Parties slam ECN deregistration ‘before deadline’
CDV accuses commission of ‘pure lies’
NEFF lawyer Kadhila Amoomo says it was ECN itself that set the 30 June deadline, which is yet to pass.
The Namibia Economic Freedom Fighters (NEFF) political party is challenging its shocking deregistration by the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN), which informed the party in April that it had until 30 June to submit and publish its audited financial statements.
News of the deregistration of NEFF, together with the Christian Democratic Voice (CDV), broke on Monday night – six days before the 30 June deadline contained in an ECN letter to NEFF, dated 24 April.
In it, ECN chief electoral and referenda officer Peter Shaama wrote: “This communication is a reminder to your party that, according to Section 158 of the Electoral Act 5 of 2014, as amended, you’re required to submit an audited financial statement and its newspaper publications for the state-funded account no later than 30 June".
Shaama urged the party to adhere to the deadline, adding that no extension would be granted.
But a sucker punch landed on Monday, when NEFF and CDV were told they have been deregistered and that their lawmakers must vacate parliament. This means NEFF leader Epafras Mukwiilongo and his deputy Kalimbo Iipumbu must leave parliament, and so should CDV’s Gotthard Kandume.
Irregular and haphazard
NEFF has roped in lawyer Kadhila Amoomo to argue that its deregistration was irregular and haphazard.
ECN accused the party of failing to lodge its audited financial statements for the period of 2022/2023 and failing to publish 2020/2021 and 2021/2022’s abridged versions of audited financial statements in two daily newspapers circulating throughout Namibia, as is required by law.
Amoomo wrote: “[The ECN] does not have any powers to deregister a political party in the event of failure to lodge its audited accounts with the commission, until and unless it exercises the powers contemplated in Section 140(6), which makes provision for the commission to cause the accounts concerned to be audited and require the political party to lodge with the commission the audited accounts and publish such with two daily newspapers circulating throughout Namibia, on the account and expense of the concerned political party”.
“It is our instructions that the [ECN] has not given an opportunity to be heard to our client in terms of Section 152(f). The decision therefore stands to be set aside on this ground.”
He added: “The decision is also inconsistent with the correspondence addressed to [NEFF] by the commission, whereby [NEFF] was granted a deadline of 30 June”.
The lawyer said the ECN was acting like it was instructed by a third party to take these drastic steps.
“These inconsistencies in your conduct creates an apprehension in the minds of our client that you may be acting under the influence of external parties, seeing that we are headed towards election this year. We encourage you, Mr Shaama, to maintain an open mind and retain all sense of reasonableness and fairness towards all political parties in Namibia.”
‘Pure lies’
Kandume of CDV yesterday took a swipe at the ECN, saying its version of events was made up of ‘pure lies’.
“Those are pure lies. We have a due date on 30 June which is not yet here and which we agreed with ECN. How can they take such a decision?” he wanted to know.
ECN spokesperson De Wet Siluka yesterday said the commission will respond to questions regarding the parties’ deregistration, but this had not happened by the time of going to print.
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News of the deregistration of NEFF, together with the Christian Democratic Voice (CDV), broke on Monday night – six days before the 30 June deadline contained in an ECN letter to NEFF, dated 24 April.
In it, ECN chief electoral and referenda officer Peter Shaama wrote: “This communication is a reminder to your party that, according to Section 158 of the Electoral Act 5 of 2014, as amended, you’re required to submit an audited financial statement and its newspaper publications for the state-funded account no later than 30 June".
Shaama urged the party to adhere to the deadline, adding that no extension would be granted.
But a sucker punch landed on Monday, when NEFF and CDV were told they have been deregistered and that their lawmakers must vacate parliament. This means NEFF leader Epafras Mukwiilongo and his deputy Kalimbo Iipumbu must leave parliament, and so should CDV’s Gotthard Kandume.
Irregular and haphazard
NEFF has roped in lawyer Kadhila Amoomo to argue that its deregistration was irregular and haphazard.
ECN accused the party of failing to lodge its audited financial statements for the period of 2022/2023 and failing to publish 2020/2021 and 2021/2022’s abridged versions of audited financial statements in two daily newspapers circulating throughout Namibia, as is required by law.
Amoomo wrote: “[The ECN] does not have any powers to deregister a political party in the event of failure to lodge its audited accounts with the commission, until and unless it exercises the powers contemplated in Section 140(6), which makes provision for the commission to cause the accounts concerned to be audited and require the political party to lodge with the commission the audited accounts and publish such with two daily newspapers circulating throughout Namibia, on the account and expense of the concerned political party”.
“It is our instructions that the [ECN] has not given an opportunity to be heard to our client in terms of Section 152(f). The decision therefore stands to be set aside on this ground.”
He added: “The decision is also inconsistent with the correspondence addressed to [NEFF] by the commission, whereby [NEFF] was granted a deadline of 30 June”.
The lawyer said the ECN was acting like it was instructed by a third party to take these drastic steps.
“These inconsistencies in your conduct creates an apprehension in the minds of our client that you may be acting under the influence of external parties, seeing that we are headed towards election this year. We encourage you, Mr Shaama, to maintain an open mind and retain all sense of reasonableness and fairness towards all political parties in Namibia.”
‘Pure lies’
Kandume of CDV yesterday took a swipe at the ECN, saying its version of events was made up of ‘pure lies’.
“Those are pure lies. We have a due date on 30 June which is not yet here and which we agreed with ECN. How can they take such a decision?” he wanted to know.
ECN spokesperson De Wet Siluka yesterday said the commission will respond to questions regarding the parties’ deregistration, but this had not happened by the time of going to print.
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