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Venaani attacks ‘weak’ IPC

Venaani attacks ‘weak’ IPC

Rudolf Gaiseb

Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) leader McHenry Venaani has taken a swipe at the official opposition Independent Patriots for Change for its purported failure and incapacity to hold the government to account.

He made these remarks at a press conference in the capital yesterday.

The event aimed to provide PDM’s reflection on President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah’s first 100 days in office.

At the onset, however, Venaani could not help but express his disappointment in the party that toppled PDM from the official opposition status. “We would cover that space because we know it very well – how to hold government to account. Being an opposition party in Parliament does not diminish us to remain quiet, but we wanted to give 100 days to the leading opposition for us to see how they are going to do. But we are seeing that there is a vacuum, and the PDM is ready to fill that vacuum. The voters, many of them, are realising that what they thought was gold is not really gold,” he said, referring to IPC.

The IPC has, for the first time, attained the official opposition title, with chief patriot Panduleni Itula leading the party from outside Parliament.

IPC leader of the party in the National Assembly Immanuel Nashinge said his
party has pressing matters to address.

“We are busy with serious business. We don’t have time for those who are seeking attention,” he stated.

He continued: “Unfortunately, the IPC is an independent political party with its own strategies pertaining to political activity. The honourable Venaani is entitled to his opinions, which shall not form part of how we do politics. Had the honourable member succeeded in being a model official opposition, the electorate would have renewed that mandate. 

“As the official opposition, our focus remains that of exercising our oversight mandate on our terms and for the benefit of the people of Namibia, who gave us a 21% mandate”.

100 days

Turning to the Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah-led administration, Venaani themed its first 100 days in office as ‘A Hundred Days of Empty Promises: An Assessment of President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah’s First 100 Days in Office’.

He hastened to say the president  signalled a change of direction, but that it was the same “tired song, perhaps just being played on a slightly newer trumpet”. 

“This administration’s first 100 days have been a textbook case of political inertia, sprinkled in with a few symbolic gestures, rhetorical gymnastics and a worrying trend of posing for the cameras as opposed to delivering for the very people whom they are supposed to represent,” Venaani asserted.

Meanwhile, the seasoned politician said reviving Namibia’s green schemes to 100%, as promised by Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare recently, is a shortfall of a vision and will not change the country nor give necessary output. Instead, Venaani pushed for agricultural development and urged the government to develop 50 000 hectares of agricultural land in the Namib Desert, especially along the coast and interior.

He wants the leadership to take lessons from Israel and the United Arab Emirates, which have both turned arid desert lands into thriving agricultural hubs using desalination technology and advanced irrigation systems. 

He believes by desalinating seawater and using it for agriculture, Namibia will develop sustainable farming industries in regions previously deemed uninhabitable for agriculture.

“Namibia, with its abundant coastal access to the Atlantic Ocean, could tap into this technology. In doing so, it will not only address food security but also create thousands of new jobs,” he added.

Namcor

Venaani then turned to the talk of town – the Namcor corruption saga.

He criticised that despite all the fiery speeches on transparency, this administration continues to dance around corruption.  He expressed that the President promised zero tolerance, yet suspicious tenders, especially in the health sector, go unchecked, along with patronage politics and the spectre of Fishrot. “I have called on the Namcor mafia-style dealings to be investigated and dealt with. Now that the truth is coming to light, we are vindicated by our efforts,” Venaani stated.

He challenged Nandi-Ndaitwah to reveal the audit reports of August 26, State-owned enterprise fully owned by the Namibian Defence Force (NDF) and overseen by the Ministry of Defence and Veterans Affairs.

“In an era of accountability and transparency, it is utterly concerning that the August 26’s financial reports have not been made public for years. Under the administrations of the late Hage Geingob and Nangolo Mbumba, these reports were meant to ensure oversight and transparency in how the August 26 Holding Company manages its funds. 

“However, despite repeated requests for years, the presidency continues to duck, dive and deflect, giving nothing but the run-around. What exactly is being covered up?” he questioned.

The previous day, during India’s prime minister Narendra Modi’s visit, Nashinge raised concerns over the official opposition party’s alleged sidelining during the visit.

He told New Era that Itula was not invited to State House for the visit of Modi. 

He said some ordinary members of Parliament were invited to State House between 11h00 and 12h00 to meet Modi, but Itula was only invited to lunch at the presidential home.  “As the world’s largest democracy visits one of Africa’s youngest, we face a moment of profound irony. While India’s prime minister, representing 1.4 billion people who exercise their democratic rights, stands on Namibian soil, our own government demonstrates its contempt for those very principles by systematically excluding the leader of the official opposition from State functions,” Nashinge wrote in a subsequent press statement. Nashinge added that Itula was not invited to the Genocide Remembrance Day and Nandi-Ndaitwah’s inauguration.

“[At the commemoration], I was not invited, but I was told as a leader, we were told under the custodianship of Parliament. But there was no invitation or anything whatsoever to say,” he said.

At Parliament on Wednesday afternoon, Nashinge vented that the president does not have a very important person sticker.

“What do you say about the Namibians who voted for him as a presidential candidate and for IPC as a political party? So, something is off… We have a constitution that we must uphold and protect – that of the party and the Constitution of the republic [of Namibia],” Nashinge vented.

rrgaiseb@gmail.com