By: Kelvin Chiringa
The battle for the succession of the late OvaHerero Traditional Authority Paramount Chief, Advocate Vekuii Rukoro, ended in defeat for Professor Mutjinde Katjiua yesterday in the High Court.
Katjiua has been battling it out with chief Vipuira Kapuuo, who had insisted that according to the customs of the traditional authority, he was the rightful Acting Paramount Chief of the Herero community until such a time that a substantive Paramount Chief is elected.
The succession wrangle split the OTA into two factions, and a failure to resolve the conflict ended up in a court show-down, out of which Kapuuo emerged victorious yesterday afternoon.
Katjiua did not take time after Judge Herman Oosthuizen read the judgment before leaving the courtroom with his entourage, refusing to take questions from the media. He insisted that the OTA would issue a statement in due course.
Last year, chief Kapuuo is on record as stating, “Let me make this clear. It has been our custom – when Paramount Chief Clemens Kapuuo died, chairperson Gerson Hoveka acted in that position. Again, when Riruako died, deputy Paramount Chief Tumbee Tjombe acted in that position. Now that Rukoro is no more, I, as the chairperson of the chiefs’ council, will automatically act in the position until a new chief is elected.”
In the meantime, in the silence of Katjiua, it is presently unclear whether he will take the fight further and seek to appeal the High Court judgment.
He has also failed to be recognised by the government.
A local daily reported at the beginning of April that government went to the extent of impounding the official vehicle of OTA on Kapuuo’s request, saying OTA currently has no chief as purported by the Katjiua faction.
He then refused to hand over the vehicle until a court of law finalised the matter.
However, the spokesperson of Kapuuo told The Villager that his camp was ready for anything if Katjiua decided to appeal the ruling.
Katjiua’s application sought an order interdicting and retraining Kapuuo from purporting to act on behalf of him as the duly authorised acting paramount chief.
It sought an order interdicting and restraining Kapuuo from interfering with the OTA’s bank account and any funds directed by urban and rural development minister Erastus Utoni.
Katjiua admitted in court that his appointment by the senate was subject to the process stipulated in the Traditional Authorities Act for designation and recognition as chief of the OTA.
He argued that his application was urgent by submitting that the rights of the senate and chiefs’ council, as well as his as duly elected paramount chief in terms of sections 5, 6 and 12 of the Traditional Authorities Act, Act 25 of 2000, would be compromised if the Judge did not rule in his favour.
Kapuuo opposed the application, submitting that there was no urgency.
However, the Judge ruled that Katjiua lacked locus standi to have brought the application as Paramount Chief of the OTA, nor did he establish a clear right or other requisites for interdictory relief.
His urgent application was thus dismissed, and he was ordered, in his personal capacity, to pay costs of Kapuuo for one instructing and two instructed counsel.
In response to the judgment, Katjiua argued that the case was thrown out on technical grounds by the Judge. He said that while he respects the ruling, he regrets it as it will have undesired impacts on the Ovaherereo community “as Chief Kapuuo will continue to drive the division in our community.”
He further said he would engage his lawyers on the way forward.
“The review application is still a battle ahead of us, and we have engaged our lawyers in this matter. While the court cases are ongoing, we shall soon embark on OTA work programmes to make a difference in our communities and focus on development rather than division.”
