…as opposition members call for speaker’s head
Patience Makwele
The national assembly descended into chaos on Wednesday after the official opposition, the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), attempted to table a motion seeking the removal of Speaker Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila in a direct challenge to the leadership of the House.
IPC member of parliament Michael Mulunga moved, without notice, for the national assembly to resolve that Kuugongelwa-Amadhila be removed from office, accusing her of failing to act fairly and impartially in presiding over parliament.
He invoked the House’s Standing Rules alongside Article 51(2) of the Namibian Constitution, which provides for the removal of the speaker by a resolution of the national assembly.
Mulunga argued that Standing Rule 27 requires the speaker to apply the rules fairly and impartially while ensuring the participation of all members, while Standing Rule 111(1) provides that complaints alleging contempt of parliament should be referred to the Committee of Privileges.
The motion placed Kuugongelwa-Amadhila in an unusual procedural dilemma as she questioned her ability to rule on a motion directly concerning her own position.
“I cannot make a ruling on an issue that concerns me,” Kuugongelwa-Amadhila said, before instructing Mulunga to take his seat and indicating that he would have an opportunity to address the matter at an appropriate time.
As noise and disorder escalated across the floor, the speaker briefly walked out of the chamber before returning moments later.
Order could not be restored, leading prime minister Elijah Ngurare to move for the house to adjourn until next Tuesday, bringing parliamentary proceedings to an abrupt end for a second consecutive day.
Amupanda attacks speaker, calls for elections
The parliamentary standoff follows a dramatic confrontation on Tuesday, when Affirmative Repositioning (AR) leader Job Amupanda was escorted out of the chamber by security officials.
Addressing a press briefing in Windhoek on Wednesday morning, Amupanda attacked Kuugongelwa-Amadhila’s leadership, accusing her of managing the legislature through emotion rather than established parliamentary procedure.
“She does not read the rules,” Amupanda said. “You have a speaker who is disorganised and incompetent… They cannot debate intellectually, so they just bulldoze by saying, ‘let’s vote.’”
Amupanda described what he called Swapo’s strategy as a “park the bus” tactic, accusing the ruling party of deploying the speaker to obstruct opposition voices.
He challenged Swapo veterans and intellectuals to intervene before the institution’s functioning deteriorates further.
“If they want to dissolve the National Assembly because they cannot get their way, let them do it,” Amupanda said, adding that the AR would welcome a fresh election to test its growing support.
He claimed the AR could help reduce Swapo’s current 51 seats to as few as 20, while warning that his movement would continue confronting the ruling party.
“We will not show any pity to any corrupt party or tolerate any funny business. We are going to confront them every single day for the next five years,” he said.
IPC cites legislative backlog
Backing the motion in a formal statement issued Wednesday afternoon, official opposition leader Immanuel Nashinge said it marked the first motion to remove a speaker since independence.
Nashinge said the action was not aimed at Kuugongelwa-Amadhila’s character, but at what the IPC considers a failure to fulfil her constitutional and parliamentary duties.
He pointed to what he described as a legislative bottleneck, saying that of approximately 550 questions tabled by lawmakers since the current parliament began, the speaker’s office has processed only 166.
“A question is not paperwork,” Nashinge stated. “It is a crew in Walvis Bay waiting to hear why a quota moved, a contractor in Ondangwa never told why he lost a tender, a nurse in Rundu whose clinic was promised equipment two budgets ago. Question Time is where their question has standing.”
NEFF blames Swapo Party infighting
The motion has also drawn support from other opposition benches.
Speaking to the Windhoek Observer, Namibia Economic Freedom Fighters (NEFF) deputy leader Kalimbo Iipumbu backed the censure, accusing Kuugongelwa-Amadhila of failing to act as a neutral arbiter.
“The speaker must be an impartial person, someone who does not choose sides,” Iipumbu said, contrasting her tenure with that of her predecessor, Peter Katjavivi.
“Katjavivi could handle the house effectively. But now we have a speaker who chooses sides. If she cannot be impartial, she must take leave and let someone else preside,” he said.
Iipumbu argued that the Swapo Party’s internal succession battles ahead of its 2027 Congress are spilling over into parliament and affecting the functioning of government.
“The ruling party is not focusing on bettering the lives of the people on the ground, they are fighting each other towards their 2027 Congress,” he said.
On the backlog of nearly 400 unanswered parliamentary questions, Iipumbu called for an urgent meeting between the speaker, deputy speaker, parliamentary secretariat and opposition chief whips to establish a mechanism for clearing the backlog.
Analysts divided over political fallout
Political commentator Nghipudilo Ya Shiindi described the motion as “long overdue”, placing responsibility for the current impasse on the Speaker.
“The speaker is the problem,” Ya Shiindi said. “The moment she gets in that chair, she is supposed to preside over the house without taking sides. Using her emotions to adjourn the House or defend rulings is unbecoming.”
Ya Shiindi also raised concerns over the security presence around the chamber during recent sessions and suggested that Kuugongelwa-Amadhila temporarily step aside.
“Saara needs to go for emotional intelligence coaching or further induction on parliamentary rules. In the meantime, the deputy speaker should preside over the business of the House,” she said.
Political analyst Sakaria Johannes, however, took a more cautious view of Amupanda’s call for parliament to be dissolved and his prediction that AR could reduce Swapo to 20 seats.
“I don’t think it’s realistic,” Johannes said. “Swapo might lose some votes or percentages, but losing down to 20 seats is not a realistic assessment. Namibian voter behaviour is still heavily influenced by history.”
Johannes also cautioned against dissolving parliament, citing the financial burden a fresh election would place on taxpayers.
“We have to look at the cost. Are we really ready for such an undertaking? Is it reasonably necessary? I don’t think so.”
While acknowledging that opposition parties are expected to challenge the ruling party, Johannes said prolonged parliamentary gridlock ultimately affects the public.
“There must still be a constructive working relationship to advance the country’s business.”
With parliament adjourned until Tuesday, attention now turns to whether the speaker will rule on the IPC motion and how the ruling party and opposition benches will respond when the house reconvenes.
