ONGWEDIVA –Swapo secretary general Sophia Shaningwa has said the wide-reaching Fishrot corruption scandal, which implicates ruling party officials, took place before she became the party’s chief administrator. 

Shaningwa, who is vying for the same position at next month’s elective congress, thus wants her name to be cleared.

“I heard some saying I was in office during that time, and wanting to implicate me,” she said on Wednesday during an internal party campaign at Ongwediva.  

“Let us not change history, comrades. In 2017, I was the minister of urban and rural development. Therefore, please assist me to clear my name.”

Shaningwa started her job as Swapo secretary general in March 2018.

The scandal which attracted headlines worldwide was revealed just before the National Assembly and Presidential elections in 2019 - after whistleblower Jóhannes Stefánsson and an Al Jazeera investigation implicated then Cabinet ministers Bernhard Esau and Sacky Shanghala in a fishing quota scheme.

Last year, Shaningwa was listed as one of the state witnesses in the Fishrot court case.

Her name appeared in the 167-person list compiled by the State as witnesses to assist in prosecuting the corruption case.

She reiterated that she was called by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and shown the names of those implicated, of whom most said they gave money to Swapo.

“I was asked to show the party’s bank accounts and the bank statements to see how those funds were linked to the party, and the outcome revealed that there is no cent that came to the Swapo party,” she added.

Moreover, Shaningwa said the scandal which revolves around the payment of bribes from Icelandic fishing company Samherji to government officials in exchange for Namibian fishing rights, has cost that party “heavily”.

She listed it as one of the biggest challenges the party is currently facing.

According to her, the majority of party members backed down as they believed the party campaigns were funded through illicit dealings.

“That corruption scandal negatively affected the party, and I will not stop saying it. It was so difficult for me as SG of the party because only a few wanted to defend the party, while the rest were shying away from being associated with the party. Even the party regalia were packed under the suitcases,” she continued.

Due to that, the party lost their two-thirds majority in the National Assembly, and it also has affected the funding of the party from the government, noted Shaningwa.

Come the end of November, the party will have its seventh elective congress, which will determine its future for the next five years.

The next campaign event is scheduled for tomorrow in Outapi.

-ashikololo@nepc.com.na