The Swapo Party yesterday launched its key election campaign tools ahead of the November showdown, which is expected to separate pretenders from contenders.

Chiefly, the ruling party launched its website, an online platform for political mobilisation and campaigning, through which messages and information will be relayed.

Addressing party supporters and sympathisers, Swapo presidential candidate Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah said the website will carry information about the various public engagements and political activities by Swapo and its presidential candidate at different levels across the country.

Through the website, the party will also inform the public about the upcoming round-table talks, panel discussions, fundraising events and other campaign activities.

“This website is designed to be interactive, and it will allow leaders, members and supporters to interact with the public at large to explain various policy positions to ensure that voters make informed decisions and rational choices. 

It is also a platform for debates with members, supporters and sympathisers, as well as anyone who wants to know what the Swapo Party stands for. It is an arena for the contestation of ideas that we have to win,” Nandi-Ndaitwah said.

Additionally, the website will carry various social media platforms such as Facebook, X and TikTok, YouTube, radio programmes, the Namibia Today newspaper, news updates and a calendar of events, amongst others.

Namibia Today

The party revived Namibia Today, the Swapo mouthpiece.

“Namibia Today will resume its vanguard role to provide authoritative accounts and analysis of social, political and economic events within our country and the southern African region at large,” she stated.

Nandi-Ndaitwah added that the newspaper will provide feature articles, commentaries and editorials from the vantage point of Swapo. The newspaper will further expose and debunk fake news and misinformation, and provide a credible narrative about the party, the presidential candidate, other leaders, and party members.

Other key campaign tools include the Swapo radio programmes on Radio Energy.

“You will agree with me that radio is an important medium of information dissemination and communication. Radio outreach is more than any other medium in our country. The Swapo Party has, therefore, decided to pay attention to radio during this campaign and beyond,” she noted.

Nandi-Ndaitwah, or NNN, said Swapo will broadcast daily radio programmes which focus on various policy issues of critical importance to the nation.

These programmes will be produced and presented by party members, including those representing the wings and affiliates of Swapo, to ensure that the concerns and aspirations of the various sectors of society are taken care of. These radio programmes will also be available on the Swapo Party website.

They furthermore launched the party profile, which relates its history of uniting the people for national liberation, and its current role in governing the country, growing the economy, and developing infrastructure. It also chronicles its mission for social and economic liberation, which includes the empowerment of youth and women, and accelerated economic development through natural resources’ beneficiation to bring about sustainable development.

Nandi-Ndaitwah assured members that the ruling party will retain power and a two-thirds majority, come elections, which will enable it to continue the national developmental agenda through quality service delivery.

Control

Reacting to the launch, political commentator Ndumba Kamwanyah described the revival of Namibia Today as a move in the right direction.

“The revival of the Swapo Party mouthpiece can be a good tool for controlling the party’s narratives, as compared to how party activities or news are covered by mainstream media. Yes, so it could be an effective tool more with young people and educated people who are able to read English,” he said.

Kamwanyah, however, expressed hope that the newspaper will be translated into vernacular languages to reach rural areas, or people who do not speak English. 

“Yes, it can be an effective tool if it is managed and run well. I hope it will not be a mouthpiece that targets critiques of people who think they are not Swapo supporters,” he continued.

Kamwanyah also maintained that if it is managed and used well, Namibia Today “is a good campaigning tool in terms of disseminating the party’s messages and reaching a wide audience”.

He further said it is important that political parties disseminate information about their policies and programmes using different platforms, social media and a website where a wider audience could access them because that information will help the voters decide.

“So, it is needed, more particularly for the young voters who are more present on social media or on the internet so that it is easy for them to be reached,” Kamwanyah said.

He, however, cautioned: “There are limitations to websites, the internet or social media presence. But you must not forget that there are still people who are not able to access or use social media or the internet, so that cohort of voters must not be forgotten. That’s why the diversification campaign approach is what I can recommend for political parties to make sure that they reach every voter who needs information because that information is very critical for voters to make decisions in terms of how they are going to vote.”

-lnashuuta@gmail.com