GENERAL secretary of the Namibia Financial Institutions Union (Nafinu) Asnath Zamuee did not take kindly to Alfred Angula’s description of her in the local press as a ‘youngster and a newcomer in the trade unions’.
‘It is embarrassing that a person calling himself an experienced trade unionist will resort to personal attacks instead of addressing the real issues at hand, pulling out the ‘history’ card when he is unable to lead his union to emancipation,’ spat Zamuee. She insisted that with her 10 years experience in trade union structures she can hardly be called a ‘groentjie’ [newcomer]. ‘If according to him I am still a new comer, then let me put it to him that I am a ‘newcomer’ with principles.’She also rejected Angula’s claim that certain unions walked out of last Saturday’s National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW) special Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting since they viewed the meeting as illegally constituted. Zamuee said there was no ‘walkout’, and a decision not to vote on Angula’s appointment as NUNW acting deputy Secretary General was ‘driven by principles’. She said Angula was the ‘biggest loser’ at the NUNW Congress held in September last year with the lowest votes. ‘It is a fact that he lost hands down to Mr Evilastus Kaaronda. This was despite his so-called 25 years of experience. It is also a fact that he is so desperate to get the Secretary General’s (NUNW) position,’ said Zamuee. Angula fired the staff at the head office of the Namibia Farmworkers Union in December last year, which workers said makes him an unpopular candidate for deputy Secretary General.
