CoD elections nullified Interim leaders to be appointed

THE leadership elections of the Congress of Democrats (CoD) – held at Keetmanshoop in May – have been nullified because of irregularities.

A new interim committee will start work in two days to guide the party until a new congress can be held. This means that party president Ben Ulenga, secretary general Rosa Namises and national chairman Tsudao Gurirab, all controversially elected at Keetmanshoop, will no longer be the leaders from tomorrow night – the interim committee may not include those who signed the terms of reference for the audit panel that investigated the elections.Those who signed the document a month ago were Ulenga, Gurirab, Namises and Natji Tjizera on one side, and Ignatius Shixwameni, Nora Schimming-Chase, Kala Gertze and Elma Dienda on the other side.The two factions – Ulenga’s supporters and those led by Ignatius Shixwameni who cried foul and walked out of the Keetmanshoop congress – on Friday agreed to go ahead with an interim committee after a tense two-and-a-half-hour meeting with the audit panel chaired by Clement Daniels.”The two groups will now submit three names each of different CoD members to serve on this interim committee during the day on Tuesday to the audit panel,” Daniels told The Namibian yesterday.”On Tuesday night, the panel will meet with these six nominees only, who will have to elect a chairperson and map out the way forward to hold a party congress so that a new leadership will be elected,” Daniels added.”The meeting on Tuesday will also mark the end of the work of the panel as agreed so far.”The audit panel was appointed after allegations of foul play at the congress, held three months ago to choose new leaders.The panel’s report found “conclusive proof” of serious irregularities”, and recommended that the result of the election be declared null and void.The findings were welcomed by the group led by Shixwameni.Although no comments on the details of the meeting could be obtained yesterday, The Namibian has reliably learnt that the Ulenga group “very grudgingly” agreed to the way forward.”The Ulenga group said the audit report was ‘incomplete’ and more details should be added,” a source close to CoD circles indicated over the weekend.”They also found it difficult to accept Clause 7 of the terms of reference for the audit panel, which stipulates that the leadership would step down, once irregularities with regard to the Keetmanshoop elections are found,” according to the source.The panel submitted its report to the party last Monday.Approached to verify whether Ulenga, Namises and Gurirab had stepped down on Friday as agreed a month ago, when the audit panel was set up, Daniels merely said: “Both groups agreed to nullify the election results as per Clause 7.Technically Ulenga is still party president until the meeting takes place Tuesday night.”Ulenga told The Namibian that he would not comment on the outcome of Friday’s meeting, which took place at the offices of the Council of Churches (CCN).”We met on Friday and agreed to meet again with the panel on Tuesday,” was all he was prepared to say yesterday.On Thursday, CoD national chairman Tsudao Gurirab maintained that “there is nothing in the audit report” and that, in his view the audit panel “did not find a single wrongdoing” regarding the Keetmanshoop leadership elections.Ignatius Shixwameni, who heads the ‘rebel faction’, told The Namibian yesterday that he found the work of the panel was done “correctly to the letter and sprit of the agreed terms”.”That is all I can tell you at this stage.We will now discuss who our three representatives will be to serve on the CoD interim leadership committee.”This means that party president Ben Ulenga, secretary general Rosa Namises and national chairman Tsudao Gurirab, all controversially elected at Keetmanshoop, will no longer be the leaders from tomorrow night – the interim committee may not include those who signed the terms of reference for the audit panel that investigated the elections.Those who signed the document a month ago were Ulenga, Gurirab, Namises and Natji Tjizera on one side, and Ignatius Shixwameni, Nora Schimming-Chase, Kala Gertze and Elma Dienda on the other side.The two factions – Ulenga’s supporters and those led by Ignatius Shixwameni who cried foul and walked out of the Keetmanshoop congress – on Friday agreed to go ahead with an interim committee after a tense two-and-a-half-hour meeting with the audit panel chaired by Clement Daniels.”The two groups will now submit three names each of different CoD members to serve on this interim committee during the day on Tuesday to the audit panel,” Daniels told The Namibian yesterday. “On Tuesday night, the panel will meet with these six nominees only, who will have to elect a chairperson and map out the way forward to hold a party congress so that a new leadership will be elected,” Daniels added.”The meeting on Tuesday will also mark the end of the work of the panel as agreed so far.”The audit panel was appointed after allegations of foul play at the congress, held three months ago to choose new leaders.The panel’s report found “conclusive proof” of serious irregularities”, and recommended that the result of the election be declared null and void.The findings were welcomed by the group led by Shixwameni.Although no comments on the details of the meeting could be obtained yesterday, The Namibian has reliably learnt that the Ulenga group “very grudgingly” agreed to the way forward.”The Ulenga group said the audit report was ‘incomplete’ and more details should be added,” a source close to CoD circles indicated over the weekend.”They also found it difficult to accept Clause 7 of the terms of reference for the audit panel, which stipulates that the leadership would step down, once irregularities with regard to the Keetmanshoop elections are found,” according to the source.The panel submitted its report to the party last Monday.Approached to verify whether Ulenga, Namises and Gurirab had stepped down on Friday as agreed a month ago, when the audit panel was set up, Daniels merely said: “Both groups agreed to nullify the election results as per Clause 7.Technically Ulenga is still party president until the meeting takes place Tuesday night.”Ulenga told The Namibian that he would not comment on the outcome of Friday’s meeting, which took place at the offices of the Council of Churches (CCN).”We met on Friday and agreed to meet again with the panel on Tuesday,” was all he was prepared to say yesterday.On Thursday, CoD national chairman Tsudao Gurirab maintained that “there is nothing in the audit report” and that, in his view the audit panel “did not find a single wrongdoing” regarding the Keetmanshoop leadership elections.Ignatius Shixwameni, who heads the ‘rebel faction’, told The Namibian yesterday that he found the work of the panel was done “correctly to the letter and sprit of the agreed terms”.”That is all I can tell you at this stage.We will now discuss who our three representatives will be to serve on the CoD interim leadership committee.”