Swapo battle heats up
Those to be added as respondents include leaders of the Team Swapo and Team Harambee pre-congress factions, as well as delegates.
The two disgruntled Swapo members who have dragged the party to High Court over the disputed 2017 elective congress have issued notice that they intend to add a further 845 respondents to the court matter.
In a legal notice published in a local newspaper, Mirjam Shituula and Selma Namboga have given those mentioned until 25 January 2019 to show why they should not be added.
Those to be added to the current respondents - Swapo and its secretary-general Sophia Shaningwa - include President Hage Geingob, vice-president Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah as well as deputy secretary-general Marco Hausiku. Former SG Nangolo Mbumba, Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila and a host of senior party officials, and even those on the slate that contested unsuccessfully against Geingob's Harambee faction have been added as respondents.
These include Nahas Angula, Jerry Ekandjo and Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana, who were the leaders of Team Swapo in the run-up to the congress.
On 27 November, Shituula and Namboga, who are also acting on behalf of Swapo leaders Nambata Angula and Seth Boois, unsuccessfully sought to have the party's recent extraordinary congress halted.
They also applied to have outcome of the top four and central committee elections of 2017 congress declared unconstitutional, invalid and null and void. This main application is still before court.
However, Judge Thomas Masuku informed the applicants that the case could only proceed once all those that who would be affected by the outcome had been notified. This is known as a joinder application.
The party's legal counsel contended that all necessary respondents were not listed in the court papers.
During the court proceedings in November Swapo's legal counsel, South African advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, told the court that the case could not proceed if those who enjoyed the benefits of the 2017 Swapo congress were not called to appear before court.
“Whatever the decision the court gives will affect them,” he said.
The 2017 congress elected Geingob as party president, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah as vice-president, Shaningwa as SG and Marco Hausiku as deputy SG.
The disgruntled Swapo members argue that the congress and its elections were fundamentally flawed and unlawful.
The two applicants, along with Angula and Boois, had earlier in the year petitioned Shaningwa by demanding an independent audit of the outcome of the congress.
Shaningwa had responded that the central committee would consider the petition. However, the group argued that it was in fact the composition of the current central committee that was being disputed and therefore it could not decide on the matter.
It suggested that the central committee elected in 2012 should deal with the issue. There was also a subsequent letter which still failed to resolve the issue, leading to the urgent court application, following Shaningwa's announcement of the dates of the extraordinary congress, which took place from 30 November to 1 December.
In their founding affidavit, the group claimed material irregularities had been unearthed during the 2017 congress, which included at least eight regional governors unlawfully participating, as well as four youth wing delegates being allowed to stand for the central committee when they were no longer eligible to be members of the wing, as they were over 35, while governors are ex-officio members of the regional executive committees.
JEMIMA BEUKES
In a legal notice published in a local newspaper, Mirjam Shituula and Selma Namboga have given those mentioned until 25 January 2019 to show why they should not be added.
Those to be added to the current respondents - Swapo and its secretary-general Sophia Shaningwa - include President Hage Geingob, vice-president Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah as well as deputy secretary-general Marco Hausiku. Former SG Nangolo Mbumba, Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila and a host of senior party officials, and even those on the slate that contested unsuccessfully against Geingob's Harambee faction have been added as respondents.
These include Nahas Angula, Jerry Ekandjo and Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana, who were the leaders of Team Swapo in the run-up to the congress.
On 27 November, Shituula and Namboga, who are also acting on behalf of Swapo leaders Nambata Angula and Seth Boois, unsuccessfully sought to have the party's recent extraordinary congress halted.
They also applied to have outcome of the top four and central committee elections of 2017 congress declared unconstitutional, invalid and null and void. This main application is still before court.
However, Judge Thomas Masuku informed the applicants that the case could only proceed once all those that who would be affected by the outcome had been notified. This is known as a joinder application.
The party's legal counsel contended that all necessary respondents were not listed in the court papers.
During the court proceedings in November Swapo's legal counsel, South African advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, told the court that the case could not proceed if those who enjoyed the benefits of the 2017 Swapo congress were not called to appear before court.
“Whatever the decision the court gives will affect them,” he said.
The 2017 congress elected Geingob as party president, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah as vice-president, Shaningwa as SG and Marco Hausiku as deputy SG.
The disgruntled Swapo members argue that the congress and its elections were fundamentally flawed and unlawful.
The two applicants, along with Angula and Boois, had earlier in the year petitioned Shaningwa by demanding an independent audit of the outcome of the congress.
Shaningwa had responded that the central committee would consider the petition. However, the group argued that it was in fact the composition of the current central committee that was being disputed and therefore it could not decide on the matter.
It suggested that the central committee elected in 2012 should deal with the issue. There was also a subsequent letter which still failed to resolve the issue, leading to the urgent court application, following Shaningwa's announcement of the dates of the extraordinary congress, which took place from 30 November to 1 December.
In their founding affidavit, the group claimed material irregularities had been unearthed during the 2017 congress, which included at least eight regional governors unlawfully participating, as well as four youth wing delegates being allowed to stand for the central committee when they were no longer eligible to be members of the wing, as they were over 35, while governors are ex-officio members of the regional executive committees.
JEMIMA BEUKES
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