By Kuvee Kangueehi
Windhoek
When the election for the new members of the Swapo Party Central Committee took place late yesterday, delegates were on tenterhooks about the chances of their candidates, following the prevailing mood in the party.
The names of the new CC members are expected to be announced today.
Before the election, a list of Central Committee members was circulated at the congress. Although the origin of the list was not known, the list had excluded some prominent party members such as Prime Minister Nahas Angula, Director General of Planning Helmut Angula, Herman Toivo ya Toivo, and Minister of Mines and Energy Erkki Nghimtina.
The Central Committee list, which was circulated among delegates to influence their voting, in fact did not have a single party member from Ohangwena Region, while senior party members from the Oshikoto and Oshana regions were also excluded.
A congress delegate said party vice-president Hifikepunye Pohamba requested the list to be withdrawn and speculation was that the list emanated from the NUNW.
New Era has learned that the NUNW plans to table two motions for the congress to debate and adopt.
The one motion is on the status of party president Dr Sam Nujoma. The union wants Nujoma to be given an honorary membership of the Swapo Party and to be a Politburo and Central Committee member, with voting rights in the two most powerful structures of the party outside congress.
The second motion the NUNW is expected to table is for the congress to adopt a resolution that says Pohamba is the sole candidate for the Swapo Party Presidential elections in 2009.
The NUNW President Alpheus Muheua yesterday tried to push the motion at the congress but Pohamba who was chairing the congress while Nujoma was out, called Muheua to order and said the congress was still discussing the government report. It is not clear whether the NUNW will attempt to bring the motion again or not.
It is believed that the resolution if passed will tie the party to Pohamba as the sole candidate. If Pohamba decides not to go for a second term, an extraordinary congress will have to be called to identify a new candidate. The resolution may be aimed at Hage Geingob, one party insider explained.
If the resolution is not taken, the party does not tie itself to any candidate.
This means that if the Central Committee agrees on a single candidate, it can endorse the candidate short of Pohamba availing himself for a second term.
The congress is running behind schedule. By late yesterday afternoon, the election had not started as delegates were still going through the government report, which was tabled by Nahas Angula.
The congress was studying the report page by page. At times, delegates blasted ministers for not performing. At one point when congress was debating the education sector, Prime Minister Angula was booed and was forced to sit down.