The great believer

THEY call him a strategist and pragmatist.

But one thing Hidipo Hamutenya hates is copycats. He wants Namibia to shape its own destiny and to work out a strategy to arrive there.”I have been part of the team and I am proud of what we have achieved so far. So there will be no Hidipo Hamutenya’s vision, but instead, I would rather maintain, advance and build upon what we have achieved so far,” he told a local newspaper recently.Born 64 years ago at Odibo in northern Namibia, Hamutenya says he was groomed by Swapo and believes in the call for solidarity, freedom and justice for progress and development.”I strongly believe in consultation and teamwork and the importance of collective responsibility by all stakeholders in shaping our future and the destiny of our people in an independent, free and democratic Namibia,” he writes in his campaign pamphlet titled ‘Our Tasks Ahead’.Hamutenya, also known as HH, is known for taking risks.He believes that you can only show your true colours when you take on challenges.Such risks include bringing in the likes of multi-million dollar Ramatex investment and Anglo-American’s massive investment in the Skorpion zinc mine in the South, and architected Namibia’s participation in the US Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), which paved the way for the arrival of the Ramatex textile factory and thousands of jobs.It has also resulted in some failures such as the Projects, Industrial Development and Investment Company (Pidico), whose promised investments then included some of the biggest since Independence.There was a N$200 million free trade zone at Walvis Bay and a N$100 million printing works in Windhoek.But he believes that if you don’t take risks, it is difficult to make progress.He is a man who likes to share the successes with those around him, and will point out that he is not the man people would like to think he is.In a recent interview with The Namibian, he said that people tended to fear him because they did not know him.”One of the reasons is that I tend to be economical in what I say, with whom I speak, and people think that I have a lot of things to hide, so that behind this lack of outspokenness is probably [some] evil intention,” he said.Among party insiders, he is seen as one of only a few people able to take on President Sam Nujoma.When Nujoma put up former Prime Minister Hage Geingob as his candidate for the Swapo vice presidency at the 1997 congress, Hamutenya supported Hendrik Witbooi in a well-orchestrated campaign.While many believed he did it to level the playing field for the next congress and that he had been campaigning for the presidency for several years, Hamutenya said he regarded himself as part of the national leadership.If elected, Hamutenya says he will uphold and strengthen the country’s constitutional democracy, its policy of national reconciliation and tolerance, and aim for accountable and honourable leadership at all levels of governance.”I believe in the importance of a healthy, educated nation – a people committed to the values of holding together families and communities, the very institutions which inform, mould and determine the values of unity, solidarity and caring citizenry,” he says in his pamphlet.He can boast many years of experience in international diplomacy, having been involved in negotiations concerning Namibia’s independence and the restructuring of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) when he was chairperson of the Council of Ministers.The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) recently stated that Hamutenya’s supporters see his presidency as a move towards a modern, technocratic style of leadership, while recognising that their candidate remains steeped in the history of the liberation struggle.Among those who have worked with him, Hamutenya is known as a tireless workaholic and a purpose-driven leader.He says any vote for him at the congress will guarantee a Swapo leadership poised to protect the hard-won freedom and to uplift the quality of the life of the masses through creating more jobs and provision of living wages.”I will focus all available energy to mobilise both domestic resources and savings as well as direct foreign investment to diversify and broaden the basis of our economy,” he promises.Facts about HamutenyaBorn:On 17 June 1939 at Odibo, Ohangwena region.Education:Tertiary:PhD programme at McGill University, Montreal, Canada (1971-73). MA in Political Science and Development Studies, McGill University (1970-71).Postgraduate Diploma, Syracuse University, USA, 1969. BA in Political Science and History, Lincoln University, Pennsylvania USA, 1969.Secondary:Temple High School, Philadelphia, USA (1963-64). Augustineum College, Okahandja (1958-60).Primary:Engela Senior Primary School and Odibo Junior Primary School (1947-55).Career:Minister of Foreign Affairs 2002-present. Minister of Trade and Industry 1993-2002.Minister of Information and Broadcasting, 1990-93.Member of Constituent Assembly 1989-90.Swapo Secretary for Information and Publicity (1981-91).Member of Swapo negotiating team involved in drafting and overseeing implementation of UN plan for independence (1978-89).Deputy Director/Head of the History and Political Science Department, UN Institute for Namibia (Unin), Lusaka (1976-81).Swapo Secretary for Education (1974-76). Swapo Representative to the Americas (1965-72).Left for exile in the early 