Namibia’s Supreme Court has dismissed a legal challenge from opposition parties regarding the presidential election held last year, thereby allowing the ruling party’s Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah to assume office next month.
The SWAPO party, which has been in power for over thirty years in the Southern African nation of approximately 3 million residents, secured victories in both the presidential and parliamentary elections conducted in November.
Opposition groups contended that the election process was compromised and possibly invalid, citing issues such as the extension of the voting period by several days.
Chief Justice Peter Shivute ruled that the decision to extend the voting period was legitimate and rejected the challenge presented by the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), which finished second in the election.
The IPC was supported in its challenge by another opposition group, the Landless People’s Movement.
Shivute stated, “Their challenge to the outcome of the 2024 presidential election … fails.”
See more: Kosovo businesses under threat from Trump’s USAID freeze
Panduleni Itula, the IPC leader and last year’s presidential candidate, expressed that his party would respect the court’s ruling.
“We will not take to the streets to protest or engage in any such actions,” Itula affirmed.
Nandi-Ndaitwah is set to be inaugurated as Namibia’s first female president on March 21.
