Namibia’s President Hage Geingob, aged 82, passed away in the early hours of Sunday, according to a statement from the presidency. This comes just weeks after he was diagnosed with cancer.
Geingob had been leading the sparsely populated and predominantly arid southern African nation since 2015, the same year he revealed his successful battle with prostate cancer. In his absence, Vice-president Nangolo Mbumba will assume leadership until the presidential and parliamentary elections at the end of the year.
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The cause of President Geingob’s death was not specified in the social media post by the presidency. However, it was mentioned last month that he had travelled to the United States for a unique two-day cancer treatment after a routine medical check-up.
Born in 1941, Geingob played a significant role in Namibian politics even before the country gained independence from white minority-ruled South Africa in 1990.
He chaired the committee responsible for drafting Namibia’s constitution and subsequently served as its first prime minister until 2002.
Geingob joined the South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO) and became its vice-president in 2007.
SWAPO has held power in Namibia uncontested since independence. Although Namibia is technically classified as an upper middle-income country, it faces significant wealth disparities.
In his 2018 speech commemorating Independence Day, Geingob acknowledged the challenges of achieving development and shared prosperity in the aftermath of independence.
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Geingob’s leadership included serving as the trade and industry minister before returning as prime minister in 2012. He won the 2014 election with an overwhelming 87% of the vote, narrowly avoiding a runoff in a subsequent poll in November 2019. This election followed a government bribery scandal involving the alleged awarding of fishing quotas to Iceland’s largest fishing company in exchange for kickbacks.
President Geingob acknowledged the need for wealth distribution in Namibia, but also recognised the complexities of addressing historical racial divisions.
He commented on the challenges faced by the country and the impracticality of simply taking from the white minority and giving to the Black population. Geingob passed away at Lady Pohamba Hospital in Windhoek while under the care of his medical team.
Namibia mourns the loss of President Hage Geingob, a prominent figure in the country’s history and politics. His legacy will be remembered as Namibia continues its journey towards development and shared prosperity.
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