Opposition leader McHenry Venaani has taken a dig at his opponent, Panduleni Itula, and at the same time called for cooperation, saying he must shift his focus away from trivial matters and concentrate on crucial issues to unite the opposition.

This, Venani said, will be the only way they could bundle the ruling party from power.

Venaani made this statement yesterday in response to the Independent Patriots for Change’s recent allegations of the invalidity of PDM and UPM’s 2019 alliance. 

Itula challenged the very existence of PDM. 

Political tension, which has been simmering between the two leaders, has escalated as the 2024 presidential elections draw near, with Venaani emphasising the need for strategic alliances among the opposition parties to challenge Swapo’s dominance.

During the consultative meeting in February, a list of allegations questioned the legality of the PDM-United People’s Movement alliance.

It is Itula’s belief that the alliance between the two is unconstitutional, a claim vehemently denied by Venaani.

The seasoned politician also criticised Itula, stating that not only are his claims absurd and baseless, but they also undermine the Constitution and misinterpret its meaning.

“It is not unique to Namibia for party leaders to contest in the National Assembly elections, as this practice is seen in neighbouring South Africa and Botswana. As a matter of fact, to be appointed as a minister, which ultimately constitutes the cabinet, one has to be a member of the National Assembly. The president may select any number of the ministers from the members of the National Assembly,” he addressed the matter.

 Venaani believes Itula’s claims are not based on an objective understanding of the constitution’s authors but are instead influenced by his political motives.

He maintained the alliance is credible, stating there is no legal provision that prohibits party leaders from contesting in the national elections.

ECN

Recently, IPC secretary general Christine !Auchamus requested a copy of the PDM-UPM coalition agreement and asked the Electoral Commission of Namibia to probe the legality of the alliance.

In a letter, obtained from PDM, the commission addressed IPC’s allegations surrounding the legitimacy of the PDM-UPM coalition agreement. 

Also, it noted that it accepted the agreement (coalition) in accordance with section 144 of the Electoral Act 5 of 2014.

The commission disputed claims that PDM was allowed to participate in the 2019 National Assembly elections as a “new entity”. 

Disputing these claims, the commission stated that the PDM and UPM had participated as an alliance, with each party remaining a separate registered political party.

“Clause 1.2 of the alliance agreement explicitly stated that the parties would participate under the name of PDM; they had not merged into a single entity for the purpose of participating in the 2019 presidential and National Assembly elections,” reads the statement.

The ECN also rejected claims that Venaani, as a presidential candidate, had failed to indicate he represented a coalition.

The commission emphasised that the alliance agreement stated there would only be a PDM presidential candidate.

Coalition

In addition to the tit-for-tat, Venaani said Itula is playing petty politics and only showing interest in discussions now that the PDM-UPM coalition is seen as a “threat”. 

He stated that he attempted to arrange a coffee meeting with his opponent to discuss the potential of forming a coalition to overthrow Swapo; however, his invitations have been declined.

New Era’s attempts to solicit comments from Itula yesterday were unsuccessful. 

“To all political leaders, if our ultimate goal is to overthrow the ruling party from power, which should be the conversation that I, Itula and many others ought to have in this country, then we must talk about coalition formation and wrestle power from Swapo. I have sent a number of messages to Itula. I have asked him to meet for coffee and discuss broadly how strong opposition can take Swapo out of power, but he is not interested in that.

“Their interests are only to attack Venaani and PDM… comrades, let us raise the political level and political debates in this country. This country is in dire need of change, and people are yearning for a real political change… as oppositions, we must be bigger and manage human relations together to make sure we get Swapo’s powers but political leaders are having petty conversations and fighting one another,” he further detailed.

Despite being the first time since independence, political parties collaborated to run a prominent council like the City of Windhoek. 

If any, the coalition has inspired little confidence in the residents, with parties at odds with each other. This has resulted in the city struggling for leadership. 

However, Venaani maintains the opposition coalition remains the best way to unseat the ruling party.

He, therefore, called for unity among opposition parties and emphasised the need for political alliances to take Swapo out of power.

Asked whether PDM is not confident enough to remove Swapo from power on its own, Venaani said PDM is capable of defeating Swapo single-handedly – no matter how long it might take.

However, he acknowledged that a coalition with other political parties could lead to a faster overthrow of the ruling party.

“We have seen that the opposition is becoming stronger collectively; therefore, we can leverage this collective bargaining to attain political power. Coalition politics is the order of the day, and we are seeing where the coalition is working it is much faster to unseat the ruling governance,” he said.

- ashikololo@nepc.com.na