In the wake of last week’s Supreme Court ruling regarding the recognition of same-sex marriages, Natangue Ithete, the chairperson of the parliamentary standing committee on economics and public administration, has voiced his commitment to the protection and preservation of Namibia’s Constitution and laws.
The Supreme Court decision, which ordered the government to recognise same-sex marriages legally concluded outside the country, has drawn heated responses from various political figures and religious institutions.
Ithete’s comments were made during a stakeholders’ consultation and oversight workshop on the Financial Institutions and Markets Act (Fima), which started at Swakopmund on Monday.
He emphasised the responsibility bestowed upon members of parliament as stipulated by the Constitution.
“We took an oath as members of parliament to protect the Constitution and the laws of the Republic of Namibia,” Ithete said, highlighting the absence of any provision that explicitly permits same-sex marriage.
He urged fellow parliamentarians to remember their sworn duties.
“We took an oath that we must protect,” he said. “The order that all of us took to protect the laws – no law says men should marry each other, women should engage one another.”
Pointing out the absence of explicit constitutional or legal provisions regarding same-sex marriage, Ithete concluded: “So we continue to condemn these things, and we continue to protect the laws of the Republic of Namibia, because we took an oath.”
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