Namibia has elected its first ever female representative declaring Vice-President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah of the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO) party as President in an undisputed victory.
The 72-year-old Nandi-Ndaitwah took just over half of the ballots cast followed by the candidate for the main opposition Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) with 25.5 percent, the election authority announced.
Nandi becomes the first woman to rule the mineral-rich southern African country that has been governed by the South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO) since independence from apartheid South Africa in 1990.
The election was a test of SWAPO’s 34-year grip on power, with the IPC attracting some support from younger generations more concerned by unemployment and inequality than loyalty to liberation-era parties.
The voting was extended to November 30 after logistical and technical problems, including a shortage of ballot papers, led to long queues. Some voters gave up on the first day of voting after waiting for up to 12 hours.
Nandi-Ndaitwah will be Namibia’s fifth president and Africa’s fourth female leader, following Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, Joyce Banda of Malawi, and Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania.
Her election showcases SWAPO’s strong commitment to democratic governance since the early 1990s, although it has faced criticism over issues such as corruption and economic inequality.
The election, however, has been surrounded with controversy with the opposition parties including Panduleni Itula’s IPC saying it was a deliberate attempt to frustrate voters and it would not accept the results citing a multitude of irregularities.
“IPC shall not recognise the outcome of that election”, he said.”The party will fight to nullify the elections through the processes that are established within our electoral process.’’
The new office poses a test to Nandi-Ndaitwah especially with the country grappling with unemployment among 15- to 34-year-olds is estimated at 46 percent, according to the latest official figures from 2018, which is almost triple the national average.
