Geingob demands public apology from Swartbooi

Geingob demands public apology from Swartbooi STAFF REPORTER

President Hage Geingob yesterday demanded that lands deputy minister Bernadus Swartbooi publicly apologise for comments made about his senior, Utoni Nujoma, which were published in Namibian Sun yesterday.

In a letter addressed to Swartbooi, presidential affairs minister Frans Kapofi said the public apology should be made within 24 hours.

“The remarks have the potential to disrupt peace and stability in the country and are therefore inappropriate, in fact they should not be made by a public official who has taken an oath to uphold and protect the Constitution of the Republic of Namibia,” Kapofi wrote in a letter seen by Namibian Sun.

“In this context, the president demands that you issue a written public apology within 24 hours to your minister, Honourable Utoni Nujoma, Minister of Land Reform, and to the Namibian people. A copy of the written apology should be delivered to the Office of the President, State House.”

On Saturday the outspoken Swartbooi criticised the manner in which Nujoma was handling the land resettlement process and said the minister must be called to order.

The comments were made during the Kai//Khau festival at Hoachanas last weekend, where Swartbooi was one of the main speakers. At the festival, Swartbooi condemned Nujoma’s resettling of northern Namibians on farms in the south of the country.

He accused Nujoma of resettling people from as far as the Zambezi Region in the south, on land that had been seized by the imperial German regime, ahead of the local Nama people.

“It is unacceptable what Utoni does with resettlement. He must be called to order. I do not work for him. I work for President Hage Geingob,” the deputy minister was quoted as saying.

Following Namibian Sun’s publication of the article, there was divided opinion on social media yesterday, with some supporting Swartbooi’s remarks. Others, however, felt that the deputy minister could have handled the matter differently instead of attacking his senior in public.

Neither Swartbooi nor Nujoma could be reached for comment yesterday.