2015-08-11Staff Report 2 Windhoek A furious former DTA secretary general, Vinsent Kanyetu, says he will never rejoin the party, even after his five-year suspension lapses in 2020. The party’s vice president, Kazeongere Tjeundo, formally announced yesterday morning that the former secretary general’s five-year suspension was decided on and endorsed by the DTA’s executive on Sunday. In an apparent parting shot, Kanyetu accused party president McHenry Venaani, a former confidant, of running the party from his living room. During an interview with New Era yesterday Kanyetu said his relationship with the party has come to a permanent end. “I have come to the end with the DTA… It is a McHenry Trust, governed from his sitting room. I thank him for working with me for 18 years,” Kanyetu said. “I felt it is enough … and I have learned that I advocated for the wrong person this whole time,” he said. “He [Venaani] is busy destroying the party with political prostitutes from the CoD and RDP,” thundered Kanyetu, who implied that long-serving party members are being sidelined by the current leadership. Kanyetu said he foresees the decline of the party and predicted that the DTA would not retain its five seats in the 2019 National Assembly elections, “because of the manner in which the party is being administered”. “History will be written from today onwards, because Venaani is running the party to advance his own interests,” said the former administrator. “It seems Venaani wanted power so badly that he got drunk after getting it,” Kanyetu charged. Kanyetu also claimed he had submitted his resignation letter to Venaani last Thursday already and could therefore not understand how the party could suspend someone who had already resigned. “I sent it [the resignation letter] via email to Venaani. I expected him to announce it at the executive meeting, but it was never done. How can they suspend someone who has resigned?” Kanyetu asked. Kavango West regional coordinator of the DTA, Boniface Kashera, was also suspended for five years, while Kavango East regional coordinator, Reinhilde Kudumo was suspended for six months. Kudumo will be allowed to return to her post when her suspension lapses in February. At yesterday’s press conference, Tjeundo denied the party had received Kanyetu’s resignation letter. Tjeundo said the disciplinary committee had recommended that the trio be suspended. He said the three were charged with being dishonest and selling party property without the leadership’s consent. “SG and Kashera were at the centre, Kanyetu was at centre of knowing and recording property of the party,” said Tjeundo, adding that Kudumo received a more lenient punishment, “because she was not involved in the initial stages.” Dienda will continue acting as secretary general until December 31. Contacted for comment after the press conference, Venaani shot down the allegations and accused Kanyetu of sucking the allegations from his thumb. “Some of these allegations are only being made at this late hour when he is suspended over corruption. I really do not want to beat a person who is already down. I brought him to the fore after I lobbied for him to become secretary general. My populism carried him through,” he said. “All these allegations do not deserve my time. How am I running the party like a trust if I am the one investing my personal resources to strengthen the party,” Venaani hit back. He said Kanyetu also suggested the DTA must pay him a severance fee, but the DTA leader would have none of it. “We all know that someone, who was suspended, cannot claim severance fees. I advised him to think matters through before taking any steps, because in fact he is the one that owes the party money,” Venaani alleged. 2015-08-11Staff Report 2
