Namibia’s Ruling Party, Geingob Take Unassailable Election Lead

By Mike Cohen, Antony Sguazzin and Felix Njini

Photographer: Parker Song/AFP/Getty Images

Hage Geingob served for 12 years as Namibia’s first prime minister after independence... Read More

Namibia’s ruling party and its presidential candidate, Hage Geingob, took unassailable leads in the nation’s sixth post-independence elections, as the vote count passed the two-thirds mark.
The South West Africa People’s Organization, or Swapo, won a 78 percent share of the 67 percent of votes counted, the Electoral Commission of Namibia said on its website today. Geingob had 86 percent of the presidential ballots. A regional observer group said the elections were free and fair.
Swapo, which took 75.3 percent support in the last parliamentary vote five years ago, is credited with winning the southwest African nation’s independence in
1990 from South Africa’s then white-minority government. Namibia was ranked Africa’s sixth-best governed country last year by a foundation started by Mo Ibrahim, the founder of telecommunications company Celtel International BV.
The opposition Democratic Turnhalle Alliance had 5.64 percent of the vote, compared with 3.17 percent in 2009, while the Rally for Democracy & Progress had 3.9 percent, down from 11.3 percent previously, the electoral commission said.
Namibia is the biggest source of offshore diamonds, most of which are mined by Namdeb Diamond Corp., a joint venture between the government and Anglo American Plc (AAL) unit De Beers, the world’s largest diamond company.
The country of 2.2 million people is also the world’s fifth-largest uranium producer, with mines operated by Paladin Energy Ltd. (PDN) and Rio Tinto Group, and has gold and zinc deposits. Its other main industries are agriculture, tourism and fishing.

Electronic Voting

Geingob, 69, the outgoing prime minister, faced eight rivals in the contest to succeed President Hifikepunye Pohamba, who’s stepping down after serving a maximum two terms, while Swapo and 15 other parties contested 96 National Assembly seats.
Electronic voting machines were used for the first time. While the electoral commission expected results to be released within 24 hours, problems with the machines caused delays in some areas.
An observer mission from the 15-nation Southern Africa Development Community said the vote reflected the will of the people.
“There is nothing like a perfect elections and these were generally peaceful, credible, free and fair,” South African International Relations Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, who headed the mission, told reporters in Windhoek yesterday. “Yes, there were technical errors which the Electoral Commission of Namibia admitted to. There were no shenanigans.”

Development Plan

The ruling party has pledged to implement a development plan aimed at turning Namibia into an industrialized country by 2030 and reducing unemployment to less than 5 percent from 29.6 percent last year.
The economy must expand an average of 7 percent annually to implement the plan, according to the central bank. Growth averaged 4.4 percent over the past five years and is set to increase at a similar pace this year and next, International Monetary Fund figures show.
Geingob trained as a teacher and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Fordham University and a Master’s Degree in International Relations from the New School for Social Research in New York. He served for 12 years as Namibia’s first prime minister after independence and was reappointed to the post in 2012, after being trade and industry minister for four years.
The new administration will consider establishing a new ministry that will focus on reducing poverty, Geingob told reporters shortly before casting his vote in a community hall in Windhoek. It will also address the issue of land reform in a systematic manner that respects property rights and the rule of law, he said.