Shaningwa wants 1,4 million votes for Swapo

Swapo secretary general Sophia Shaningwa wants 1,4 million voters to vote for her party to reclaim its two-third majority in the National Assembly.

Swapo has enjoyed a majority in parliament from 1994 to 2019.

This has in the past allowed the former liberation struggle to amend the Constitution three times.

Speaking at a Swapo rally at Rundu on Saturday, Shaningwa urged attendees to register to vote.

“For Swapo to gain her two-third majority we need at least 1,3 million or 1,4 million votes. That’s what we need.

“Wherever you are from today until 1 August, make sure that your girlfriends, wives, husbands, brothers and sisters have voters’ cards.

“We want to make sure that we put comrade Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah comfortably, unquestionably in State House,” Shaningwa said.

Speaking at the same event, Swapo regional coordinator for the Kavango East region, Ottilia Shinduvi, accused opposition parties of behaving like “ungrateful children”.

“Today they are behaving as if they have not lived in Namibia for all these 34 years to see how it was in 1990 and where Namibia is today,” she said.

The regional coordinator said Namibia is a better country under the Swapo government.

She added that Namibia’s good governance is also evident in more visitors to the country and resources being well looked after by the Swapo government.

“Swapo will continue to govern this country in a more responsible manner,” she said.

Also addressing the rally, Swapo Party Youth League (SPYL) secretary Ephraim Nekongo said the Swapo-led government “listens and is considerate”.

“When the Electricity Control Board sanctioned 80% in NamPower bulk supply tariff the government provided a much-needed subsidy to avert the imminent raise of electricity tariffs,” he said.

Nekongo said Namibians should vote for Nandi-Ndaitwah, whom he described as a “noble leader whose principles are unshakable, like the biblical Noah’s ark”.

“Comrade Netumbo, rest assured that come 21 March 2025 at 10h00, you will be sworn in as the fifth president of the Republic of Namibia,” he said.

Nekongo urged Nandi-Ndaitwah to take decisive action to address the nation’s pressing issues, including unemployment, economic transformation and corruption.

He emphasised the need for the party to intensify its efforts to create a conducive environment for economic growth, particularly in the creative industry.

He also called for the review of the new school curriculum, which he believes is to pupils’ detriment.

He appealed to Nandi-Ndaitwah to work towards eradicating poverty and providing grants instead of loans to students.

The SPYL secretary also wants her to ensure agricultural transformation and food security and called on her to protect state-owned enterprises (SOEs) against being liquidated.

“We don’t want to hear our SOEs are being liquidated any more,” Nekongo said.