The Forum of German-Speaking Namibians has registered its dismay in how the Presidential and National Assembly elections were conducted from last Wednesday to Saturday.
In a statement issued yesterday, the Forum’s vice chairperson Benita Herma said they observed how Namibians watched the events unfold on 27 November.
“Namibians are used to long queues, and are generally patient. However, because of bad planning and execution on the side of the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN), this patience was exploited. Election day was a slap in the face of the Namibian population,” she charged.
Herma added: “Reports have reached us of persons waiting for 14 hours and more, mostly in the open sun, often without water or toilet amenities being provided. Some travelled several hours — many on foot — to try various polling stations, only to find that ballot papers had run out, the electronic equipment was defective, or a mobile polling station had closed without attending to all the voters present.”
The Forum stated that the real challenge for future elections is that many Namibians will be hesitant to go through this ordeal again.
“While the preparations for these elections were handled quite efficiently and voters well- informed, the only day that really mattered, election day, was an organisational disaster. The Forum of German-Speaking Namibians would like to remind the ECN that Namibians have a right to vote; it is not a privilege which the ECN may grant or withhold,” she said.
Herma continued that it remains unknown how many voters went home without having had the opportunity to even reach the entrance of a polling station, “but at least in some areas, there may have been several thousand.”
On the voting, which was extended to Saturday in some regions, she said: “While the Forum welcomes the decision allowing voting to continue in some regions, again we would question why some have been excluded. There will still be voters whose rights have been violated.
Democratic processes have been harmed. Concerned voices are already heard, expressing scepticism about the validity of any outcome. Generally, doubts about the outcome of an election are harmful to a young democracy. In many countries of the world, election results are queried afterwards, often leading to distrust in the government and even to uprisings. It is in the hands of the ECN to avoid this slippery path to chaos and violence.”
The Forum thus urged the ECN to honestly and critically investigate the numerous mistakes made. “It must also reconsider the composition of the ECN, as well as the roles and performances of current managers. Furthermore, the Forum proposes that the ECN sets up channels – both digital and offline – for the public to give input without fear or favour. During this process, there is a need for absolute transparency to avoid rumour-mongering, which would again harm our trust in the outcome of the elections,” she continued.
“Namibians have to be certain that the elected leadership has come about through free and fair elections. Namibia’s future as a democracy depends on it”, she said in driving the message home.