u2018No needu2019 for Geingob to apologise
u2018No needu2019 for Geingob to apologise

‘No need’ for Geingob to apologise

Swapo spokesperson Hilma Nicanor says it is a fact there is a section of white Namibians seeking to unseat her party from power.
Jemima Beukes
JEMIMA BEUKES







WINDHOEK

Swapo spokesperson Hilma Nicanor has leapt to the defence of President Hage Geingob, who is coming under increasing pressure to backtrack from controversial remarks he made about white people over the weekend.

Nicanor said yesterday that the president’s comments had been blown out of context.

She, however, emphasised that some white Namibians have been against Swapo even before independence, despite the party bringing independence to Namibia – which all Namibians now enjoy.

“White people must be reminded that when Namibia got independence, some of them, because of their propaganda, left this country,” Nicanor said, adding that they made a U-turn when they realised that Swapo was not bringing in a dictatorship.

“To date, they have lived in that comfort and they must be reminded of this.”

‘Not all white people’

According to Nicanor, the president’s statement was justified and was not targeted at all the white people in Namibia, and as such, it would be unfair to expect him to apologise.

She added it is a fact that some Namibians are teaming up with opposition parties in order to unseat Swapo.

“The president is very much aware of many white fellow Namibian compatriots who have been and are part of the ruling party as well. There are those who voted for this party. Why should people not want to be told what they know they are doing in this country? The fact of the matter is that there are those who don’t want Swapo to continue to be the ruling party of this country. It is a fact. And hence there are those who are teaming up with others in an effort to see that Swapo is unseated. This is what we are saying,” Nicanor stressed.

Hate speech?

The official opposition, Popular Democratic Movement, yesterday made good on its promise to lay a complaint against the president with the ombudsman, Advocate John Walters.

Walters confirmed that a verbal complaint has been laid with his office, which will be followed up with a written statement.

“I want to sleep over this one. I have to determine whether I have jurisdiction over this matter. And then I have to define what is hate speech. There is no judgment yet on hate speech in these courts,” he said.

Unacceptable

Meanwhile, the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) demanded that Geingob retract his statement and has rejected what it calls the characterisation of Namibian voters by race or ethnicity.

In a statement, LAC director Toni Hancox said not all white voters have the same opinions, just like black voters or voters from any particular ethnic group.

She added that given Namibia’s painful past, every person in the country has the right to be viewed as an individual rather than being judged on the basis of race.

“Thirty years after independence, in a nation which has managed to hold a series of peaceful elections from independence up to now, it is profoundly disturbing to hear such race-based incitement from the president. We call upon him to retract his statement in order to set an example to all Namibians that all persons are equal before the law and that no persons may be discriminated against on the grounds of race,” Hancox said.

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Namibian Sun 2024-03-29

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Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 233.12/OZ UP +1.93% | Copper US$ 3.99/lb UP +0.12% | Zinc US$ 2 455.50/T UP 0% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 87.65/BBP UP +1.46% | Platinum US$ 908.62/OZ UP +1.53% Sport results: Weather: Katima Mulilo: 19° | 36° Rundu: 19° | 29° Eenhana: 19° | 29° Oshakati: 21° | 30° Ruacana: 20° | 33° Tsumeb: 19° | 29° Otjiwarongo: 16° | 29° Omaruru: 19° | 32° Windhoek: 17° | 29° Gobabis: 17° | 30° Henties Bay: 16° | 20° Wind speed: 22km/h, Wind direction: S, Low tide: 11:22, High tide: 05:24, Low Tide: 23:26, High tide: 17:46 Swakopmund: 16° | 17° Wind speed: 24km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 11:20, High tide: 05:22, Low Tide: 23:24, High tide: 17:44 Walvis Bay: 16° | 22° Wind speed: 27km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 11:20, High tide: 05:21, Low Tide: 23:24, High tide: 17:43 Rehoboth: 19° | 30° Mariental: 23° | 34° Keetmanshoop: 24° | 35° Aranos: 22° | 33° Lüderitz: 15° | 28° Ariamsvlei: 24° | 35° Oranjemund: 14° | 25° Luanda: 27° | 28° Gaborone: 20° | 32° Lubumbashi: 17° | 26° Mbabane: 16° | 21° Maseru: 11° | 29° Antananarivo: 16° | 27° Lilongwe: 17° | 27° Maputo: 20° | 28° Windhoek: 17° | 29° Cape Town: 17° | 28° Durban: 20° | 24° Johannesburg: 16° | 24° Dar es Salaam: 26° | 32° Lusaka: 20° | 30° Harare: 16° | 29° Economic Indicators: Currency: GBP to NAD 23.79 | EUR to NAD 20.36 | CNY to NAD 2.62 | USD to NAD 18.89 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.33 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.74 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.77 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.14 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.35 | USD to KES 130.98 | USD to NGN 1415.13 | USD to ZAR 18.89 | USD to ZMW 25.01 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 74536 Up +0.85% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1528.69 Up +0.84% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 12986.94 Up +0.04% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 27559.35 Down -2.36% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 233.12/OZ UP +1.93% | Copper US$ 3.99/lb UP +0.12% | Zinc US$ 2 455.50/T UP 0% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 87.65/BBP UP +1.46% | Platinum US$ 908.62/OZ UP +1.53%