ECN roundly berated as Swapo limps towards win

Outgoing president Nangolo Mbumba led the voices of disapproval of the manner the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) conducted last week’s general election, saying issues such as lack of ballot papers ‘should not happen’, as Swapo limps towards victory according to early results.During the visit to State House by the African Union Electoral Observation Mission, Mbumba said ECN should not be blamed for the manner the elections were conducted, despite his own misgivings.“We are not going to blame them for this or that. The job is bigger than any one institution,” he said, without elaborating who should shoulder the blame for the chaos that has characterised the election.ECN presided over a chaotic election process, marred by lack of adequate ballot papers, inadequate polling stations, tablets heating up and poor communication with political parties.In Kavango East, which was the first region to declare its full results, about 40% of the registered voters could not cast their votes, leading to Swapo busing some of the residents from Rundu to Oshakati on Saturday to vote at the Evululuko polling station, where voting was extended on Friday and Saturday.The arrival of Kavango voters infuriated residents in Oshakati, who charged that Swapo was deliberately ‘flooding’ their polling station in order to influence results. Legally, Namibians could vote anywhere in the country in this election, a provision which Swapo sought to take advantage of.Swapo in the leadAt noon yesterday, with 34% of the votes counted nationwide, Swapo led with 55%, followed by the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) at 19%.In third place was the Landless People’s Movement (LPM) with 7%, followed by the surprise package of this election, the Affirmative Repositioning movement, at 6%. The current official opposition, Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) was placed fourth with 4%.This picture is expected to change, with the majority of results still pending across the country. Only Kavango East and ?Karas regions had filed their final results. The remaining 12 regions were still to file theirs by the time of going to print.In the presidential race, Swapo's Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah was in a healthy lead of 58%, while IPC's Panduleni Itula was second with 25%.IPC rejects resultsIPC, which is emerging to become the official opposition party from early results, said on Saturday that it will not accept the results.Its leader, Itula, said polling stations, which were ‘unlawfully’ designated as voting centers, were processing votes under a shroud of illegitimacy.“For the first time in the history of Namibia and possibly in the history of elections, votes are being cast concurrently with vote counting and results publication. Also, the voting process has been marred by widespread disenfranchisement, with voters turned away due to a lack of ballot papers, brazen voter suppression, silencing the voices of Namibians yearning for change, ” he said.“In light of these grave irregularities, I have consulted with the leadership of the IPC, and we have reached an unshakable decision: The IPC will not recognize or accept the outcome of this deeply flawed process. Whether the results declare a win, a runoff, or a loss, we will seek to nullify this election in the courts,” he said.Itula called upon Namibians to document all irregularities they come across for a possible legal challenge.“Share videos, reports, and evidence with your parties. Let us expose the truth and reclaim the integrity of our democracy,” he said.Academic and political analyst Ndumba Kamwanyah also criticised the manner in which the election was held.“The 2024 elections were an opportunity for Namibia to showcase its democratic maturity. Instead, the process has left many feeling that their voices were stifled and their trust betrayed. The ECN’s handling of the elections has drawn sharp criticism, not just from opposition parties but from ordinary citizens who expected better,” he said.“The people deserve better than a flawed process that leaves them doubting the legitimacy of their leaders. If these issues are not addressed, the country risks sliding into a future where elections are seen not as a celebration of democracy but as a contest of who can manipulate the system better. Namibia can and must do better,” he added.German-based Namibian professor Joseph Diescho also criticised ECN for how it conducted the election, accusing it of being controlled by politicians.“I am convinced that there is no way the ECN managers could have done what they did without the instruction or the nod from their appointing authorities who, from the looks and sounds of things, do not find fault with the ECN. So, it is not the ECN but they way Namibia is governed,” he told Namibian Sun yesterday.He added: “Elections do not happen only during the one day of polling. Elections happen before: how they are planned and who is given the supervisory tasks; during: how the materials are made available, monitored and collated to constitute the results and after: how those responsible are rewarded or punished and the previous errors corrected. It was the plan to create a disequilibrium.”German-speaking Namibians speakIn a statement, the Forum of German-Speaking Namibians said it watched in dismay how events on 27th of November – the main election day - evolved.The forum said: “Namibians are used to long queues and generally patient. However, because of bad planning and execution on the side of [ECN], this patience was exploited. Election day was a slap in the face of the Namibian population.”“Reports have reached us of persons waiting for 14 hours and more, mostly in the open sun, often without water or toilet amenities being provided. Some travelled several hours - many on foot - to try various polling stations, only to find that ballot papers had run out, the electronic equipment was defective, or a mobile polling station had closed without attending to all the voters present.”

ECN roundly berated as Swapo limps towards win

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Namibian Sun 2024-12-04

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ECN roundly berated as Swapo limps towards win

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Namibian Sun 2024-12-04

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