It is now expected, in the Age of Trump, for the losing side in an election to say the vote was rigged, refuse to accept the tally and get your supporters worked up — while urging them to stay calm.
Still, it cannot have been much fun for Namibia’s voters to stand for hours under a molten sky while election officials tried to cool down their overheating voting tabulators, which may or may not be a legitimate reason for voting being extended for another three days.
The Electoral Commission of Namibia is reportedly well run, though Speciosa Wandira Kazibwe, head of the AU observer mission, lambasted it for the lack of water and toilets at polling stations, and for causing confusion by opening more stations while closing others to count votes.
“Really Namibia,” she said in a quote published in The Namibian, “you could buy each voter a bottle of water.”
The election result was announced late on Tuesday. But even before that, Panduleni Itula of the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) — the closest contender for finally unseating fusty, creaky liberation-era Swapo from power — called foul.
Swapo’s Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah was announced the winner with 57% of the vote.
It may be true that there has been voter suppression; Swapo wouldn’t be the first ruling party to use dirty tricks to retain its grip on the levers of power.
It might also be true that even if Africa’s struggle parties — from Namibia to Mozambique and all stations in between — have been hammered at the polls in 2024, the IPC just lost. Sometimes the will of the people, even if deluded by the hope of a lost cause, is exactly what it says on the box.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.