Statement By The Namibian Presidency Following Unfounded Allegations That The President Of The Republic of Namibia May Have Assisted President Cyril Ramaphosa “in apprehending” A Suspect Connected To The Phala Phala Farm Burglary

The President of the Republic of Namibia, His Excellency Dr Dr Hage G. Geingob is a champion of the rule of law and Effective Constitutional Governance. Following revelations by media houses in South Africa and Namibia that Mr Arthur Joseph Peter Fraser had lodged a criminal complaint against the President of the Republic of South Africa, His Excellency Cyril Ramaphosa, certain individuals and a number of media houses, out of context and clearly motivated by malice or other ulterior motives, have been suggesting, without any factual basis, that the President of the Republic of Namibia, His Excellency Dr. Hage G. Geingob, may have used his office, in a manner incompatible with the laws of the Republic of Namibia, to assist President Ramaphosa. The slanderous allegations and insinuations made about President Geingob are outrageous and unfortunate.

There is absolutely no truth in the allegations that President Geingob inappropriately used his office to assist President Ramaphosa. The Presidency had an opportunity to look in particular at paragraph 13.23 of Mr Fraser’s statement under oath, which is publicly available, and which reads that:

“President Ramaphosa sought the assistance of the President of Namibia, President Hage Geingob in apprehending the suspect in Namibia.”

As can be seen from the above-quoted part of Mr Fraser’s statement, it does not make any allegation of criminality on the part of President Geingob, except a suggestion that President Ramaphosa “sought” assistance from President Geingob “in apprehending” – which literally means “assistance in arresting”– the concerned suspect, who is a South African citizen and who at the time was alleged to have unlawfully entered Namibia.

The portion referred to above in Mr Fraser’s statement, if properly considered on an objective basis, simply suggests that President Ramaphosa “sought assistance in apprehending” the concerned suspect.

The details regarding the arrest of the suspect in Namibia on 14 June 2020 are matters of public record. The arrest was executed by members of the Namibian Police upon reasonable suspicion that the suspect in question had committed some immigration-related offences in Namibia. The suspect was, in accordance with the law, subsequently convicted by a Criminal Court in Namibia and paid a fine. Following the suspect paying the fine imposed, he left Namibia in November 2020 to his home country, South Africa.

It follows from the above-stated facts that except for those who (motivated by bad faith and ulterior motives) would be quick to unnecessarily read something more into the statement of Mr Fraser, clearly the statement does not suggest criminality.

It also does not suggest that President Geingob may have in any way participated in and/or abetted foreigners in kidnapping and torturing any person, as maliciously and recklessly suggested by certain individuals in Namibia and South Africa. Such suggestions and insinuations are devoid of any truth in their entirety, and these were simply made to score cheap political points.

The apprehension of suspects in Namibia is a constitutional and statutory duty of members of the Namibian Police who, on reasonable suspicion that a person may have committed an offence, are mandated to effect an arrest if it is deemed appropriate and necessary. On the other hand, persons suspected to have committed offences in foreign countries who may be located in Namibia, are dealt with in terms of the International Cooperation in Criminal Matters Act of 2000 or the Extradition Act of 1996 unless they voluntarily return to the countries they are sought.

The President is not a repository of power when it comes to the apprehension of suspects alleged to have committed offences in foreign countries. Accordingly, the mischief-riddled and politically motivated statements by individuals and media houses in Namibia and South Africa against President Geingob have no factual or legal basis. The Presidency finds the politically motivated statements by some political leaders in South Africa, that criminal investigation be conducted against the President of the Republic of Namibia to be absurd and downright non-sensical.

The President of the Republic of Namibia liaises with other Heads of State on official matters, within established State-to-State diplomatic protocols, in accordance with the constitutional powers of the President and upon the dictates of international practices on mutual cooperation between Heads of State and Government.

The Presidency therefore categorically denies insinuations that President Geingob may have acted inappropriately and/or participated or abetted in the apprehension of the individuals concerned. The above stated facts exhaustively and demonstrably clarify the matter.

Issued by the Presidency, Namibia, 10 June 2022