EDITORIAL: Nakanduungile bail saga tests public patience

The bigwigs of the Namibian judiciary seem content to bury their heads in the sand as the bail application of the Ondangwa doctor implicated in the death of prosecutor Justine Shiweda drags on.

Yesterday marked the third successive postponement of the bail verdict - while Shiweda’s body was still barely cold, having been laid to rest on Saturday. Friends and family, who had previously demonstrated against bail, returned to court each time expecting closure, only to be told the presiding magistrate had not travelled from Otjiwarongo because his travel allowance had not been released.

Meanwhile, police resources are wasted repeatedly, ferrying the accused from Grootfontein to Ondangwa on three separate occasions. Fuel burns, officers expend hours, and the public waits -only for bureaucratic delays to override the urgency of justice.

The gravity of her killing cannot be overstated. Speaker after speaker at the memorial and burial ceremonies emphasised how Shiweda’s killing struck at the heart of Namibia’s criminal justice system and the safety of those deployed to combat crime. President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah visited her while she fought for her life in Windhoek, and Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare mourned with her family at their home. The incident’s profile demands swift and decisive judicial action.

Yet the judiciary’s response has been lethargic, bordering on armchair complacency. How can the release of a magistrate’s travel allowance take weeks, leaving a grieving nation and Shiweda’s family in suspense over whether the accused will remain behind bars or be released to stoke further fear?

Namibia deserves a justice system that honours both its citizens and its laws. The delays in this high-profile case are an affront - not only to Shiweda’s family, but to the nation’s faith in its judiciary. Accountability cannot wait on bureaucracy.