On a sunny Tuesday afternoon, Theo-Ben Gurirab emerged from the corridors of his gigantic house situated in the leafy suburb of Luxury Hill.
He was taking a shower, his domestic worker said earlier as this reporter waited in the sitting room at just past 11h00. Earlier on, members of the Namibian Police at his house – after satisfying themselves with issues of security – confirmed he was expecting this journalist.
Eleven o’clock on a Tuesday is an unusual time for the former Speaker of the National Assembly to be home.
Usually that time, he would be presiding over the august House. Calling wayward MPs to order and making rulings about House procedures – that’s what Gurirab had been doing for the past decade on a day like Tuesday.Fresh from the shower, he looked worryingly apprehensive. “We are mourning the death of Comrade Hashim Mbita,” he said, in reference to the Tanzanian liberation icon who died on Sunday.
“He was our comrade during the struggle and had visited Namibia a number of times after independence.”
But soon, Gurirab looked jovial again. He arrived in the sitting room with a note pad and a pen, as if he were the journalist to conduct the interview.
“I remain a resourceful person, helping people with writing books and planning conferences.”
It was quiet at his house. Apart from the two police officers at the gate, Gurirab was at home with his maid only – until his American-born wife Joan popped in later.
There was a sharp contrast between the veteran politician’s body language and the unfavourable direction his career has taken since Swapo’s electoral college last year.
Being home on a Tuesday afternoon was a result of, first, failing to nail a place on the Swapo parliamentary list. Hifikepunye Pohamba, then Swapo president, did not appoint him to the parliamentary list. This left him hanging onto his government job by his fingernails.
But Gurirab was ushered further towards the exit door when Geingob opted not to include him on the list of eight additional members of parliament announced earlier this year. The former prime minister is a seasoned diplomat. He looked unbothered by the current events – or maybe he was just being diplomatic.
A few seconds later, he startlingly quipped: “I was quite sad to leave. I needed not less than two more years in government.”
At the advanced age that he is, one might find his remark slightly odd – or even unfortunate. But gerontocracy – when leaders are significantly older than most of the adult population in the country – is firmly rooted in Namibian politics.
Perhaps being out of government has created a bit of freedom to express himself freely.
He revealed, for example, that he was ready to continue serving as prime minister in 2004, but was urged by the Swapo top leadership to become Speaker of the National Assembly the next year.
This, he said, was to help mend acrimonious relations in the party following the divisive 2004 extraordinary congress of the ruling party.
Gurirab said Swapo was almost torn to pieces because of events related to the 2004 extraordinary congress, which sought to find a replacement to Sam Nujoma as the country’s president.
“The environment was politically tense. Mosé Tjitendero was openly supporting Hidipo Hamutenya, who was up against Nahas Angula and Pohamba,” he recalls.
“Eventually there was a fallout between supporters of different camps and this risked Mosé’s position in the party. Eventually he did not make it back to parliament.”
“Relations were polarised in the party, so I was approached by the party’s big four to become a replacement for Mosé as Speaker of parliament. The decision was taken so that we help restore unity in the party.”
“I would have wanted to continue as prime minister, having assumed that position only two years earlier. But as a disciplined cadre of the party I agreed to become Speaker,” he said.
Pohamba won the 2004 contest ahead of Hamutenya and Angula to become Swapo’s candidate in that year’s presidential elections. Pohamba went on to appoint Angula as prime minister in 2005, a move that observers say was meant to further cement unity after the divisive events of 2004.
Even though his political career seems to have abruptly hit a snag, Gurirab was full of optimism.
The former foreign affairs minister feels that President Geingob has ushered the country into a direction of hope and believes the next five years could see significant positive developments.
He also described Geingob’s presidency as “a good moment for our country”, saying the new head of state has so far spoken a language of re-assurance.
The former president of the United Nations General Assembly said he harbours no ill feelings for exclusion from government.
Asked when had he learnt his fate of not being retained in government, he said: “The first sign was when I was not elected or appointed to the list at the electoral college.”
“There were signals but there was still a chance for me to get re-deployed. I carried on with my work. I didn’t feel bad. I would be ridiculous to say I’m unfairly treated.”
Arguably, he was the most seasoned senior diplomat in government, but he expressed confidence that there remains quality diplomats in government.
“Institutional memory remains intact. We have seasoned diplomats such as Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, Tuliameni Kalomoh, Andreas Guibeb and many others. This leaves enough manpower for international relations issues.”
Pohamba recently retired as Swapo president and Geingob was appointed to serve in that position. Gurirab believes Geingob can continue leading the country and the party at the same time.
“There exists leaders’ solidarity in Swapo, compared to our sister parties in the region. Hage received 87% in last year’s election, which means the expectations on him are more than those of his predecessors [Nujoma and Pohamba]. He needs full control in order to fulfil these expectations,” the Swapo politburo and central committee member opined.
Looking to the future, Gurirab said he remains a resourceful person and ready to assist when duty calls.
“I remain at the disposal of the President, parliament and the party,” he concluded.