Namibian President Mbumba Retires, Pave Way For New Leadership

Namibia’s Leader, President Nangolo Mbumba Chooses Retirement, Paving the Way for New Political Figures in Namibia.

President Nangolo Mbumba has proclaimed November 27 a public holiday to accommodate the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections. Mbumba, who assumed office as Namibia’s fourth president after the death of President Hage Geingob on February 4, 2024, has announced he will not be a candidate in the November election. Geingob, who passed away at 82 while undergoing cancer treatment, had planned to step down with Mbumba in early 2025.

In an interview with VOA on October 14, Mbumba, now 83, discussed his retirement plans, saying, “We were preparing with Dr. Geingob to leave office… In our 80s, why would you want to stay until people wheelbarrow you out of the office?” He mentioned that arrangements for a seamless transition were already in place.

Although Namibia’s constitution allows Mbumba to serve an additional five-year term — as his current tenure is considered partial and doesn’t count toward term limits — he has chosen to retire. “I could have said, since I was left in office and the term was not completed, I want to just stay for one term… but, one term to do what?” remarked Mbumba, who had been vice president since 2018 until Geingob’s passing.

The ruling SWAPO party is now preparing to endorse Vice President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah as its presidential nominee. Nandi-Ndaitwah, who celebrated her 72nd birthday on October 29, is a seasoned politician and former foreign minister. She will be SWAPO’s first female presidential candidate and faces a strong opponent in Panduleni Itula, the 67-year-old candidate for the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) party. In the 2019 election, Itula received 29% of the vote against Geingob’s 56%.

Alongside electing a president, Namibians will also select 96 parliament members for a five-year tenure. The incoming president will then appoint eight non-voting members to complete the 104-member parliament. Namibia’s new president is expected to take office in March 2025, ushering in a new era for the country’s leadership.