Windhoek
It has been six months since parliamentarian Veikko Nekundi took over the reins of the fragmented Swapo Party Youth League (SPYL) and he says it has been no walk in the park.
The ruling party’s youth wing was thrown into a ditch of divisions following intense infighting, backbiting and ruinous character assassinations.
This gave birth to at least three camps in the league: one loyal to beleaguered former youth leader Elijah Ngurare, with another throwing its weight behind Nekundi, and a smaller section remaining neutral.
It is all predominantly attributed to the internal party campaigns and outcome of the 2012 ordinary Swapo congress, which saw President Hage Geingob emerging triumphant over SPYL-backed Youth Minister Jerry Ekandjo and Home Affairs Minister Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana.
Ngurare, alongside former SPYL spokesperson Job Amupanda, were subsequently expelled from the party for their involvement in the Affirmative Repositioning (AR) movement.
This created further divisions within the youth wing, as some of their supporters remained in the structure.
“What is important is to stabilise the organisation, strengthen the values of comradeship, moral values, and respect for our own Constitution and the rule of law,” Nekundi told New Era.
“The most important thing is to provide a strategic directive on how we are to move forward, together and in comradeship. It’s never easy to do it in the space of six months, but we’re working towards that,” Nekundi stated candidly.
He stressed that SPYL’s leadership is working towards mending the fractured relationships within the league.
“It is to ensure that all members of the youth league are treated with equal respect, as per the Constitution and that it is also upheld by any person who is a member of the wing. The Constitution will be the used as a yardstick on any person.”
He added that the leadership would “ensure that communication takes place through the relevant structures, as long as there is no fragmentation in the organisation.”
According to him, any person found to be out of line in terms of the constitution will “be spoken to”.
He admitted that at times there are individuals, who have their own way of doing things, and that problem is being addressed.
Nekundi explained that his office is primarily tasked with ensuring that every youth wing member is treated fairly and within the framework of the party’s constitution.
“We have various policies of the organization, such as the constitution and the code of conduct, that guide [what we do and how we do it],” he said.
Asked what the camps are in SPYL at present, Nekundi said there are individuals who want to do things outside the provisions of the wing’s constitution.
“The constitution speaks of comradeship. If you call a comrade [derogatory] names, it be will outside the constitution,” he cautioned.
He said the constitution speaks of democratic centralism, but there are those who do not want the structure to take a decision and want to get involved in decision-making themselves.
“By doing that] you actually want the constitution to be changed, but you have to wait for the right structures to take the decision to change the constitution,” Nekundi elaborated.
He also said it is unbecoming for people to support him, or to create a camp around him, and not the organisation or the wing.
Asked what his opinion on AR is, Nekundi referred to the Namibian Constitution and the provision for freedom of association.
Regarding the 200 000 plots agreement between government and the AR, he said: “What is on record from me is that we have no capacity to deliver 200 000 plots in one or two years, not even 10 years, and that is the reason the Harambee Prosperity Plan speaks of 26 000 plots in four years.”
“The SPYL stands firmly in favour of the delivery of land, which has been our resolution at our congresses and policy conference. We stand behind our President and his government, which is committed to deliver land to our people,” the SPYL leader emphasised.