GOBABIS: The Swapo party Youth League in Omaheke has decided to keep its card closer to the chest, and not to choose one candidate for the youth league secretariat over the other until the national SPYL congress.
The congress is slated for 28 August – 2 September 2012.
While many other regions that have already pronounced themselves with regard to their preferred candidates, Omaheke have decided to remain mum until ‘the time comes for us to reveal our stance’.
Omaheke Swapo Youth League Secretary, who was recently elected at a regional conference at Epukiro, Eben Handura told Nampa on Friday that their focus is more on economic developmental issues and not on positions.
Handura said it was usually such pronouncements that create animosity and unnecessary fights amongst party members, simply because of a difference of opinion – something the youth league would like to avoid.
“The battle should be for economic emancipation and not positions. People do not eat positions; they need employment and other economic opportunities to survive and contribute positively to the country’s developmental objectives,” he said.
Commenting on the apparent division in party circles in the region, Handura said it was high time the youth stand on their own as an independent organ and avoid falling into a trap of being mixed up in party politics from the mother body.
“We have our own battles to fight, such as the economic battle that I referred to earlier. The politics of the mother body remains the politics of the mother body. We are not involved and do not partake in such politics and neither are we used by the national leaders to advance their interest as the notion is often flaunted,” Handura noted.
The Epukiro regional conference also elected Petra Witbooi from Aminuis as Treasurer, while the Information and Mobilisation portfolio fell to Liswaniso Sinvula (Gobabis district).
The rest of the regional executive is made out of Ndinelago Shikundu, Rony Hengari, Ileni Henguva and Ricardo Shumani.
Henguva, along with Witbooi, Naftali Kambunga and Muesee Kazapua have been delegated as Omaheke representatives to SPYL congress where they will contest for an election to the SPYL Central Committee.