Windhoek
After law enforcers had to be called in to restore calm at a chaotic Swapo Party district conference at Kalkrand last week, the party secretary general Nangolo Mbumba says it is not the end of the embarrassing political episode.
He said the party would follow the relevant procedures and deal with those who misbehaved.
The police were summoned when disgruntled supporters locked a hall in which party delegates – who included Hardap Governor Esme Isaack and the Minister of Education, Arts and Culture Katrina Hanse-Himarwa – were having a district executive meeting.
The meeting was convened to elect candidates for the regional council and local authority elections.
“Yes she [Hanse-Himarwa] reported it to me. We will follow the party procedures and those party members who misbehaved will be dealt with accordingly,” said Mbumba yesterday.
Hanse-Himarwa told New Era on Sunday that the police were called to help restore law and order.
The misbehaving group, consisting mostly of youth from the Kalkrand area, allegedly locked the hall, in which the meeting was being held, with a padlock and chain in protest of the outcome. Former Hardap Regional Council Chief Regional Officer Yvonne Boois was accused of orchestrating the shenanigans.
Sources claim Boois allegedly ordered some youth to put on the padlock after failing to make it during the internal election.
“I was told that she was the one who instigated the people to put on the padlock. She thinks I am the one who cooked things so that people do not vote for her, but that is not true. She is not even on my level, I will never go so low,” said Hanse-Himarwa.
Hanse-Himarwa and the rest of the attendees only left the venue after the police broke the padlock.
“I was there as the chairperson of the leaders assigned to the region to ensure that everything goes accordingly. There were no serious hiccups inside, but outside people were going on and some even locked us inside,” she said.
She said the matter was already reported to Mbumba for action to be taken against the culprits.
“I have nothing personal against her, in fact, when she got that job as CRO, I was the one who motivated it, so it does not make sense to say I have something personal against her,” Hanse-Himarwa said.
Boois on the other hand told this publication yesterday that there were already conspiracies before the meeting to make sure that she did not win. She denied ordering the community to lock the hall, but added: “I supported what they did [locking the hall].”
“People were already talking, and some councillors told my supporters that they are wasting their time supporting me because the regional leadership will make sure I do not make it through,” she said.
Boois said she wrote to Mbumba to appeal the outcome of Friday’s election.
“At the beginning of the month we wrote to the secretary general informing him of the ongoing plans to sideline me but we did not get a response. But I will write to him again because he is my SG and I have nowhere else to go.”
Boois also accused the regional leadership of systematically eliminating her from her position as CRO.
“Those people already took away my job, what more do they want from me? This thing of people bullying others because they are in the politburo and central committee must stop, Swapo is for all of us.”
Hanse-Himarwa and Boois are not new to controversy – even during their time at the regional council when Hanse-Himarwa served as Hardap governor and Boois as CRO, they used to be at loggerheads.
Incumbent Rehoboth Rural Constituency Councillor Riaan McNab, Ronnie Swart, Paulina !Khoeses and Willemien Cloete were the candidates elected at Friday’s meeting.
Their names will now be sent to the party’s headquarters for vetting.