Hertta-Maria Amutenja
The Windhoek High Court has reduced the legal costs awarded against Reinhold Shipwikineni from N$382 768 to N$180 917.
The court made the ruling on Monday after Shipwikineni, who represented himself in court, filed a notice of rejection against the initial bill of costs, arguing that the amount was unfair and should not be imposed on him personally when there were five applicants in the case.
The legal fees stem from a case Shipwikineni and four others brought against Swapo and its presidential candidate, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah.
The applicants sought to nullify Nandi-Ndaitwah’s nomination and demand an extraordinary congress to replace the late President Hage Geingob.
Last October, the court struck the matter off the roll, ruling that it was improperly constituted and lacked necessary documentation, such as the return of service documents.
In December, the High Court ordered Shipwikineni to pay N$382 768 in legal costs, including N$158 500 for lawyer fees and N$224 268 in disbursement fees.
Shipwikineni objected to the cost order, stating it was unfair to hold him personally responsible when the case involved multiple applicants.
He argued that the issue arose due to non-compliance with High Court rules by their previous legal representative.
The original case, which he filed alongside Petrus Ndeshipanda Shituula, Joshua Vaino Martins, Erich Chrismann Shivute, and Aina Kalimba Angula, challenged Swapo’s decision to postpone its congress to 2025 instead of holding it within three months of Geingob’s death.
The applicants argued that the party’s central committee had violated Swapo’s constitution and acted unreasonably.
They also claimed Nandi-Ndaitwah’s nomination was ultra vires and breached internal party rules, calling for her appointment to be reviewed and set aside.
Despite the case being struck off the roll, Shipwikineni maintained that he should not be held solely responsible for the legal costs.
