Swapo is not Fishrot – Mupya

Edward Mumbuu JnrWINDHOEKThe Fishrot corruption scandal which led to the arrest of senior Swapo figures should not be used as a gauge to sway votes away from the ruling party.This is because implicated party members should be treated as individuals, Opuwo Urban constituency councillor Weich Mupya has said.Mupya was responding to questions on how the Fishrot fraud case might affect his re-election chances in November's regional council election.“I am not part of any criminal syndicate. I cannot be implicated in any manner in any kind of crime, may it be corruption or theft. It [Fishrot] cannot follow all of us. If a certain person has committed a crime, let it follow him. It cannot follow the group [Swapo],” he replied.The accused in the corruption scandal include former fisheries minister Bernhardt Esau and former justice minister Sacky Shanghala.The two were members of the central committee - Swapo's highest decision-making body - at the time of their arrests late last year.The scandal has since been a thorn in the ruling party's flesh, with its popularity waning drastically.ConfidentAsked what Swapo would do to retain voters in his constituency, Mupya said Swapo's work in his constituency, and by extension Namibia's quest for development, speaks for itself.“When it comes to the reputation of Swapo, it is up to the communities to judge,” he said.He added: “I don't think the residents of Kunene are so blind not to see what we are trying to do in terms of bringing development to them”.Mupya said the law must be allowed to take its course.Bad publicitySwapo's leadership has, on several occasions, admitted that the bribery scandal has attracted bad publicity and was being used by their political opponents for expediency. In the Fishrot case, the two ministers and five other accused are charged with corruption, fraud, money laundering and tax evasion in connection with allegations that they were in cahoots with Icelandic fishing giant Samherji, which allegedly paid them millions in bribes between 2014 and 2019 in exchange for access to Namibia's rich fishing grounds.- NAMPA

Swapo is not Fishrot – Mupya

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-04

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Swapo is not Fishrot – Mupya

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-04

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