KK: Swapo is a party in crisis
Outspoken former cabinet minister, Kazenambo Kazenambo, came out guns blazing in his condemnation of ruling party secretary-general Nangolo Mbumba's assertion that that the party would “deal” internally with Bernadus Swartbooi's comments made over the weekend.
At a dinner of the Landless People's Movement (LPM) at Keetmanshoop, Swartbooi said people from the north had no right to lecture others on ancestral land rights and claimed that Swapo was only looking after the interests of one ethnic group.
“In a democracy we do not say we are going to deal with people. How are you going to deal with them?” Kazenambo questioned.
He continued: “As a member of the Politburo and central committee of the Swapo Party leadership, the position of the secretary-general leaves much to be desired. It shows signs of a leadership crisis. If Mbumba's response is correctly reported on, then red lights are flickering that there is a leadership crisis both at political and administrative level.”
Mbumba yesterday would not expound on what he meant when he said Swartbooi's comments would be dealt with internally.
“I have said to other newspapers 'no comment'. 'No comment' means no comment,” said Mbumba.
Kazenambo's take on this, however, is that there are plans afoot to haul Swartbooi before a disciplinary process, to recall him from parliament, or to oust him from the party.
“Swartbooi was fired from his ministerial position for doing nothing.
What he is doing is articulating the plight of the poor and now he is being threatened to be recalled or to be dealt with. This is a man articulating the frustrations of a community and his sentiments are shared by many, whether you like it or not,” said Kazenambo.
Kazenambo said the manner in which Swartbooi was being dealt with was a sign of “autocratic leadership” within the ruling party and government.
“We are no longer a democratic country. We live in a false democracy. It is time for progressive forces in this country to wake up and smell the coffee. We are not only faced with an economic crisis; we are faced with a leadership crisis at political and other levels,” Kazenambo said.
Kazenambo said Swartbooi was merely a “messenger, articulating issues that should be a concern for any progressive citizen of this country”.
“Swartbooi is not the cause. He has never been the cause. Swartbooi is articulating the issues affecting the plight of the poor and we are silencing him. This is un-Swapo.
“Swapo has been a progressive organisation founded to respond to the plight of workers, the lumpenproletariat and peasants. We are silencing him in a style that Swapo fought against. Swapo is a party for freedom of expression, justice, solidarity and fairness. Swartbooi is calling for fairness, never mind the region [he originates from],” said Kazenambo.
He said it was indicative of a wider malaise within the ruling party, which manifested itself in the dismissal of Dr Joe Diescho as head of the Namibian Institute for Public Administration and Management (Nipam) and “somehow” the dismissal of leaders of the Affirmative Repositioning (AR) movement from the ruling party.
“There is a serious problem here. Swapo is now being used as an instrument of oppression. Swapo is a progressive organisation if it is not being polluted and contaminated by dictatorial, self-serving, autocratic tendencies disguised as protecting the interests of Swapo while in reality it is undermining the interest of Swapo,” Kazenambo said.
He said if Swapo wanted to “manage diversity and change” it had to immediately call a commission of inquiry into allegations of tribalism and elitism within the ruling party and the government.
“If you are progressive, let us stop tackling individuals; let us start tackling issues. Let us start setting up investigative teams to find out what the problem is,” said Kazenambo.
He said Swartbooi was “being threatened economically”, while those responsible for millions being lost by the SME Bank, the N$47 million purportedly spent on the genocide legal case, the Kora Awards, GIPF and other instances were not being dealt with.
“Is Swapo now representing the interests of a few or is it representing the interests of the majority?” questioned Kazenambo.
Swartbooi earlier indicated that he had no intention to leave the ruling party or to start a new party. As member of the LPM he has also repeatedly stressed that the LPM is not a political party but a social movement.
CATHERINE SASMAN
At a dinner of the Landless People's Movement (LPM) at Keetmanshoop, Swartbooi said people from the north had no right to lecture others on ancestral land rights and claimed that Swapo was only looking after the interests of one ethnic group.
“In a democracy we do not say we are going to deal with people. How are you going to deal with them?” Kazenambo questioned.
He continued: “As a member of the Politburo and central committee of the Swapo Party leadership, the position of the secretary-general leaves much to be desired. It shows signs of a leadership crisis. If Mbumba's response is correctly reported on, then red lights are flickering that there is a leadership crisis both at political and administrative level.”
Mbumba yesterday would not expound on what he meant when he said Swartbooi's comments would be dealt with internally.
“I have said to other newspapers 'no comment'. 'No comment' means no comment,” said Mbumba.
Kazenambo's take on this, however, is that there are plans afoot to haul Swartbooi before a disciplinary process, to recall him from parliament, or to oust him from the party.
“Swartbooi was fired from his ministerial position for doing nothing.
What he is doing is articulating the plight of the poor and now he is being threatened to be recalled or to be dealt with. This is a man articulating the frustrations of a community and his sentiments are shared by many, whether you like it or not,” said Kazenambo.
Kazenambo said the manner in which Swartbooi was being dealt with was a sign of “autocratic leadership” within the ruling party and government.
“We are no longer a democratic country. We live in a false democracy. It is time for progressive forces in this country to wake up and smell the coffee. We are not only faced with an economic crisis; we are faced with a leadership crisis at political and other levels,” Kazenambo said.
Kazenambo said Swartbooi was merely a “messenger, articulating issues that should be a concern for any progressive citizen of this country”.
“Swartbooi is not the cause. He has never been the cause. Swartbooi is articulating the issues affecting the plight of the poor and we are silencing him. This is un-Swapo.
“Swapo has been a progressive organisation founded to respond to the plight of workers, the lumpenproletariat and peasants. We are silencing him in a style that Swapo fought against. Swapo is a party for freedom of expression, justice, solidarity and fairness. Swartbooi is calling for fairness, never mind the region [he originates from],” said Kazenambo.
He said it was indicative of a wider malaise within the ruling party, which manifested itself in the dismissal of Dr Joe Diescho as head of the Namibian Institute for Public Administration and Management (Nipam) and “somehow” the dismissal of leaders of the Affirmative Repositioning (AR) movement from the ruling party.
“There is a serious problem here. Swapo is now being used as an instrument of oppression. Swapo is a progressive organisation if it is not being polluted and contaminated by dictatorial, self-serving, autocratic tendencies disguised as protecting the interests of Swapo while in reality it is undermining the interest of Swapo,” Kazenambo said.
He said if Swapo wanted to “manage diversity and change” it had to immediately call a commission of inquiry into allegations of tribalism and elitism within the ruling party and the government.
“If you are progressive, let us stop tackling individuals; let us start tackling issues. Let us start setting up investigative teams to find out what the problem is,” said Kazenambo.
He said Swartbooi was “being threatened economically”, while those responsible for millions being lost by the SME Bank, the N$47 million purportedly spent on the genocide legal case, the Kora Awards, GIPF and other instances were not being dealt with.
“Is Swapo now representing the interests of a few or is it representing the interests of the majority?” questioned Kazenambo.
Swartbooi earlier indicated that he had no intention to leave the ruling party or to start a new party. As member of the LPM he has also repeatedly stressed that the LPM is not a political party but a social movement.
CATHERINE SASMAN
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