Allexer Namundjembo
Political analysts say the Landless People’s Movement (LPM) needs stronger grassroots structures after its community meeting in Keetmanshoop was disrupted on Saturday.
Political analyst Ndumba Kamwanyah described the incident as “unfortunate and disappointing”.
Speaking to the Windhoek Observer on Monday, he said political disagreements should be resolved through dialogue and internal democratic processes, not through actions that create division and instability.
“What is even more concerning is that leaders and supporters appear to be spending more time fighting each other than building the party and advancing the interests of the landless people whom the party was created to represent,” Kamwanyah said.
From the outside, he added, “it increasingly looks like a power struggle rather than a focus on the movement’s core mission.”
Kamwanyah warned that parties without strong regional and local branches struggle to survive.
“Regional and local branches connect the party to the people, help mobilise support, and ensure that leaders remain accountable. A party that lacks these structures risks becoming disconnected from its supporters and overly dependent on a few individuals, which can weaken its long-term sustainability,” he stated.
LPM spokesperson Lifalaza Simataa told reporters that the meeting was a “packed community engagement” but was disrupted by suspended member Joseph Isaacs.
“Due to the nature of the disruption, the police expressed that the meeting could no longer proceed,” Simataa said.
He said leadership wanted to continue, but police insisted the meeting be dissolved to prevent further escalation.
“Due to the anticipation of the meeting by the community and the desire to engage, a select few of the residents expressed their frustration as the leadership had to vacate the premises,” he added.
Simataa said the leadership remains committed to engaging the community.
Political analyst Sackaria Johannes called the developments “very interesting” for a young party and pointed to signs of disorganisation or frustrated members.
“If a political party does not have structures to accommodate complaints within the party, it will lead to that,” Johannes said.
“It is hard for a political party that is operating from confusion to survive for long. For a young party like the LPM, this could be the test for them to come up with structures, but also, it is a risk for a party to operate without grassroots support.”
He said the party’s loss of dominance in the Karas Region shows it needs grassroots structures to develop future leaders.
“They need to reorganise and restructure the party,” he suggested.
Political analyst and youth leader Matheus Hangula added that the incident which led to the chaos stems from the prolonged dissatisfaction of members towards party leader Bernadus Swartbooi.
He stated that the recalling of local authority councillors at different local authorities without explanation or disciplinary hearings fuelled the protests.
Hangula observed that the LPM started to decline after the resignation of co-founder Henny Seibeb.
“What transpired on Saturday is a clear indication that supporters are not happy with their leader and the way he is governing the party. To be honest with you, the Swartbooi that I knew at the formation of the LPM is completely different,” he said.
“When you look at Swartbooi in parliament, his MPs are not really active and more often are mute when pertinent issues and important motions are being tabled.”
Hangula further indicated that the mobilisation and recruitment of new members could be hampered, leading to stalled growth of the party due to the reluctance of leaders at regional level.
“It weakens the communication channels within the entire party since there will be no one to take responsibility and report the progress made by the party in their respective regions,” he said.
He further added that it prevents upper leadership from effectively raising the challenges faced by people, so that the party’s representatives, whether in parliament or at regional and local authority level, can take up issues such as youth unemployment and crime.
