The Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) has lashed out at the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) for endorsing a corruption-accused company to provide ballot services in Namibia’s upcoming elections.
RDP president Mike Kavekotora says the ECN is attempting to “rape” Namibia’s democracy by opting to make use of Ren-Form to print the ballot for the country’s November elections.
The South African company is mired in a N$570-million tender inflation scandal in Zimbabwe, with the controversial socialite-cum-tenderpreneur, Wicknell Chivayo, as its agent.
Speaking to The Namibian on Friday, Kavekotora said he will no longer be sending a party representative to observe the ballot printing in South Africa, following an invitation by the ECN.
“This is something that needs to be challenged in a court of law. If the information is correct, the ECN will have to explain to the Namibian people why they are choosing a company that has already been known to be involved in corrupt activities,” he said.
“We are going the wrong way. There are a lot of Namibians who are really fed up […] if it boils down to postponing the elections to next year to have a fair system then let it be, because what is happening now is a raping of the whole democratic process,” he added.
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