RDP questions free and fair elections

The Rally for Democracy (RDP) has lashed out at Swapo’s and the police’s assurances that the upcoming elections will be free and fair, saying it is mere lip-service to deceive Namibians and the international community. This follows an incident in which members and supporters of RDP were allegedly attacked by Swapo members this week. According to the RDP some of its members and supporters were attacked by Swapo Party members in the Tobias Hainyeko Constituency on Tuesday. “RDP condemns, in strongest terms, the barbaric and unprovoked attack of its members,” said Jeremiah Nambinga, RDP Secretary of Information and Publicity. According to him the incident occurred while RDP members were putting up campaign posters. “While putting up posters a certain Swapo Party member, female, was following RDP comrades, provoking and insulting them,” he said. Nambinga said the RDP members refused to be provoked and they called the police who arrived in three vehicles. According to him, while they were explaining to the police what had happened one Swapo member ripped one of the RDP posters from a municipal electricity pole. Nambinga said the RDP members then demanded the arrest of the culprit on the spot in terms of the Electoral Law, but the police refused to act. “We demand that the culprit be arrested without any further delay.” Police Inspector-General Sebastian Ndeitunga this week said that the campaigning for next month’s presidential and National Assembly elections have been peaceful so far. “We should not provoke each other and political parties should remember that they should respect the distance between schools, hospitals and police stations,” he told Namibian Sun this week. WINDHOEK ELLANIE SMIT