Workers Denounce Nevonga

Toivo Ndjebela

13 June 2011

Windhoek — Workers on Saturday declared a vote of no confidence in Namibia Public Workers Union (Napwu) General-Secretary Petrus Nevonga.

The workers, mainly members of the Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF), where Nevonga served as a trustee, allegedly with veiled interests, marched on Saturday to show their discontent with the man.

Their fury is rooted in the manner in which Nevonga, whom they mandated to look after their interests at the GIPF, watched idly and, to some extent, participated in a process that saw N$660 million of workers’ money evaporating from the GIPF coffers.

“Voetsek Nevonga, voetsek! Down Nevonga! Corruption down,” shouted workers on Saturday.

They marched to the complex of trade unions at Mungunda Street, ahead of the central executive meeting of the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW).

The NUNW meeting was to consider, among others, the possibility of suspending the federation’s Secretary-General Evilastus Kaaronda.

But workers, boosted by the presence of human rights activists and representatives of local NGOs, declared that if anyone touched Kaaronda, that person would have touched them too.

Workers showed full support for Kaaronda, who they say is the only man at the union who has shown courage in pursuing the case of their lost money.

They were particularly concerned with the widely reported attempts to suspend Kaaronda for no clear reasons, capped with talk that a Cabinet minister threatened him with death if he did not drop his pursuit of the GIPF issue.

However, Lands and Resettlement Minister Alpheus !Naruseb, who was fingered in the death threat claim, insists that he did not issue the threat despite Kaaronda’s firm stance that the minister did threaten him with death.

“!Naruseb is a good friend of mine and a comrade, but he must know his boundaries,” Kaaronda told workers on Saturday, while revealing his grand plan to sue the minister.

“I’ll sue him or he should apologise to the workers for his remarks,” he said.

Kaaronda then lifted a lid on NUNW president Elia Manga, saying: “The same message goes to Manga who continues to please politicians at the expense of the worker’s plight.”

Kaaronda said the recent announcement by Manga that Kaaronda has been stripped off the right to speak to the media, was clear testimony that the NUNW president wants to be in good books with politicians, even if this comes at the workers’ expense.

“They said I should not speak to the media, but they failed to announce who should speak on your (workers’) behalf.” Kaaronda said.

“Who spoke on your behalf when GIPF gave N$450 million to Safland,” Kaaronda asked workers, who replied, “nobody.”

“I can only become a coward once I die, but as long as my tongue is able to move, I would not be silenced. And this does not matter whether President (Hifikepunye) Pohamba agrees with me or not,” he declared.

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