I took an oath to defend him with my life – Nujoma’s bodyguard

For over two decades, Nepando Amupanda stood as the silent bodyguard of late founding president Sam Nujoma before and after independence.

His familiar face is featured in most of the president’s early photos from the 1980s and well into his final years of presidency, often standing behind Nujoma – unsmiling and intimidating in military uniform.

Nujoma died on 8 February in Windhoek at the age of 95.

Amupanda followed Nujoma everywhere – whether the president was addressing a large crowd at a stadium or delivering a speech in a hall.

“Sometimes people would send letters or gifts to presidents with the intention of killing them,” Amupanda (72) revealed in an interview with The Namibian last week.

“We would clear letters and gifts sent to him to ensure there was no intention to harm him,” he said.

Amupanda said his service began in 1982, when he was assigned to guard Nujoma by Swapo’s late secretary for defence, Peter Nanyemba, and Salomon Hawala, who would later become the chief of the Namibian Defence Force.

Prior to this formal appointment, Nujoma personally sought him out.

“Nujoma welcomed me with open arms,” Amupanda recalled.

“He said ‘welcome home’. I took an oath that I will defend him . . . I did not want to sell-out. I always wanted to be loyal to him,” he said.

Amupanda’s role encompassed more than just physical protection.

He was entrusted with the safety of Nujoma’s life, his body, his food, and his vital documents. He also guarded against any potential threat, ensuring the founding president’s well-being in all aspects.

“Nujoma did not eat alone. He would always say come and eat with me at my table. He was like a father to us,” Amupanda said.

He said Nujoma’s favourite dish was fish, though he also enjoyed fruit.

Beyond the demands of his profession, Amupanda’s interactions with Nujoma shaped his character.

Amupanda credits Nujoma with teaching him to be fearless, courageous and determined.

He remembers Nujoma’s love for the simple pleasures in life, like swimming, soaking up the sun, and enjoying the ocean breeze.

“He was an avid swimmer. We would swim in the sea in Luanda before independence,” Amupanda said.

Amupanda remembers Nujoma’s love for children and his generosity towards those around him.

“When we would visit the Nujoma family home at Etunda village, he would slaughter a cow for us. He always cared for those around him. If you took food to him, he would always ask if his soldiers had eaten first.

He did not eat before his soldiers ate,” Amupanda said.

“Nujoma was generous just like his mother.

When we would go to Etunda kuku Gwakondo (Nujoma’s mother) would ask, ‘Nepando did you drink oshikundu?” he said.

Amupanda said he would give Nujoma a hair cut. “I did not want anyone to cut his hair.”

He would call me comrade Nepando. He liked exercising, doing push-ups and playing badminton in the State House,” he said.

Amupanda’s service as Nujoma’s bodyguard concluded in 2005 when Nujoma stepped down as president.

Although the bond remained, access became difficult in later years.

Amupanda said he was not informed of Nujoma’s passing by those currently serving in the former president’s office.
He learned the news from Nujoma’s nephew.

He also shared that Nujoma had expressed a desire to see him, but his bodyguards and police officers had allegedly prevented him from doing so.

“Even last year, he called me saying he wanted to see me, but the colleagues and police refused to let me see him,” Nepando said.

He recounted an instance when he went to see Nujoma at a guesthouse at Oshakati, only to be denied entry despite Nujoma’s call for him.

He last saw Nujoma at his sister’s funeral in 2020.

“He was so happy,” Amupanda said.

“Nujoma liked me and I was very close to him. During his birthday celebrations, the founding president would call me to invite me.”

He said Nujoma’s death left him heartbroken.

Amupanda is a trained People’s Liberation Army of Namibia soldier who left the country to go into exile in 1977.

Before he went into exile, he was incarcerated at Oshakati for exposing apartheid soldiers.