Swanu factions to smoke peace pipe

The rest, however, is calling for all members of the party to accept the outcome of the party congress which took place in April this year. One of the factions is led by Charles Katjivirue, who is currently on suspension as a result of the hosting of an extraordinary meeting in Windhoek in August 2021, where he was elected to the leadership. The other faction is under the leadership of former unionist Evilastus Kaaronda, who is the current party president, as per April”;s congress. Speaking to Desert Radio this week, Katjivirue said his group is determined to get an amicable solution for the matter – “despite the ongoing High Court case”. “We are trying to solve this thing amicably, although we have a camp of people who went on to poach Kaaronda from somewhere and are imposing him on the party,” he said. He said the congress which elected Kaaronda to the party”;s presidency was a sham as some party members were not allowed onto the premises, but his group is “prepared to overlook this fact”. “We are ready to let bygones be bygones and have another congress, which will be well organised, and where all will be involved. With the convening of another congress, we are prepared to set aside what we have started so the party can start on a clean slate,” Katjivirue said. Failure to convene this congress, according to him, would leave his faction with no choice but to sue Kaaronda”;s group. “We will approach the court to pray that their bogus congress be set aside,” Katjivirue said.

RESPECT CONGRESS

In a recent interview with Desert Radio, Kaaronda confirmed the existence of pre-congress tensions within the party, but said issues were addressed at the congress and that its decisions should be respected. “Disciplinary measures are in place to deal with members who are deemed to be conducting themselves in a way that is deviant from accepted behaviour. As for the “;faction”;, not factions, we have dealt with the comrades,” he said. Kaaronda said Swanu”;s congress comes every five years, and all party members knew it was slated for April this year. “The congress happened, and it concluded its business. This does not mean everybody will be happy with how the congress dealt with matters, but we are expected to accept the outcome and move forward. That is how democratic institutions work,” he said. Katjivirue, however, said the party never held congresses until after members”; outcry, which led to a 2018 congress. He challenged his suspension, citing it further supports the nullification of the ongoing case. “It is double jeopardy if, while we are being persecuted at party level, the party approaches the court to do the same,” he said. Meanwhile, Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) executive director Graham Hopwood, is concerned that the factional battles within Swanu would do more harm than good when it comes to garnering votes come 2024″;s elections.

IMPACT ON VOTES

“Swanu has never really performed well (in elections), but thanks to Namibia”;s electoral system of proportional representation, which is very kind to small parties, they only need to get a few thousand votes to get one seat in the parliament,” Hopwood says. He says this has been the situation for years, and the party has never shown any potential to grow. “They are known as Namibia”;s oldest political party, but they have never really built the party to develop a national profile. Now that there are serious factions within the party, it may reduce their chances even more,” he says. Hopwood says the party may continue with one or two seats, but he does not see them as a serious contender in the next elections. “I do not see much hope for Swanu improving its vote share under the current circumstances,” he says. Political analyst Frederico Links says political infighting is the result of an array of differences, including personal, ideological and even agenda setting differences. “When different leaders are trying to take the party in divergent directions you are likely to have factions,” he says. Sadly, these divisions are felt within the party”;s rank and file and can be reflected in the size of its support base, Links says.

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