Ours was a common goal – Dumeni

Retired Bishop Kleopas Dumeni laughs as he recalls some of the "sneaky methods" he used to help the late founding president, Sam Nujoma, gain access to restricted areas carrying a Bible – so that Nujoma could preach the Swapo gospel.Dumeni said he and Nujoma shared a common goal: to fight apartheid. While Dumeni hoped to achieve this through non-violent resistance, Nujoma, he said, sometimes had no choice but to resort to means that could lead to "bloodshed&#039;.Nujoma died in Windhoek on Saturday, 8 February. He was 95 years old.On Monday, Dumeni paid tribute to Nujoma and shared some of his fondest memories with Namibian Sun during an interview at his house in Ongwediva.He picked up his brown leather-covered Bible and said, excitement in his voice: “He would carry this under his arm to get access to controlled areas, especially during the time he was in Walvis Bay. Those who were monitoring movement would think, &#039;This is just a preacher going to speak the word of God&#039;. But the truth is Nujoma was just going to preach Swapo”.Dumeni said these were some of the “lies” he had to tell to help Nujoma in the struggle for Namibia’s independence.“We wanted the same thing. We were both activists. While I was the leader of the church, he was leading Swapo. We worked so well together, at times out in the open, and other times it was a secret mission between us two,” he said.Dumeni said he and Nujoma would meet face to face to strategise, and it was mostly Dumeni who travelled during church trips, as Nujoma couldn’t return home.Towards victory He said his work with Nujoma intensified between 1959 and 1974, particularly after he became an assistant to his mentor, Bishop Leonard Auala, in 1973. Auala was the first black leader of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Owambo-Kavango (ELOK), later renamed Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia (ELCIN).“We once met in Switzerland, where I was a leader for the Lutheran World Federation. Secondly, when I was invited to an event in Europe, I would go to Nujoma’s mother to inform her about my trip and that I might see him."His mother would tell me to pass my greetings, and she would say, &#039;war without God will not be victorious&#039;. She would then write down some scriptures from the Bible for me to take to Nujoma,” he recalled. At the end of his second term as assistant bishop in 1978, Dumeni was elected as the second bishop of ELOK. He assumed the role at a time when Namibia’s fight for liberation was gaining momentum.Dumeni said he believed that stability and peace would not come from the barrel of a gun but that Namibia would achieve independence – hence his support for Nujoma.“I established links with the Lutheran churches in Namibia and beyond to help Nujoma call for the implementation of UN Resolution 435, which paved the way for the independence of the country,” he explained. Independence attainedEventually, the time came for Nujoma to return home. When he landed at Ondangwa Airport after decades abroad, Dumeni was there to witness his arrival.“He took sand to feel the Namibian soil and put some in his mouth. Everyone present cheered – the trademark of his inspiring leadership brought joy, but a greater task lay ahead of us,” he said.Dumeni recalled that they then travelled to Etunda village near Okahao in the Omusati Region to visit Nujoma’s mother, Helvi Kondombolo, who had not seen her son in many years.After Nujoma greeted his mother he met with the pastor of Okahao parish and then it was time for him to focus on the task at hand: preparing for Namibia’s independence.BrothersIn an interview with retired Bishop Josephat Shanghala said he and Nujoma were like siblings and would often joke about their upbringing, as their mothers were friends.Shanghala said Nujoma had also invited him to take up positions in government, but he declined, wanting to focus on preaching the gospel of God, which he said was also important in a newly independent Namibia.He said in 2007, when he remarried, Nujoma was supposed to be a groomsman at his wedding, but due to other commitments, he could not attend the ceremony.Shanghala said Nujoma brought development for the northern people, including the railway lines, and the country will forever remain indebted to his sacrifices along with those “whose blood waters our freedom”. - tuyeimo@nmh-hub.com.na

Ours was a common goal – Dumeni

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-03

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Ours was a common goal – Dumeni

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-03

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