Zambezi: Swapo takes on Hengari
KENYA KAMBOWE
RUNDU
The Swapo regional leadership in the Zambezi Region has demanded an apology from presidential press secretary Alfredo Hengari over remarks he made recently that protests held across the country against the killing of Namibians by the Botswana army were “pointless and misplaced”.
Hengari made the remarks after the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) killed three Namibian men and their Zambian cousin along the Chobe River on 5 November.
The press secretary said it was “pointless” to have these demonstrations when President Hage Geingob is already seized with the matter. He said the demonstrations were nothing but political.
‘Insensitive and inconsiderate’
On Friday, the Zambezi leadership of Swapo held a press conference at which they demanded that Hengari apologises to the nation, particularly to the people of the region, for his comments.
His utterances were deemed insensitive and inconsiderate, given the office he serves.
“We therefore in solidarity with the victims of the cruel and criminal act by the BDF demand that the press secretary in the Office of the President unequivocally withdraws his reckless statement and apologises to the nation and the residents of the Zambezi Region in particular,” Swapo regional coordinator for Zambezi, Moffat Sileze, said.
“We feel that his statement was insensitive and inconsiderate towards the situation based on little to no information. It was his duty to calm the situation by assuring the nation that the matter is receiving the utmost from the presidency, as it deserved.”
Unapologetic
Hengari told Namibian Sun on Saturday that the nation should stop pointing fingers.
“What transpired on 5 November 2020 was tragic for the Nchindo family and the Namibian nation at large.
“We should leave polemics and finger-pointing behind us and allow our two governments to complete the investigations into the killings,” Hengari said.
The senseless killings
The four fishermen who were gunned down by the BDF are three brothers, Tommy, Martin and Wamunyima Nchindo, as well as their cousin, Sinvula Muyeme, a Zambian national.
The motive behind the killings is still unclear, with allegations that the men were poachers making the rounds.
Relatives and close friends of the deceased, however, have described the men as fishermen who were well respected in their community.
The Nchindo brothers were buried on 17 November at Kamabozu village on the Impalila Island in Zambezi along with their mother, Alphonsina Mubu, who died on 10 November, allegedly from shock.
Last week, Namibian Sun reported that, according to family member Pasco Sibuko, who went to Botswana to repatriate the men’s bodies, five bullets were retrieved from Martin’s body, while the other three were each shot twice, mostly aimed near the heart.
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RUNDU
The Swapo regional leadership in the Zambezi Region has demanded an apology from presidential press secretary Alfredo Hengari over remarks he made recently that protests held across the country against the killing of Namibians by the Botswana army were “pointless and misplaced”.
Hengari made the remarks after the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) killed three Namibian men and their Zambian cousin along the Chobe River on 5 November.
The press secretary said it was “pointless” to have these demonstrations when President Hage Geingob is already seized with the matter. He said the demonstrations were nothing but political.
‘Insensitive and inconsiderate’
On Friday, the Zambezi leadership of Swapo held a press conference at which they demanded that Hengari apologises to the nation, particularly to the people of the region, for his comments.
His utterances were deemed insensitive and inconsiderate, given the office he serves.
“We therefore in solidarity with the victims of the cruel and criminal act by the BDF demand that the press secretary in the Office of the President unequivocally withdraws his reckless statement and apologises to the nation and the residents of the Zambezi Region in particular,” Swapo regional coordinator for Zambezi, Moffat Sileze, said.
“We feel that his statement was insensitive and inconsiderate towards the situation based on little to no information. It was his duty to calm the situation by assuring the nation that the matter is receiving the utmost from the presidency, as it deserved.”
Unapologetic
Hengari told Namibian Sun on Saturday that the nation should stop pointing fingers.
“What transpired on 5 November 2020 was tragic for the Nchindo family and the Namibian nation at large.
“We should leave polemics and finger-pointing behind us and allow our two governments to complete the investigations into the killings,” Hengari said.
The senseless killings
The four fishermen who were gunned down by the BDF are three brothers, Tommy, Martin and Wamunyima Nchindo, as well as their cousin, Sinvula Muyeme, a Zambian national.
The motive behind the killings is still unclear, with allegations that the men were poachers making the rounds.
Relatives and close friends of the deceased, however, have described the men as fishermen who were well respected in their community.
The Nchindo brothers were buried on 17 November at Kamabozu village on the Impalila Island in Zambezi along with their mother, Alphonsina Mubu, who died on 10 November, allegedly from shock.
Last week, Namibian Sun reported that, according to family member Pasco Sibuko, who went to Botswana to repatriate the men’s bodies, five bullets were retrieved from Martin’s body, while the other three were each shot twice, mostly aimed near the heart.
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