Allexer Namundjembo
Fifteen political parties, including the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) and Landless People’s Movement (LPM), accepted an invitation from the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) to inspect electoral materials.
The inspection process started yesterday and will end today (19 December).
The process has been criticised over the limited time allocated.
Ivan Skrywer, the LPM representative to the ECN, raised concerns about the feasibility of the inspection within the two-day timeframe mandated by the court.
Speaking during the inspection at the ECN offices, Skrywer voiced his dissatisfaction with the court’s decision, which he argued did not reflect the seriousness of the task.
“We’ve been given only two days to correct the mess created by the ECN over five days. When we arrived, it was agreed we’d start at 08h00, but unfortunately, we were delayed due to the searches we underwent. We were subjected to body searches, but we have agreed with management to extend the time until 17h45,” Skrywer said.
To manage the time constraints, Skrywer noted that the LPM had brought in additional resources, including printers, to streamline the process.
“We have a team of about 30 people at our party’s office who have set up a workstation. Whatever data we collect here will be transferred to the office,” he added.
Skrywer also hinted at potential legal action following the inspection process.
“What I’ve discovered is that whenever we discuss our next steps with the media, the ECN lawyers become very arrogant. We have serious experts who will look at the numbers and take proper records. Expect litigations and court cases. This is just the beginning,” he said.
The LPM representative also expressed confusion as to why the ECN commissioners were still in office despite their alleged incompetence.
“As the LPM, we are serious. Why are the commissioners still in office? They should have been fired or resigned. Our goal isn’t just to nullify the results but also to fix the ECN management. We have elections next year, and we can’t have them overseen by the same people,” Skrywer said.
ECN Commissioner Pius Ikwambi confirmed that 15 political parties had agreed to participate in the inspection process.
Parties such as the LPM, IPC, NEFF, PDM, and NEFC were among those who sent their representatives to attend the inspection.
Ikwambi assured that the ECN had adhered to the court order, providing all necessary documentation to the parties involved.
“The ECN did not oppose the case when it went to court. The court simply reduced the agreement between the parties and the commission to the status of a court order. It is now a binding agreement,” Ikwambi explained.
He also clarified that the inspection period would last for two days and that all individuals involved in the inspection would undergo searches by the state police.
Ikwambi further clarified that the court order did not include the counting of ballots and that only basic electoral statistics, such as the number of votes cast and rejected, would be provided.
“Sensitive materials are securely stored with ECN and the political parties’ seals,” he said.
