Namvet backs off on party

Despite having provisionally called off their demonstration to parliament to hand over a petition to Speaker Peter Katjavivi on Monday, Namvet says it will continue with other protests planned for this week.The former SWATF and Koevoet soldiers decided to defer the handing over of a petition to Katjavivi, who will be engaged at the SADC Summit under way in Windhoek. However, they said they would still go to parliament today to petition the nine opposition parties that hold parliamentary seats, and to the South African High Commission tomorrow.Namvet said it would also go ahead with a mass meeting on Saturday, when it expects thousands of its members to gather in Windhoek. Namvet spokesperson Jabulani Ndeunyema said the organisation's interim committee had met at the weekend to discuss the week's activities after purportedly having been tipped-off that all regional commanders of the Namibian Defence Force (NDF) and NamPol had been ordered to send forces to Windhoek to “prevent” Namvet's seven-day campaign.This claim was vehemently denied by the chief of police, Inspector-General Sebastian Ndeitunga, and the NDF. “That is not true. That is totally fabricated information and it is distorting the truth,” countered Ndeitunga.NDF's spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Petrus Shilumbu, responded: “That is news to me. There is no truth in this claim. Why should NDF call in troops as if there are not troops around the Khomas Region? People should stop spreading rumours and the Ministry of Defence is not aware of any such instruction or directive from higher authority issued to its members.” Ndeitunga did request Namvet to reconsider its protests during the SADC Summit from 13 to 20 August, but added: “I will never prevent them from marching as long as they are well organised and peaceful.”Ndeunyema claimed that Ndeitunga had engaged the South African High Commission on Namvet's behalf, giving it the assurance that the march would not continue.“Ndeitunga has no right to act on our behalf. This makes us believe that he is a politician in uniform,” Ndeunyema said. Ndeitunga denied this and also denied a claim by Namvet that a platoon had been patrolling the perimeters of the Commando Hall in Katutura where the ex-soldiers have been camping out for more than two years to get their voices heard. “I do not have the time or the resources to deploy anyone there,” said Ndeitunga, adding: “Their camping out there is anarchy. Why can they not express their views and go home? “They have become a public nuisance; the conditions there are not hygienic. The municipality has to come in. Their right to express themselves should not infringe on the rights of others. It is time for them to go. They can express their views from their homes. We want to meet them halfway.”CATHERINE SASMAN

Namvet backs off on party

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Namibian Sun 2026-01-30

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Namvet backs off on party

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Namibian Sun 2026-01-30

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