Court orders NDF to reinstate rejected recruit
Young man takes a stand
In an urgent application, Joel Velipufye Jacob, who had successfully passed the recruitment process, said he had been removed from the final list of selected candidates without explanation.
A Windhoek High Court judge has ruled in favour of Joel Velipufye Jacob (19), a young man who was abruptly removed from the Namibian Defence Force (NDF) training programme earlier this month.
Acting Judge Gerson Narib last week ordered that Jacob be reinstated and report to the NDF training facility on or before 26 May.
Jacob, who had successfully passed the recruitment process, was removed from the final list of selected candidates without explanation, just days before training commenced. His legal team, led by lawyer Nambili Mhata, filed an urgent application arguing that the decision was unlawful and violated Jacob’s constitutional rights.
The court agreed, issuing an interdict against the army and compelling it to allow Jacob to join the training programme, even if it had already started.
Narib further ordered that the chief of the NDF and NDF recruitment officer for the Oshikoto region, Stanley !Nawaseb, make reasonable accommodations for Jacob to join and catch up on any training or activities missed due to his removal. All respondents were ordered to bear the costs of the application, jointly and severally, meaning if one pays, the others will be absolved.
Action taken
Jacob took the extraordinary step of filing an urgent court application after being excluded from the NDF recruitment process without warning. In his founding affidavit, he stated that he had completed all recruitment requirements, including physical fitness assessments, medical exams and fingerprint verification, and had even secured admission to the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) before deciding to pursue a military career.
“I participated in the entry test at Ekulo Secondary School, which included both physical fitness tests and pre-entry written tests. I successfully completed all components of these tests,” a court document reads.
Jacob further explained that he was personally assured by !Nawaseb that he had "satisfactorily passed all evaluations" and should await confirmation of the training commencement date. Despite this assurance, his name was not included in the final shortlist published earlier this month.
He described the omission as both unexpected and deeply unfair. “I was distressed by this response, and since I live with my elderly grandmother, who, like myself, lacks knowledge of administrative or legal processes, I was initially uncertain about the appropriate remedial steps,” he explained.
Legitimate expectation
His legal team argued that the exclusion violated principles of administrative justice and procedural fairness and constituted a breach of his legitimate expectation based on clear representations made to him.
Jacob's affidavit also detailed the financial difficulties facing his family, which influenced his decision to join the NDF over university. “My parents are unemployed and unable to cover university costs, rental fees and other associated expenses. Joining the NDF represented not only a personal ambition but also a practical and responsible solution to my family’s financial constraints,” he said.
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Acting Judge Gerson Narib last week ordered that Jacob be reinstated and report to the NDF training facility on or before 26 May.
Jacob, who had successfully passed the recruitment process, was removed from the final list of selected candidates without explanation, just days before training commenced. His legal team, led by lawyer Nambili Mhata, filed an urgent application arguing that the decision was unlawful and violated Jacob’s constitutional rights.
The court agreed, issuing an interdict against the army and compelling it to allow Jacob to join the training programme, even if it had already started.
Narib further ordered that the chief of the NDF and NDF recruitment officer for the Oshikoto region, Stanley !Nawaseb, make reasonable accommodations for Jacob to join and catch up on any training or activities missed due to his removal. All respondents were ordered to bear the costs of the application, jointly and severally, meaning if one pays, the others will be absolved.
Action taken
Jacob took the extraordinary step of filing an urgent court application after being excluded from the NDF recruitment process without warning. In his founding affidavit, he stated that he had completed all recruitment requirements, including physical fitness assessments, medical exams and fingerprint verification, and had even secured admission to the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) before deciding to pursue a military career.
“I participated in the entry test at Ekulo Secondary School, which included both physical fitness tests and pre-entry written tests. I successfully completed all components of these tests,” a court document reads.
Jacob further explained that he was personally assured by !Nawaseb that he had "satisfactorily passed all evaluations" and should await confirmation of the training commencement date. Despite this assurance, his name was not included in the final shortlist published earlier this month.
He described the omission as both unexpected and deeply unfair. “I was distressed by this response, and since I live with my elderly grandmother, who, like myself, lacks knowledge of administrative or legal processes, I was initially uncertain about the appropriate remedial steps,” he explained.
Legitimate expectation
His legal team argued that the exclusion violated principles of administrative justice and procedural fairness and constituted a breach of his legitimate expectation based on clear representations made to him.
Jacob's affidavit also detailed the financial difficulties facing his family, which influenced his decision to join the NDF over university. “My parents are unemployed and unable to cover university costs, rental fees and other associated expenses. Joining the NDF represented not only a personal ambition but also a practical and responsible solution to my family’s financial constraints,” he said.
[email protected]
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