Political analyst Ben Mulongeni has described the five-year partnership between the National Unity Democratic Organisation (Nudo) and the South West Africa National Union (Swanu) as comedic.
On Wednesday, a Nudo faction led by Barry Rukoro joined Swanu to allow Nudo members to go to parliament on Swanu’s ticket.
The partnership saw 60 Nudo members being issued Swanu membership cards.
“I understand Rukoro is coming from a football background, but one needs to understand that politics is not like soccer, where you loan out players for a season,” Mulongeni said on Wednesday.
According to Mulongeni, Swanu, as the oldest political party in Namibia, missed an opportunity to be a viable alternative to the ruling party.
“Swanu could be the party where one could go when things are not going right in Swapo. They missed a chance of becoming the ruling party, or at least the official opposition,” he said.
He highlighted that Swanu and the ruling party share a similar historical ideology, but described Swanu as being led by immature leaders who have a limited understanding of organising a party with a strong political ideological foundation.
Rukoro, however, says the partnership with Swanu is a temporary measure.
“This partnership is not a departure from our commitment to Nudo, but rather a strategic move to ensure that our supporters and the principles we stand for remain represented in the National Assembly,” he says.
He asserts that the group’s commitment to the long-term future of Nudu remains steadfast.
Swanu president Evilastus Kaaronda says the two parties share common ground on the issue of the genocide.
“Swanu supports the call, among other things, for the total rejection of the joint declaration between Namibia and the German government, at least in its current form,” he adds.
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