By Mwaka Liswaniso
WINDHOEK – Veteran Namibian politician John Alfons Pandeni was one of the prisoners jailed on Robben Island during 1978 to 1984.
He served time on the island with the late South African liberation struggle giant Nelson Madiba Mandela and other Namibians such as Andimba Toivo ya Toivo and Petrus Iilonga.
At the time of his death Pandeni was the Minister of Regional and Local Government, Housing and Rural Development.
He was born in 1950 at Omundjalala in the Omusati Region.
Pandeni received military training in Tanzania and Angola and in 1978 was arrested for his political activism and anti-apartheid activities with Swapo’s military wing, the People’s Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN).
Following his arrest Pandeni was imprisoned on Robben Island until 1985.
After his release, he became the founding secretary of the Namibia Food and Allied Workers’ Union (Nafau) until 1992. In that year he entered politics full-time, serving as regional councillor for Soweto Constituency in Katutura, Windhoek.
A year later he became the Khomas governor until 2005 when he entered President Hifikepunye Pohamba’s first Cabinet. He was a distant relative of fellow Robben Island detainee turned Swapo politician Petrus Iilonga.
A teacher by profession before he left for exile, Pandeni completed his teacher’s training at Dobra in 1971, and was employed at Olupako Primary School in the Omusati Region and later became the principal of the school. In 1973 he enrolled at Oshigambo for further training.
With political tension growing in the country Pandeni’s only option was exile and in 1974 he left for abroad. He went for military training in Kongwa, Tanzania, and was sent on his first mission in 1976 to Angola where he served at the front as a political commissar.
His relative, battle partner and brother during exile, Iilonga the deputy minister of defence, described the late Pandeni “as a born leader, fearless warrior, brave man and a true soldier”. Iilonga reminisces that he and the late Pandeni fought many battles together, such as the battle of Omuuntele and Eheke.
During 1976 Pandeni along with Iilonga was assigned to Namibia on a death defying sabotage mission, and to mobilize and recruit fighters.
Pandeni had to change his identity to “Simon Thomas” and “Jacob Nangolo” to avoid detection. His first successful mission in Namibia was in the Gibeon area when he and Iilonga blew up a bridge.
In 1978 his luck ran out when an apartheid informer blew his cover and he was arrested in Mariental with Iilonga and their host Willem Biwa, and was sentenced to 18 years in prison.
Seven years later he was released from Robben Island and took up the leadership of the Namibian Food Allied Workers Union (Nafau) as its founding secretary, a post he held until 1992, before being elected as the regional councillor for Soweto Constituency in Khomas Region and a year later became the governor for Khomas Region until 2005 when he entered Cabinet as the Minister of Regional and Local Government, Housing and Rural Development, a post he held until his untimely death.
Pandeni died in a car accident on 12 March 2008 on the Kombat-Grootfontein road a few kilometres from Grootfontein while on an official mission to the Zambezi Region. He was honoured with a hero’s funeral at Heroes Acre in Windhoek.