Former New Era editor Johnathan Beukes criticises Govt’s proposed merger with Nampa, citing threat to press freedom

Former New Era managing editor Johnathan Beukes has criticised a proposed merger between New Era and Nampa, warning it could stifle press freedom.

He says a planned merger between New Era Publications Corporation (NEPC) and the Namibia Press Agency (Nampa) would muzzle New Era’s “principled voice”.

This comes as Beukes announced he is no longer employed at New Era in a WhatsApp message on Monday.

“Decisions made by the government in the time immediately after president Hage Geingob’s death leave a lot to be desired.

“It has just been months since his unfortunate demise and this government’s commitment to press freedom is clearly on the wane, considering the great lengths the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology has gone to muzzle New Era’s principled voice through a hare-brained proposed merger with Nampa,” he said.

Beukes said New Era’s board decision to cancel the appeal against a ‘colourful’ High Court defamation decision would leave a lasting negative impact on the entire media sector.

He was referring to a case in which a senior police officer won a defamation lawsuit against the state-owned newspaper in the Windhoek High Court in June.


Judge Orben Sibeya ordered NEPC and its newspaper to pay N$50 000 to Namibian Police commissioner Andreas Nelumbu, after finding that defamatory allegations against Nelumbu had been published in an edition of the paper in September 2022.

“What is more troubling, however, is that the skill set on the current board would not allow them to recognise when they make a vacuous decision,” Beukes said.

He went on to urge minister of justice Yvonne Dausab to make public the findings of the investigation that discovered 34% of magistrates qualify for appointment to the High Court.

He expressed his fears for the worsening state of media freedom and expression and the intolerance of “grassroots, especially minority voices and the public interest” in Namibia.

Beukes did not disclose the reason for his abrupt departure from the paper and said the details of his mutual separation agreement and what led to his departure would remain private.

“For the record, I did not resign but agreed with the company to part ways amicably,” Beuke
s said.