By: Kelvin Chiringa
Former IPC councillor Desiree Davids has opened a defamation case against City of Windhoek mayor Job Amupanda, who allegedly called her a person with a mental health condition.
This has been confirmed by deputy commissioner Kauna Shikwambi, who said the high-profile division of the police is handling the case.
The mayor was commenting in a newspaper article in which Davids accused him of campaigning to have her removed from the City of Windhoek.
Amupanda confirmed the police investigation on his social media page as well.
“After the meeting of the corrupt the other week, the corruption slay queen, a former councillor, was temporary with us at the City, (and she) has opened a case against me. I have committed the crime of refusing to comment on her crazy things to a journalist, particularly my understanding that she is not balanced upstairs.
“She thinks that I am responsible for her challenges, including when police interrogated her. I understand after she was found violating the curfew and buying Cs (wink) in the middle of the night.
“I will fully cooperate with the police investigating this case of narcissism!! We really need to attend to mental health in politics!!! Yohh! Over to you ever ready Kadhila Amoomo, legal practitioners,” he said.
Davids confirmed opening the case but refused to comment further.
LPM’s councillor Sade Gawanas has also threatened to open a criminal case in an incident at the back of this. A fake document with the mayor’s number was circulated saying she had applied for land.
Amupanda has refused to comment on the case, saying he is currently dealing with Davids’ police case.
Columnist Vitalio Angula has, in the meantime, castigated Amupanda for spewing what he interpreted to be gendered insults on Davids.
“I have observed with disappointment the constant online bullying meted out against Desiree Davids. I don’t know her, and I have never met her in my life, but I cannot help but sympathize with her regarding the constant insults she has to endure at the hands of Namibian men, which is pure #GenderBasedViolence.
“There is a story that is constantly being repeated about her buying condoms from a service station. Namibia is one of the countries with the highest levels of HIV infections in the world. Sexual Transmitted Infections are also quite prevalent,” he said.
He said women should instead be applauded for sexually asserting themselves in intimate relationships and taking the lead in practising and emphasizing safe sex.
“Black women have been relegated to second/ third-class citizens. Those who have political differences with Desiree Davids want to discredit her by labelling her promiscuous because that is how black women have been labelled for more than 120 years since the patriarchal system of oppression that arrived with the first missionaries to land in Namibia.
“Black women have been labelled as promiscuous whores unworthy of love and respect and undeserving of a seat at the table, and this the message that is constantly repeated by young men in Namibia when they have political differences with their female counterparts. There should be no space for gendered insults in politics whether expressly stated or implied,” he said.
Ahead of the 16 Days of Activism on the 26 of November 2022, he said it is time to leave gendered insults out of political differences.
