In November 2014, Nauyoma, Job Amupanda and George Kambala entered the Namibian public space, after their daring move to occupy a piece of land in Kleine Kuppe, one of Windhoek’s affluent suburbs.
This led to the formation of the Affirmative Repositioning movement, which revolutionised social and economic activism in the country.
As a result, Nauyoma found himself on the wrong side of the law, having been jailed for leading public protests in the interest of the downtrodden. He spent three months in the police cells for leading a demonstration at the Chinatown complex in Windhoek, and is currently out on bail.
He is now moving away from leading public protests and picketing, to dedicate time and energy to economic activities.
“As black people, we have been focused on politics. We have never taken the opportunity to enter the economic space. I am now saying, as a young black man in my 30s, while I still have 10 years before I reach my 40s, with this energy, let me refocus it on the economic sphere and to the growth of our country, rather than being the guy always at the forefront of picket lines,” Nauyoma said during an interview with Desert Radio last week.
Nauyoma said he was merely adopting another method of empowering disadvantaged Namibians, such as his involvement in a private housing project in Brakwater, on the outskirts of Windhoek, which he said sought to address Namibia’s housing crisis.
“I have chosen to deal with things that matter,” he said, adding that he looks for opportunities to inspire others to do good things, like encouraging young black Namibians to do business and further their studies.
Nauyoma said his departure from activism has nothing to do with a reported fallout with fellow AR ring-leaders, including Amupanda, which he dismissed as “public perception”. He also said he does not have a problem with Kambala.
However, these perceptions were given a boost when he failed to attend the AR movement’s critical leadership meeting at Walvis Bay last week. At the time, Nauyoma was quoted as saying that he was preoccupied with “things that matter”.
Nauyoma asserted that he was not abandoning the AR movement and its ideals.
“We are allowing the movement to find its feet. We have always said that the movement must find its place in the hearts and minds of the Namibian people. We must not make the mistake that poverty is something that we must rejoice in,” he said.
The AR co-founder also dismissed swirling rumours that his proximity to Michael Amushelelo had driven a wedge between him and fellow AR activists.
He said Amushelelo, who was part of the Namibia Economic Freedom Fighters, has always been aligned to the AR, funding various activities of the movement.
“It can’t be the fallout because I am aligned with Amushelelo. AR movement has always been aligned with Amushelelo. We came together with other young people, we have been talking about the housing crisis,” he said.
Meanwhile, Nauyoma said the AR movement has made notable achievements over the past eight years.
“What we needed to achieve was the awakening of a generation. For the first time, the politics since 2014 in the dispensation of our country attracted young people to politics. Remember the middle class that played the vital role in the affairs of the country have been passive people. We have been able to get the participation of that middle class, we have been able to awaken the masses of our people to start thinking differently. That can even be measured through the voting pattern since 2014, and prior to 2014. You will be able to see there has been a lot of groundwork that has been done to awaken our people, first to realise that we are in a bondage and we need to liberate ourselves.”