1960s. Member of Swapo Politburo and Central Committee.He wants Namibia to shape its own destiny and to work out a strategy to arrive there.”I have been part of the team and I am proud of what we have achieved so far. So there will be no Hidipo Hamutenya’s vision, but instead, I would rather maintain, advance and build upon what we have achieved so far,” he told a local newspaper recently.Born 64 years ago at Odibo in northern Namibia, Hamutenya says he was groomed by Swapo and believes in the call for solidarity, freedom and justice for progress and development.”I strongly believe in consultation and teamwork and the importance of collective responsibility by all stakeholders in shaping our future and the destiny of our people in an independent, free and democratic Namibia,” he writes in his campaign pamphlet titled ‘Our Tasks Ahead’.Hamutenya, also known as HH, is known for taking risks.He believes that you can only show your true colours when you take on challenges.Such risks include bringing in the likes of multi-million dollar Ramatex investment and Anglo-American’s massive investment in the Skorpion zinc mine in the South, and architected Namibia’s participation in the US Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), which paved the way for the arrival of the Ramatex textile factory and thousands of jobs.It has also resulted in some failures such as the Projects, Industrial Development and Investment Company (Pidico), whose promised investments then included some of the biggest since Independence. There was a N$200 million free trade zone at Walvis Bay and a N$100 million printing works in Windhoek. But he believes that if you don’t take risks, it is difficult to make progress. He is a man who likes to share the successes with those around him, and will point out that he is not the man people would like to think he is.In a recent interview with The Namibian, he said that people tended to fear him because they did not know him.”One of the reasons is that I tend to be economical in what I say, with whom I speak, and people think that I have a lot of things to hide, so that behind this lack of outspokenness is probably [some] evil intention,” he said.Among party insiders, he is seen as one of only a few people able to take on President Sam Nujoma.When Nujoma put up former Prime Minister Hage Geingob as his candidate for the Swapo vice presidency at the 1997 congress, Hamutenya supported Hendrik Witbooi in a well-orchestrated campaign.While many believed he did it to level the playing field for the next congress and that he had been campaigning for the presidency for several years, Hamutenya said he regarded himself as part of the national leadership.If elected, Hamutenya says he will uphold and strengthen the country’s constitutional democracy, its policy of national reconciliation and tolerance, and aim for accountable and honourable leadership at all levels of governance.”I believe in the importance of a healthy, educated nation – a people committed to the values of holding together families and communities, the very institutions which inform, mould and determine the values of unity, solidarity and caring citizenry,” he says in his pamphlet.He can boast many years of experience in international diplomacy, having been involved in negotiations concerning Namibia’s independence and the restructuring of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) when he was chairperson of the Council of Ministers. The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) recently stated that Hamutenya’s supporters see his presidency as a move towards a modern, technocratic style of leadership, while recognising that their candidate remains steeped in the history of the liberation struggle.Among those who have worked with him, Hamutenya is known as a tireless workaholic and a purpose-driven leader.He says any vote for him at the congress will guarantee a Swapo leadership poised to protect the hard-won freedom and to uplift the quality of the life of the masses through creating more jobs and provision of living wages.”I will focus all available energy to mobilise both domestic resources and savings as well as direct foreign investment to diversify and broaden the basis of our economy,” he promises.Facts about HamutenyaBorn:On 17 June 1939 at Odibo, Ohangwena region.Education:Tertiary:PhD programme at McGill University, Montreal, Canada (1971-73). MA in Political Science and Development Studies, McGill University (1970-71). Postgraduate Diploma, Syracuse University, USA, 1969. BA in Political Science and History, Lincoln University, Pennsylvania USA, 1969. Secondary:Temple High School, Philadelphia, USA (1963-64). Augustineum College, Okahandja (1958-60). Primary:Engela Senior Primary School and Odibo Junior Primary School (1947-55). Career:Minister of Foreign Affairs 2002-present. Minister of Trade and Industry 1993-2002. Minister of Information and Broadcasting, 1990-93. Member of Constituent Assembly 1989-90. Swapo Secretary for Information and Publicity (1981-91). Member of Swapo negotiating team involved in drafting and overseeing implementation of UN plan for independence (1978-89). Deputy Director/Head of the History and Political Science Department, UN Institute for Namibia (Unin), Lusaka (1976-81). Swapo Secretary for Education (1974-76). Swapo Representative to the Americas (1965-72).Left for exile in the early 1960s. Member of Swapo Politburo and Central Committee.