The Week's Newspaper
| Kavango foiled Frankie?s Katima Coup |
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| Friday, 28 November 2008 08:47 | |||
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THE Namibia Sports Commission (NSC) is expected to name a new Interim Committee this week, to run athletics mother body Athletics Namibia (AN) until fresh elections before February 28 2009. During that period, aspiring presidential campaigner Frank Fredericks will have to contend with the Kavango region, which spoiled his vote last week.
Informanté established that prior to the election, Fredericks had been guaranteed a vote by five regions; Khomas region - who have sworn enmity with former President Alpha Kangueehi - Hardap region, Oshana region, and Erongo and Kavango regions. Khomas region mobilised the other three regions to make it to Katima Mulilo, but Kavango region was not included in the group effort, as it is near Katima. “When we drove to Katima, we were sitting on the wire because we did not know whether we would firmly have Kavango’s vote. It was an election in which we expected two things, wining or drawing. We had done our homework not to lose. Kavango was always a suspect for change,” said Khomas region President Erwin Namhwaka. Linus Domingu, AN Council Member from Kavango, confirmed they had been forced into making an eleventh hour decision, as Frankie had not put anything in “black and white” during his campaign. “He came to us late. We told him that our vote comes with a condition and he did not seem to like it. It’s a long story. I will not say it to the media,” said Domingu, famously known in athletics circles as Mr. Sunday. The Frank Fredericks faction knew they would not get any votes from Caprivi, which Kangueehi had chosen as election host, as well as from Otjozondupa and Oshikoto, whose surfacing at the elections, has been questioned by the NSC. Five votes make the quorum and both candidates ended up getting four apiece. Domingu lost his voting power because he is a Council Member and John Kashoka was tasked with the voting and sources say he made a spur of the moment decision. According to Domingu, Kangueehi has never campaigned in his region and the “Kavango had never received a single dollar from the Kangueehi executive. But the region decided not to give Frankie his vote because we did not know much of his future plans. We bought our time.” But Fredericks maintains that he will not campaign in Kavango, in stead in the next three months, he will work with the four regions voted for him. “I have not made up my mind on what I will do until February 28, but I surely will not buy votes with money,” he said. “They can vote for Alpha. I will get sponsorship and support for those regions that voted for me. If someone says they will vote for me only if I don’t make them hungry, then they must go find jobs. I represent athletes and AN. I will not give funds to individuals,” Fredericks fumed. Kavango admits it spoiled the vote, “We know that it’s unfair that we decided to vote for Alpha at the last minute, but it was not for money. It was because we want real assurances for athletics in the region. Frankie did not give us any.” Meanwhile, 70 year old Hannes Von Hotlz is among the top retired administrators likely to form the Interim Committee (IC). Uncle Hannes has been in athletics for 40 years while Donovan Zealand and another NSC official are also being tipped for the IC. Ironically, the majority of those tipped for IC; represent what Alpha Kangueehi has been fighting over the past four years: “athletics in pre-Independent Namibia, where the racial few keep the sport as an elitist game.”
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