorsed Geingob to take over the party and as state president.
Now, the president appears to have the dilemma of who to support.
Geingob’s power brokers believe he will play a key part in deciding on the successor or risk losing the decision to other political brokers.
“Edu ola mwena natango [The ground is still quiet],” a Swapo leader yesterday said about whether the regions have started aligning themselves to Nandi-Ndaitwah or Kuugongelwa-Amadhila.
Kapofi has held several senior positions, such as running the Cabinet as secretary, a position which some believe gave him political powers to run the government. He is said to have been the de facto president in Pohamba’s last term.
As it stands, Kapofi does not qualify because of the restrictive Helmut Amendments, which dictate that candidates vying for the top positions should have “consistently and persistently” served as a member of the ruling party’s central committee for 10 years.
There is still a push among Geingob’s close associates to remove the rules to open the door for Kapofi.
Kuugongelwa-Amadhila qualifies if the Helmut Amendments are not removed. However, some of Geingob’s associates are not sure if she has the gravitas to offer them political protection.
Geingob is advised that the prime minister has the upper hand over the other candidates because of her experience in running the treasury and the civil service in the past 20 years, they say.
Others warned Geingob that Kuugongelwa-Amadhila has in the past failed to get her hands dirty by campaigning for the party’s throne. Kuugongelwa-Amadhila has the age advantage and is seen as a safe pair of hands to take over from Geingob.
However, Nandi-Ndaitwah’s supporters are boasting about how her name has not been linked to any corruption scandal.
Former deputy minister of works and transport Sankwasa James Sankwasa says he supports Nandi-Ndaitwah.
“I support a corrupt-free candidate, because this country is going to the dogs because of corruption. I will not mention any names, but I will let the public judge for themselves. Between the two, who do you think is corrupt free?
“I support Nandi-Ndaitwah, it’s a fact, I need not hide it. When it comes to corruption in Namibia, she is free of that,” he says.
THE FALLOUT
Nandi-Ndaitwah is said to have fallen out of favour with Geingob.
But the Presidency issued a statement last week pleading ignorance about the sour relationship.
“Geingob and Nandi-Ndaitwah enjoy a warm, cordial and professional relationship at government level, including in their respective roles as the top-two leaders of the Swapo party,” the Presidency said.
The statement issued on 1 September insisted “there is simply no truth in the allegation of fallout between the two leaders”.
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