Itula challenges Nandi-Ndaitwah not to pay lip service to fighting corruption

Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) leader Panduleni Itula has challenged president Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah to come up with a strong legal framework dealing with corruption and to avoid paying lip service to the challenge.

Speaking at his party’s ‘state of the nation address’ on Friday, Itula said branding corruption as treason without defining ‘treasonous acts’ amounts to paying lip service.

The opposition leader said Swapo must reveal how it benefited from corruption.

“President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah made only passing mention of corruption, offering assurances but no new measures, such as disclosing exactly how much Swapo benefited from that looting.

“That is shockingly unacceptable. The Namibian nation demands honesty in the Presidency,” he said.

Itula further said when the president was asked not to reappoint the same director to the Anti-Corruption Commission, she said she was not the appointing authority.

Despite this claim, she is still the initiator of such an appointment, he said.

Itula called for the establishment of specialised powers to protect whistleblowers with robust legislation and bar officials implicated in corrupt deals from holding office pending investigations.

He demanded accountability for past beneficiaries of corruption.

Itula said this in response to Nandi-Ndaitwah saying she would only address corruption committed during her term in office.

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