Erasmus Shalihaxwe
The Namibia Economic Freedom Fighters (NEFF) have regained their political status.
This comes after the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) announced that it will comply with the High Court’s decision on Monday.
The High Court at the beginning of September found that the ECN’s decision to deregister the NEFF was unlawful.
ECN spokesperson De Wet Siluka said the commission extended NEFF time to ensure compliance with all outstanding items, failing which it will set in motion the process to invoke the provisions of Section 158(8)(a)1, viz., the suspension of funds appropriated by parliament on account of failure to comply with the requirements of the Electoral Act.
‘’Considering the sanctions forming the subject matter, it became apparent to the commission that the Act presents itself with serious lacunas. Amongst others, although the Act provides for a less drastic sanction in relation to certain non-compliances besides the de-registration of a party, Section 152(f) of the Act does not exclude any provision from its reach and is further not made subject to any other provisions of the Act,” he said.
Siluka said this is not an alternative to the power conferred on the commission, nor does the fact that the same conduct is criminalised under Section 188 exclude its application to the persistent breach of sections 140, 141 and 142 of the Act.
Siluka added that the commission retains the power to cancel a political party’s registration for persistent contravention of the Act.
On Monday, the ECN met with NEFF and communicated its position on the matter.
In the said meeting, NEFF undertook to heed the commission’s resoluteness to enforce compliance with peremptory provisions of the Electoral Act.
Kadhila Amoomo, the party’s lawyer, said the case will serve as an important precedent for future generations, as NEFF is the first political party de-registration.
“We learnt a lot from this matter and wish them all the best in the upcoming elections,” he said.
