The successor of Hidipo Hamutenya as president of Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) will have no seat in parliament and any plan contrary to that effect will be blocked, acting president Steve Bezuidenhoudt told New Era yesterday.
There is talk that one of the three members currently in the National Assembly on an RDP ticket might have to make way for the new president.
“The new president will not go to parliament – this was a decision taken by the central committee in February and we will abide by it,” said Bezuidenhoudt.
Currently the party is represented in the National Assembly by Bezuidenhoudt, secretary general Mike Kavekotora and deputy secretary general Agnes Limbo.
Limbo is the lowest ranked on the party list and could therefore face the chop should the congress decide to send its president to parliament.
Hamutenya, who vacated the party presidency recently, was in parliament since 2009.
Some RDP members are perplexed by the party’s latest decision to opt to have a president that sits in parliament.
Congress is the party’s highest decision making body and could therefore overrule the central committee resolution by means of a majority vote.
“If that issue makes its way onto the agenda I will vehemently oppose it because we want a president who devotes all his or her attention to the party. If someone pushes for it and it happens it will be very sad,” said Bezuidenhoudt.
With less than a month to go before the RDP convenes for its extraordinary congress where a new party president will be chosen, several regional structures are still undecided about who they want to succeed Hamutenya.
Jeremiah Nambinga, Kandy Nehova, Heikko Lucks and Libolly Haufiku have all indicated their ambition to lead the party. Candidates who wish to contest can still avail themselves until the day of the congress next month.
Kunene Regional Secretary Gerson Ochurub said he was rallying behind Nambinga, currently the party’s secretary for information and publicity.
“If Nambinga takes over, we will see that the party will be disciplined again from the central committee members down to all the other members,” said Ochurub.
All the other regions refused to make public their preferred candidate while others said they must still hold regional conferences to reach consensus on their preferred candidates.
Hamutenya in February announced his retirement, bringing to an end his political career that spanned over 50 years.