Niël Terblanché and Hertta-Maria Amutenya
In a shocking and widely condemned incident at SWAPO’s Star Rally in Walvis Bay, Namibians were left outraged after food parcels were thrown at attendees, resulting in chaos.
The event has sparked nationwide debate and fierce criticism of the ruling party, raising concerns about the dignity and respect accorded to the nation’s citizens.
Panduleni Itula, president of the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), expressed his dismay in a strongly worded statement released on Sunday.
He condemned the SWAPO officials involved, describing the incident as a “disgrace” that symbolised a larger issue of mismanagement and exploitation under the party’s rule.
“Such behaviour is not only undignified but it also shows a complete and utter disregard for the very humanity of our people,” Itula said.
Itula did not mince his words when addressing the broader context of the incident.
He argued that this act of throwing food at people demonstrated SWAPO’s exploitation of the same citizens they had driven into poverty and unemployment.
“This is not an act of charity. It is a blatant attempt to exploit the very people they have impoverished, using their desperation as a means to cling to power,” he added.
Scenes of Namibians, including children, scrambling for food sparked anger and disgust, and for many, it was an unforgivable insult to the dignity of the nation.
Itula went further and stated that Namibians are not “a faceless, nameless mob” that could be pacified with political handouts, but citizens who deserve leadership that respects and serves them.
Stephanus Pombili, a SWAPO member, also reacted with outrage.
He decried the incident as shameful, lamenting the fact that Namibians were treated like animals.
“What a shame! So, we are now reduced to dogs — I mean mere animals — by a once-called revolutionary movement, the SWAPO Party,” Pombili declared while adding that the party had turned its back on its people.
Pombili’s statement referred to the Namibian Constitution, specifically Article 8, which guarantees that no person shall be treated inhumanely.
He viewed the incident as not just a violation of this constitutional right but a betrayal of the revolutionary ideals that SWAPO once stood for.
“Even dogs can’t be thrown food; today, the SWAPO Party decided to be crueller than the apartheid government,” he remarked while drawing parallels to the hardships of the past and expressing disbelief at the current state of affairs.
Both Pombili and Itula called for immediate action and accountability from SWAPO leadership.
Pombili demanded a public apology from the party, especially to the residents of Erongo, and a decisive response to the officials responsible for the food parcel debacle.
“We can’t accept this nonsense in an independent Namibia. We are not dogs!” he said.
He urged Namibians to speak out at the ballot box and warned that the people would ultimately make their voices heard in the next election.
Independent Presidential Candidate Ally Angula is calling for Swapo and its vice president Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah to issue an urgent public apology to the nation.
“Throwing food at hungry people is a barbaric act of cruelty and a blatant disregard for human dignity. It is a stain on our nation and must be met with the harshest condemnation. This inhumane treatment strips individuals of their dignity and goes directly against the fight for liberation, which was fought for the restoration of human dignity for every single Namibian,” she said.
She further called on the government to introduce an immediate financial relief of a minimum of N$500 to every Namibian between the ages of 18 and 59 as a means to end hunger and poverty.
“In the upcoming midterm budget review scheduled for mid-October 2024. Should this demand not be met, it shows that any mention of a basic income grant by the ruling party during its campaigning is nothing but a tactic to trick the Namibian people, as they have the mandate, the means, and the power to implement this before going into the elections,” she said.
Political commentator Ndumba Kamwanyah weighed in on the incident, noting the socio-economic factors driving people to political rallies.
“People are desperate because of poverty and hunger. They go to these meetings in anticipation of being served food,” he said.
Kamwanyah also cautioned against political parties using food as a lure to attract large crowds to their events suggesting that the truth lies between the desperation of people for food and the questionable ethics of such campaign practices.
“You cannot lure people with food so that they attend rallies and show the public you have a crowd,” he said.
Efforts to reach SWAPO secretary general Sophia Shaningwa for comment were unsuccessful by the time of publication.
