Swapo seeks to stop rise of independent candidates from within

The ruling Swapo Party is bent on closing the tap to a rise of affiliated members breaking ranks to run as independent candidates in future polls as the party braces for the November regional and local authority elections.
This is the view of political analyst, Ndumba Kamwanya who was commenting on the latest stance taken by the party to hold an extra-ordinary congress, meant to amend the party constitution.
Swapo’s Hilma Nicanor was tight-lipped on Sunday on what kind of amendments these will be but said these are meant to beef up the party, make it politically relevant and win a landslide in the upcoming November polls.
“Do not put words in my mouth,” Nicanor told reporters when she was asked if these amendments had anything to do with independent candidates.
But Kamwanya said it is clear this is the direction the party will likely take as it also prepares to take stock of the November 2019 elections where it dismally performed, albeit it retained its hold on power.
“Well, it does not take an expert to know those constitutional changes they are talking about. And it has to do with loopholes with the independent candidates. The party was struggling to deal with that issue in last year’s elections and in the Knowledge Ipinge issue in Walvis Bay and now we are headed for the November 2020 elections. So I am not surprised that they want to close those loopholes to make sure that Swapo members will not end up running as independent candidates at the same time still maintaining the party membership,” said Kamwanya.
Swapo has as of late expelled its main rival, party card-carrying, Dr Panduleni Itula who brought a tight competition in the run-up to the November 2019 polls on the back of Swapo voters.
Itula has disputed his expulsion before he sunk back into silence, although he has come out to speak with one radio station.
He has as of late been busy with the challenge of the Supreme Court ruling on the election, a challenge that has also fizzled into silence.
However, the party did not take the same stance on Ipinge, who clinched the Walvis Bay urban constituency at the back of disgruntled Swapo members at the coast.