By: Justicia Shipena
Landless Peoples Movement (LPM) has recalled its Keetmashoop councillor and deputy mayor Charlyta Cooper from the local authority.
Cooper told The Villager she was recalled without reasoning. This follows after last week, LPM leader Bernadus Swartbooi gave Cooper a day to prove her loyalty to the party. Swartbooi had written a letter to councillor Cooper, stating that she betrayed the party.
“Yes, I was recalled. I got an email this morning. I don’t know, no reason, it was just a letter they wrote that I am betraying the party and so on,” she said.
When asked how she felt about the situation, she said, “I am fine. I know the allegations are not true, and that is the decision the party made.”
A letter titled ‘notice of withdrawal as councillor from the Keetmanshoop Municipality’ was sent and signed by LPM’s operative secretary Dawid Eigub to the chief executive officer of Keetmanshoop regarding the withdrawal of Cooper.
“This communique serves to inform you that the Political Action Committee (PAC) of the Landless People’s Movement has on the 20 July 2O22 resolved in terms of Section13.1 (g), subsection (3) and (4) of the local authority act 1-992, Act 23 of 1992 to withdraw, Mrs Charlcyta Cooper from the Keetmanshoop municipality with immediate effect,” it reads.
The letter also stripped Cooper’s powers to partake in the council activities of the Keetmanshoop local authority.
“Your endorsement is herewith revoked, and you will as of today cease to be councillor representing the Landless People’s Movement Political Party and shall have no authority, jurisdiction or power of any sort to act on behalf of the party in council affairs.”
Eigub confirmed authoring the letter, although he had previously denied being aware of the letter.
In a letter last week Wednesday, Swartbooi said the information he received is that Cooper shares critical information about the party.
He had also said the sharing of this information comprises the work of the party. Swartbooi also said Cooper’s alleged actions do not meet the standards of the deputy mayor and expressed his concern about her ability to lead. The letter also sought Cooper to explain why she should remain at the party.
In response to the letter by Swartbooi, Cooper wrote back, asking the leader to furnish her with evidence that she betrayed the party.
“I hereby request you to furnish proof of critical information that I have shared with other functionaries that are deemed to have compromised my loyalty and membership to the party,” Cooper said in a letter.
She further expressed that she became a member of the Landless Peoples Movement in 2017 due to her political interest and that the party addresses issues concerning the well-being of the ||Kharas Region and Namibian people at large.
In this light, Cooper regards herself as a founding and a bonafide member of the party.
“I regard myself as a founding and a bonafide member of the party. I have no intention to leave but to work for the betterment of our party as per the vision and mission.”
She also argued that the electorates of Keetmanshoop elected her to serve them as a local authority councillor at the Municipality of Keetmanshoop in 2020 to provide quality services and to bring development to the town.
LPM spokesperson Eneas Emvula also confirmed that the party recalled Cooper, saying that “the party itself initiated the decision.”
However, denied that Cooper responded to the allegations in the letter by Swartbooi and said she never responded to a letter.
“Which have her fair chance to state her case. She refused to confirm or deny the allegations. Obviously, this is something that was done in writing, and it is gross negligence,” he said.
When asked about the letter Cooper sent seeking evidence in regards to the allegations of betrayal, he said: “She usually sends letters to the media, instead of to the office of the party who has placed her in that position.”
Emvula said the operative secretary Eigub is aware of the letter that recalled the deputy mayor.
“It’s automatic that an action like that to not be spared. He does get briefed; in this case, that is a non-issue. The head office had collectively requested Councillor Cooper to deny or rely on the allegations,” he said.
When further asked if Cooper remains as a member of the party, he said to become a member of a political party is voluntary because of the eviction shared with the party.
“If you had been placed in an office to carry out a certain mandate and you don’t and get recalled because of your failure, then obviously you get recalled and replaced with someone with somebody who seems to be more capable. To remove yourself from the party is a personal decision, just like to decide when joining the party,” said Emvula.
Previously, Emvula had said it is Cooper’s right to claim that she remains loyal to the party. He questioned what Copper means by saying she is a ‘loyal member of LPM’.
Meanwhile, speaking to The Villager on Thursday, former Keetmashoop mayor and now ordinary councillor Gaudentia Krohne says LPM has the majority, so it might not affect service delivery in the town.
“These recalls resulted that during this year according to the local authority act the council must have ten meeting per year, but we only start the first meeting on 8 June, and this week Thursday was the second meeting. Recalling a councillor, you will wait another three months for that person to be gazetted,” she said.
Krohne added that it becomes costly for the government.
“Because who will pay for the advisement of this de-gazetting and gazetting of a name because is the ministry who is paying that cost, and it will drain the government coffers by recalling, de-gazetting and gazetting someone.”
She said there are many factors involved when it comes to this.
The activities of the local authorities run under the urban and rural development ministry. In this financial year, the ministry received a budget of N$1.6 billion, which is a three per cent reduction from the 2020/21 budget.
In January this year, LPM withdrew two of its members from their positions as members of the Keetmanshoop Town Council. At that time, no reasons were given for their removal.
The party also dismissed former Keetmanshoop mayor Maree Smith in December last year on terms that she colluded with the chief executive officer of the Keetmanshoop municipality, Desmond Basson, in connection with the cutting of water provision to some residents of the town.
Smith was serving her second term as mayor at the time.
Cooper then acted as mayor of Keetmanshoop.
Previously the party also removed other party members from their positions on local authority councils in the Hardap region.
This included a member of Gochas Village Council, Magrietha Gomases.
Gomases was removed for allegedly defying party instructions and colluding with opposition party members.
The party has also removed Mariental town councillors Daniel Gariseb and Rogetha Haack, whom it accused of being power hungry and other alleged transgressions.
In March this year, Ziggy Sixtus Isaack resigned from the LPM, citing a lack of respect for “the humanity and dignity of others and the rule of law” by the party’s leadership.
This had also resulted in the party laying criminal charges against the former election director and founding commissar for the //Kharas region.
justicia@thevillager.com.na
