Erasmus Shalihaxwe
President Nangolo Mbumba has signed the new electoral law, which will allow public servants to take leave after being nominated to their political party’s parliament list while elections are concluding.
In the past, civil servants who appeared on the parliament list of their political parties were forced to resign from their positions.
The electoral law has been amended to allow civil servants to take leave until the election results are announced.
According to the amended law, if an individual is elected to parliament, they will be considered to have resigned but if they are not elected, they can return to their jobs as a public servant.
The new legislation, now known as Act No. 8, 2024, specifies that a remunerated member must take leave from their employment in accordance with the applicable law or agreement governing their conditions of employment.
The leave begins from the date their name is published on the party list, as outlined in section 78, and continues until the election results are announced, as detailed in section 110.
“If the remunerated member referred to in subparagraph (i) accepts such nomination, but fails or refuses to take such leave as contemplated in that subparagraph, the remunerated member is deemed to have been on leave during the period contemplated in that subparagraph. If the remunerated member referred to in subparagraph (i) is elected as a member of the National Assembly, the remunerated member is deemed to have resigned from the public service with effect from the date on which the results of the elections are announced,” reads the law.
It also explains that if the remunerated member attains the age of 55 years on or before the date on which the election results are announced, the member is deemed to have resigned from the public service.
However, the member may, within seven days of the announcement of the election results, inform his or her employer of the intention to retire rather than resign from the public service, and the member is deemed to have retired from the public service, effective from the date on which the election results are announced.
“The remunerated member is deemed to have resigned from the public service as contemplated in subparagraph (iii), and any provision in any law or agreement that governs the employment relationship between the member and his or her employer requires the member to terminate the contract of employment by giving a termination notice to the employer or requires the member to pay any amount to the employer instead of giving the termination notice of the contract of employment,” states the law.
The Act specifies that its provisions do not apply to members of the Namibian Defence Force, the Namibian Police Force, the Intelligence Service, or the Correctional Service.
The law states, “Insofar as any provisions of subparagraph (viii) may limit any fundamental right or freedom of a person to participate in political activity and to be elected to public office, those provisions are enacted under the authority of Article 22 of the Namibian Constitution, in conjunction with Article 17 of that Constitution.”
