Written by Patience Nyangove
Thursday, 17 June 2010
HARDAP Regional Governor Katrina Hanse-Himarwa has described her suspension by the Swapo Regional Executive Committee as baseless. Informanté is reliably informed that Swapo Party’s top four met this Monday to try and find a solution on the matter.
The party’s Vice-President Nangolo Mbumba confirmed the meeting Wednesday.
Hanse-Himarwa together with four others, Mariental Rural district coordinator, Steven Coetzee, his Mariental urban counterpart, Philipus Palipawa, Mariental Urban district mobiliser, Catherine Boois and Elma Gawagab, the representative of the National Union of Namibian Workers were suspended for alleged “perpetual anti-Swapo” antics that are fuelling divisions within the party structures in the region.
In a telephone interview Wednesday, Hanse-Himarwa speaking from Turkey said her suspension was a witch-hunt by certain individuals who want to serve their personal interests.
“I have not received an official letter yet informing me of my suspension, I will know what’s going on once I am back home. However my suspension has no basis, no justification. It’s just a witch-hunt by some people who want to get rid of me as Governor. I am not Governor to please individuals but people. They are some silly people who want me out of the way so that they can bring their own personal agendas. I don’t even know the crime I committed,” she said.
As the Presidency tries to rein in the situation Informanté is reliably informed that, President Hifikepunye Pohamba met over the issue with the Swapo party’s top three officials Monday.
According to a high ranking impeccable source within the party, who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity, during the meeting President Pohamba, the party’s Vice-President Hage Geingob, party Secretary-General Pendukeni Ivula-Ithana and her Deputy Mbumba reportedly agreed that although Hanse-Himarwa and her team might be wrong the timing of the suspension was not appropriate because of the forthcoming November 2010 local authority elections.
“The top four decided that even though the Governor and her team maybe wrong the timing is not right to suspend all like that. The politburo is expected to meet this Friday over this issue. There is currently a meeting at the headquarters about this issue now with the regional co-ordinator Nico Mungenga and the leaders assigned Monday to deal with the issue,” the source said yesterday.
The source further said the fight between Mungenga and Hanse-Himarwa is personal.
“You see Nico Mungenga is the Regional Co-ordinator but economically poor compared to Katrina who is the Governor and economically better off and so because of this they all want to flex their muscles to show each other who has more power at the expense of the party.”
The source equated Mungenga and Hanse-Himarwa as a marriage that has broken down over irreconcilable differences.
“It means these people are no longer fit to rule because they will never agree on anything no matter how positive to the people it might be. They are now putting their personal interests before development, unemployment and poverty.”
Mbumba confirmed the meeting but however said they had not yet reached any conclusions over the issue.
“We have not reached any conclusion because we haven’t received any documentation over the issue.”
Efforts to get a comment from Mungenga were fruitless as his mobile phone went unanswered.
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