By: Vetondouua Tjivikua
Popular Democratic Movement leader McHenry Venaani has turned down an invitation from State House, claiming that he has been disrespected.
The office of the President scheduled for a formal meeting that was to take place today at State House. Geingob has been meeting opposition party leaders over the last two months, starting with a meeting with LPM heads in February. He met Swanu president, Tangeni Iiyambo this week.
According to PDM, the purpose of the meeting was to brief political parties on the discovery of oil in Namibia and the green hydrogen project.
Venaani said his office received an invitation letter meant for another political party leader.
After realising the error, he said his office withheld a response to the message. Later the same day, his office received a call from a representative of the President’s Office asking whether Venaani would attend the meeting. He responded that his office had not received an invitation to PDM.
Venaani described how the President’s Office invited his political party as disrespectful. He further stated that his office did not receive any due notice to the invitation.
“You cannot invite me 18h00 for a planned meeting that you have the following morning at 10:00, and I must prepare a delegation,” he said in an interview with Eagle FM.
Venaani said PDM is a party that prepares for events, and they won’t take part in events where the party is invited on short notice without any preparation.
“I’m not a running dog. I’m a respected leader elected by the people of this country, and I will represent their interest in the best way”, he said.
According to Venaani, smaller political parties are at State House, and consultations have already started with them. He was irked that Geingob’s office failed to send them a formal invitation letter.
“In fact, they are forgetting who we are.”
Venaani said he respects the President, and the same respect must be accorded in return.
Venaani said for the past seven years, Geingob has not had a genuine engagement with the official opposition party besides a meeting he asked to have with the head of state, which the President requested to be held in private.
“Other parties he is seeing in broad daylight. When he meets PDM, he wants us to meet in private”, said Venaani.
He said political parties with only one or two seats in parliament are getting invitations before them.
“That is not how things are done globally; not in a representative democracy, so we are not declining because we will never go to State House. We are not petty people,” Venaani added.
He said Geingob is finishing the term of his office in three years, but he has only met the official opposition party once.
“Does he mean that he doesn’t even need to ask our view on the country’s governance?”
Venaani said he is a long-serving politician and knows how Geingob does his consultations.
“And if you are not well prepared, he will send you to tenterhooks there you need to be prepared. You don’t walk in there and think you will just be listening to him. You must come with facts, raise the issues, ask the necessary questions and give solutions”, he said.
Early this year, LPM leaders Bernadus Swartbooi and Henny Seibed met Geingob. They motivated him on issues such as running local authorities in the southern regions that owe Nampower over 250 million in electricity debts. They also advised the central government to write off the crippling debt so the municipalities and village councils could perform efficiently and effectively in service delivery.