Windhoek
President Hage Geingob has declared that Friday will indeed be a public holiday, contrary to an earlier New Era report wherein Minister of Information and Communication Technology Tjekero Tweya had said the day would not be a public holiday.
Presidential press secretary Albertus Aochamub said, based on the powers vested in the president in section 1 (3) of the Public Holiday’s Act of 1990, Geingob signed the official declaration for Friday to be a public holiday to enable Namibians to fully take part in the regional council and local authority elections.
The Director of the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN), Prof. Paul Isaak, said in an interview with New Era on Monday that the Electoral Act only makes provision for the presidential and National Assembly elections to be declared a public holiday.
Yesterday, however, Isaak said it is a good thing that Friday has now been declared a public holiday, as this would allow voters to exercise their democratic right to vote without concerns of getting back to work in time.
“There should be no excuse for people not to go and vote. The ECN has prepared itself for a high turnout. Voters should make use of this golden opportunity to go and cast their votes,” Isaak advised.