The chaotic nature of Namibia’s National and Presidential Election, held on 27 November 2024, has exposed the Electoral Commission of Namibia’s inability to pull off what must be the country’s single biggest project.
While the institution has clearly not improved on the disputed 2019 elections, which the court said they had struggled to organise properly because of a lack of knowledge and skills, the commission’s project management system has allegedly gathered dust. The general public’s perception is that the ECN was incompetent and bungled the election.
As the Electoral Court last week suspended the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) challenge until the Supreme Court has ruled on the party’s challenge to the presidential election, a prominent businessman and Swapo stalwart, Nico Kaiyamo recently told the Windhoek Observer, an online daily, that “incompetent” ECN commissioners and management should resign.
“Let us stop this opportunistic attitude of trying to privatise Namibia, as the Namibian Constitution guarantees rights and freedoms for all Namibians, not just some. Let us demand the resignation of the incompetent ECN bosses for attempting to harass and intimidate Namibians who are exercising their rights and freedoms as guaranteed by the Constitution, which is our supreme law,” he said.
Questions about whether ECN should employ officials and commissioners who have a background in logistics, supply chain management and project management have started surfacing.
Many point to logistical pitfalls and poor organisation on the part of the ECN to organise a seamless election.
Lack of ballot papers as early as a few hours into the elections, malfunctioning equipment, polling stations next to a dumpsite, no ablution facilities at polling stations, no shade in the scorching sun, and poorly trained staff all speak to the lack of preparedness and stipulate the failures of the electoral body and its general lack of skill and preparedness in project management and logistics.
Questions are also being asked on whether elections should be the best place to hire inexperienced, unemployed and untested youth to manage elections at polling stations.
“One of the most significant issues during the 2024 elections was the ECN’s inability to manage logistics effectively. Reports of ballot shortages in key constituencies highlighted a lack of preparedness. In urban centres such as Windhoek and Walvis Bay, several polling stations ran out of ballots midway through election day. This logistical failure not only disenfranchised voters but also raised concerns about whether the ECN underestimated voter turnout or failed to allocate resources equitably,” said Milton Louw, an IT expert who worked on ECN’s registration systems intermittently between 2013 and 2019.
Louw left the ECN after he was accused of selling five laptops belonging to the ECN, to a local pawn shop.
He won the case.
The State could not prove that five laptop computers, which they accused Louw of using as security to get a loan from Cash Converters, belonged to the ECN.
In an interview with The Issue recently, Louw also agreed with international observers that communication was a major challenge for the ECN. “Many voters complained about a lack of clear instructions on the voting process and insufficient information about polling station locations. In rural areas, where access to information is often limited, this communication gap disproportionately affected marginalised communities. Additionally, delayed announcements of election results created an atmosphere of uncertainty and speculation, further eroding public trust,” he said. Louw further revealed that the ECN indeed has a project management system, for which they pay annual subscription fees, but that the system has been dormant.
After acknowledging receipt of questions and promising to “revert back” the ECN’s spokesperson Mulauli Siluka, regarding ECN’s commissioners and management’s qualifications and their project management system, The Issue has not received any response from the commission. The ECN’s problems are not new.
Since the dawn of Namibia’s democracy, only the 1989 and 2014 National Assembly and Presidential polls have not been challenged in court.
The other six have all seen court action.
Although the court declared on numerous occasions that the ECN’s handling of the elections was marred by administrative irregularities, the courts found that the ECN’s errors had no material impact on the outcome of the elections.
Even the 2019 elections were challenged, and the Supreme Court ruled that the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) without a verifiable paper trail was unconstitutional; however, the court found no evidence that the use of EVMs affected the election’s outcome.
“The warning signs regarding the ECN’s poor planning have been there for some time,” said Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) executive director Graham Hopwood. He added that the manner in which the electoral body mismanaged the ballot paper printing tender was a red flag. “Unfortunately, the effects of this lack of capacity, knowledge and skills were inflicted on thousands of voters on 27 November,” he said.
Hopwood pointed out that both the electoral law and the commission itself are in need of an urgent overhaul; failure to do so will result in voters losing confidence in the ECN ahead of the local and regional elections later this year.
Political analyst Rakkel Andreas said the qualification requirements for staff and commissioners have always been the same, and while it’s ideal to advocate for project management or logistics to be added as requirements, she is not convinced it would have prevented the 27 to 30 November fiasco.
“If anything, ECN appeared confident with its electoral calendar up until voting day.
“The main planning issue of concern is the practice of allowing Namibians to vote anywhere. That is what should be changed to allow people to vote where they are registered, and in cases that can’t be helped, then have them cast their votes as tendered ballots, which will tell us clearly how many people voted outside their constituencies and why. This will sort out poor material deployment issues,” she said.
She also pointed to the issue of training of polling officials and their remuneration.
“This can’t be done a week before elections. and also increase their pay to motivate them to work better. She is also adamant that commissioners should be held accountable: “I also think the Act should be clear about consequences for the commissioners where they err, such as the case of deregistering political parties, and also when the process is poorly mismanaged like what we witnessed. Otherwise, impunity is the order of the day, and that is not a good reflection from an institution given its mandate on the premise of upholding public trust in the credible conduct of elections.”
LOGISTICS EXPERTISE
A look at the ECN leadership has shown the clear lack of experience in the logistics and project management fields. Even though such expertise would appear critical to successfully pulling off a national election.
The December 2023 call for applications for prospective commissioners basically called for people with a minimum requirement of at least a three-year tertiary qualification, preferably in the fields of law, business management, business administration, political science, social sciences, public administration and public management.
Other requirements include: must be 21 years and older, must not have a criminal record, must not have been declared insolvent unless rehabilitated, must not be mentally incapacitated, must have a thorough knowledge and understanding of Namibian politics, history, culture, issue and trends relating to democracy and the elections in SADC and the world.
Integrity, independence of mind, critical thinking, a firm commitment to fairness, political neutrality and equality were some of the other requirements.
Emmerentia Leonard, is the only commissioner who has project management or logistics-related qualifications. She holds an Advanced Diploma in Project and Programme Management. She works in academia and holds a doctorate in Social Work and has qualifications in development studies.
Chairperson Elsie Nghkembua has had a career in the public service, including parliament and academia. Her qualifications are in public administration and management, including a doctorate in Business Administration with a focus on electoral management.
Gerson Tjihenuna has a long history in the public service, including the office of the Prime Minister and parliament. His academic qualifications are in political science and public policy.
Pius Iikwabi is a lawyer who has experience working in the public, private and academic sectors.
Gerson Sindano also hails from the academic sector and holds a doctorate in English and other qualifications in English and education.
On the ground, Zenia Klazen was promoted to head up the key portfolio as director of operations at the ECN in January last year. She is responsible for managing the administration and management of the country’s electoral processes. Klazen holds a Honours Degree in Business Administration and is pursuing a Masters Degree in Electoral Management.
ECN’s chief electoral and referenda officer, Petrus Shaama, was appointed to that position in September 2023, after serving as director of operations and director of planning for about a decade. Before that he worked in the public service and holds a Masters Degree in Electoral Policy and Administration. He also holds qualifications in human resources management.
