Nujoma blames opposition for ‘lack of development’

SWAPO yesterday blamed the opposition for 18 years of lack of development in the Tobias Hainyeko constituency in Katutura.

The party’s founding president Sam Nujoma told a huge crowd in Okuryangava that the Rally for Democracy and Progress candidate, Erasmus ‘Kaptein’ Hendjala, had done nothing meaningful for development when he was the regional councillor for the constituency for 16 years. In fact, Nujoma charged Hendjala was just “sabotaging development” since he was never a genuine cadre of the ruling party.Hendjala was expelled from the party earlier this year and within weeks announced that he had joined the RDP and was named as their candidate for Friday’s by-election.”You must reject him and condemn him to the dustbin of history.He is unreliable.Don’t be prepared to be served by him.Put him where he belongs – the dustbin of history.This fellow did not do anything meaningful to develop the constituency,” Nujoma claimed to party supporters at the final rally for the Tobias Hainyeko by-election.Nujoma also blamed the opposition for recent incidents of violence.”Opposition parties are vicious and have embarked upon tactics of provocation,” he claimed.”We must campaign peacefully and as mature people.Don’t be distracted.Let’s face them at the ballot booth and defeat them there.”Nujoma said he was disturbed by claims coming from opposition parties who “all of a sudden call themselves champions of democracy”.He said such parties were insulting and criticising Swapo leaders in everything they do and were “hell bent on all tactics to reverse freedom and Independence”.He called on Namibians to take development into their own hands as they did with the struggle for Independence.”No miracles in the promise of billions of dollars from other countries will do it.We have courage and resilience to do it,” he said.He appealed to local and regional authorities to work closely with the central Government in implementing development programmes and called for the harnessing of natural resources to add local value.The rally was the biggest since Swapo’s Tobias Hainyeko by-election campaign started, with people standing in the streets to listen to Nujoma as the Okuryangava Women’s Centre was full to the brim.In fact, Nujoma charged Hendjala was just “sabotaging development” since he was never a genuine cadre of the ruling party.Hendjala was expelled from the party earlier this year and within weeks announced that he had joined the RDP and was named as their candidate for Friday’s by-election.”You must reject him and condemn him to the dustbin of history.He is unreliable.Don’t be prepared to be served by him.Put him where he belongs – the dustbin of history.This fellow did not do anything meaningful to develop the constituency,” Nujoma claimed to party supporters at the final rally for the Tobias Hainyeko by-election.Nujoma also blamed the opposition for recent incidents of violence.”Opposition parties are vicious and have embarked upon tactics of provocation,” he claimed.”We must campaign peacefully and as mature people.Don’t be distracted.Let’s face them at the ballot booth and defeat them there.”Nujoma said he was disturbed by claims coming from opposition parties who “all of a sudden call themselves champions of democracy”.He said such parties were insulting and criticising Swapo leaders in everything they do and were “hell bent on all tactics to reverse freedom and Independence”.He called on Namibians to take development into their own hands as they did with the struggle for Independence.”No miracles in the promise of billions of dollars from other countries will do it.We have courage and resilience to do it,” he said.He appealed to local and regional authorities to work closely with the central Government in implementing development programmes and called for the harnessing of natural resources to add local value.The rally was the biggest since Swapo’s Tobias Hainyeko by-election campaign started, with people standing in the streets to listen to Nujoma as the Okuryangava Women’s Centre was full to the brim.