Hifikepunya Pohamba- "Ondjila Eyia Enda"
The launch of "Ondjila Eyia Enda", the much-anticipated autobiography of His Excellency Dr. Hifikepunye Pohamba, former President of the Republic of Namibia, marks an important moment in our nation's history. This remarkable work is not just the life story of a leader, but a deeply inspiring account of the journey of a nation told through the eyes of one of its most courageous freedom fighters. We encourage all Namibians - young and old, students, and future leaders - to read this important book.
I began my political journey as a member of the Ovamboland People’s Organization (OPO). When OPO was dissolved and replaced by SWAPO in 1960, I became a founding member of the new organization while employed by Tsumeb Copper Limited (TCL). In October 1960, I left TCL and returned to Owamboland to become a full-time SWAPO mobilizer under the regional leadership of Mzee Simon Kaukungwa, Eliaser Tuhadeleni, and Andimba Toivo Ya Toivo.
In June 1961, I was arrested, detained, and kept in chains at the Ohangwena Tribal Headquarters. After several days, I was brought before a tribal court on charges of political agitation. Acting on the instructions of a white South African Bantu Commissioner stationed at Oshikango, the tribal senior headmen sentenced me to be flogged with 24 strokes of a Makalani tree branch.
In August 1961, I left my home village of Okanghudi with comrades France (Mushingiwodila) Daniel and Villioh (Shiayafa) Haitembu, embarking on a journey abroad to Tanganyika (present-day Tanzania) via Bechuanaland (Botswana), South Africa, Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), and Northern Rhodesia (Zambia). We arrived in Dar es Salaam on Tanganyika's Independence Day, December 9, 1961.
In May 1962, the SWAPO leadership in exile sent me and Comrade Eliander Mwatale back to Namibia. However, we were arrested by Southern Rhodesian authorities as we attempted to cross the border into Bechuanaland (Botswana). We were detained in a Southern Rhodesian prison for two months before being deported to South Africa on August 1, 1962. Upon arrival at Jan Smuts Airport, we were again arrested, detained for several hours, and eventually ordered to leave South Africa within 48 hours. We traveled by train to Windhoek, Namibia, arriving on August 8, 1962.
After about a week in Windhoek, we were arrested and charged with leaving the country unlawfully and for politically agitating the people against the South West African government. We were sentenced to six months' imprisonment, but after a successful appeal, we were released in December 1962. Following our release, we were deported to our respective home regions in Oukwanyama and Uukwambi, where I rejoined the regional party leadership and resumed participation in SWAPO activities.
In February 1964, SWAPO leadership under Mzee Simon Kaukungwa disrupted a meeting at Ohangwena that was to be addressed by the South African Minister of Bantu Affairs, Hendrik Verwoerd. The police were called in from nearby towns to arrest or kill Mzee Kaukungwa and other SWAPO leaders. On March 1, 1964, Mzee Kaukungwa, four comrades, and I fled from Okanghudi to Tanganyika via Bechuanaland and Zambia.
In September 1964, I was sent to Lusaka, Zambia, to open the SWAPO office. That same month, CANU (Caprivi African National Union) merged into SWAPO after an agreement between the two parties. I served in the SWAPO office in Zambia until December 1969. In March 1966, I accompanied SWAPO President Sam Nujoma back to Windhoek to challenge South Africa’s illegal regime in Namibia. I participated in the historic SWAPO Congress in Tanga, Tanzania, held from December 27, 1969, to January 1, 1970.
At the Tanga Congress, I was elected to the Central Committee and appointed Deputy Administrative Secretary of SWAPO. In 1970, I was assigned to represent SWAPO in North and West Africa, based in Algiers, Algeria. In 1973, I became SWAPO's Chief Representative in East Africa, based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Four years later, in 1977, I was elected to the Politburo and appointed Secretary of Finance.
In 1979, I was appointed Officer-in-Charge of SWAPO Affairs in Zambia, and in 1981, I was transferred to Angola to serve as Secretary of Finance at SWAPO Headquarters in Luanda. When I returned to Namibia in 1989, I took up the role of Head of Administration at SWAPO’s newly established headquarters in Windhoek.
After Namibia’s 1989 elections, I became a member of the Constituent Assembly. Following the country’s independence on March 21, 1990, I was appointed to the National Assembly and served as the first Minister of Home Affairs in the Republic of Namibia.
Cabinet Positions Held:
1990 – 1995: First Minister of Home Affairs, Republic of Namibia
1996 – 1998: Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Republic of Namibia
1999 – 2000: Minister Without Portfolio in the Office of the President, Republic of Namibia
2001 – 2005: Minister of Lands, Resettlement, and Rehabilitation, Republic of Namibia
2005 – 2015: President of the Republic of Namibia
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