Ya Nangoloh named and shamed
NSHR boss in hot water
By Asser Ntinda

The so-called executive director of the National Society for Human Rights, NSHR, Phil Ya Nangoloh has been named and shamed as a liar by some of his relatives over a list which he produced last week claiming that his “relatives” have come to his defence regarding his work as a human rights activist.

It has now emerged that some of the people whose names appeared on the 76 list have not been consulted and are now furious that Ya Nangoloh has dragged their names in the mud without their consent.

SWAPO Party District Coordinator at Onesi in Omusati Region, Matti Auala, got the shock of his life when he found his name on the list, purportedly drawn up by Ya Nangoloh’s “relatives” defending the latter.

Matti, a SWAPO Party staunch activist, said he had never met or spoken to Ya Nangoloh since his return from exile at independence in 1990, and at no point had he endorsed Ya Nangoloh’s activities as the latter had claimed.

It has now emerged that Matti’s name was put on the list by his niece, Martha Alweendo, who appeared number one on the list last week. She claimed that prior to the publication of the list, which had been widely distributed on the internet and to various newspapers, she tried to “contact” him without success.

“Therefore,” she said in an apology to Matti, “I would like to accept full responsibility for the inclusion of Uncle Auala’s name on the list of family members and I hereby sincerely tender by (sic) apology for any inconvenience caused to Uncle Auala.

“I would like however, also to state I (sic) that, prior to publication, I tried, without success, to conduct Uncle Auala to inform him about the position of other family members.

“Nevertheless, I was of the opinion that Uncle Auala would not hesitate to publicly come to the defence of anyone of us and to be publicly known as having done that, as other family members have.”

Matti has strenuously objected to the inclusion of his name on the list, threatening to take legal action against those responsible for doing so. He said that he could not be associated with Ya Nangoloh’s activities whatsoever.

“I am not part of their things,” he said telephonically. “I want such people to apologize to me in public and clear my name. They have spoiled my name and my relationships with my comrades. That is very bad.”

Part of the list read as follows: “We, the under-listed relatives of Mr Phil ya Nangoloh, from both sides of the patrilineal, Aakwaniidhi, (i.e Grass) and the matrilineal Aakwanekamba (i.e. Hyena) clans, from all over this Land of the Brave, do hereby state that, we have learned with utter disgust and dismay and, hence, we totally reject, with the contempt they deserve, the malicious and defamatory allegations by one Asser Ntinda as published in the 2 July – 8 July 2010 edition.”

Matti said he was not part of that statement and was never consulted. Alweendo has since apologized to “uncle” Matti. The story was based on revelation one of Ya Nangoloh’s niece, Simeon Andreas Joseph Nuumbembe, who had claimed earlier that they were “ashamed” of Ya Nangoloh’s activities as family members. Simeon is a member of the Namibia Defence Force, NDF.