President Yoweri Museveni has described the death of Namibian President Hage Geingob as a great loss to the African continent.
Geingob, 82 died on Sunday after being diagnosed with cancer.
In his condolence message on Monday, President Mueveni said he has been working with South West Africa People’s Organisation(SWAPO), the ruling party in Namibia for the last 57 years.
“Initially, I used to interact with SWAPO youth from Kurasini in Dar-es-Salaam, led by a fellow youth by the name of Kalwenya Omatene, who, I came to understand died of natural causes before Namibia’s independence. Those youth linked me to Mzee Sam Nujoma, the president of SWAPO, in their offices towards the Upanga area,”Museveni said.
He said the group used to organize lectures and solidarity meetings for the liberation movements at the university to demystify the idea that the oppressive Whites in Africa could not be defeated by African arms and inform the Africans of the efforts of their brother freedom fighters of Southern Africa and Guinea Bissau.
“That is why, in 1968, I led a group of students into the liberated areas of Northern Mozambique (Cabo Delgado). That visit helped to kill the decampaigning efforts by the Portuguese Secret Police and that of the South African Whites, disparaging the efforts of the freedom fighters of the still colonized countries, as pleasure lovers who only spend time in the night clubs of Dar-es-Salaam in spite of Africa and other freedom lovers giving them material support.”
He said when time came, Mozambique’s FRELIMO, on Nyerere’s request, gave hisgroup training and material support in form of money during the fight against Idi Amin.
“I first heard of Geingob in the 1970s when he became the head of the Namibian Institute in Lusaka. Indeed, some Ugandans, such as Joan Kategaya, worked there, during the time many of them were in exile, running away from the terror of Idi Amin. The Namibian Institute, I think, was training Namibians in exile so that they could be able to run their country after independence.”
“ On behalf of the government and people of Uganda, I salute the contribution of the late H.E. Geingob to the cause of freedom of Namibia and Africa in general. I extend our condolences to his family and the people of Namibia.”
