AT the time of going to press, only the Namibia Democratic Movement for Change (NDMC)’s President Frans Migub /Goagoseb, and his Secretary General Joseph Kauandenge, seemed to be the top leadership holding the party’s fort. The status of party Treasurer, Aletha Goagoses, and National Organiser, Titus Mbangu, who were part of the four top together with /Goagoseb and Kauandenge, was uncertain amid speculation of the two having defected to another party. Kauandenge said the National Executive Committee of the party was still to meet to affirm the rumoured defections.

Frans Migub /Goagoseb (President)
Frans /Goagoseb was born in Gobabis in the Omaheke constituency on June 16, 1954. He completed his primary education in Gobabis and secondary education at Khorixas High School in the Kunene Region. His involvement in politics started when he was about 20 years old in 1974. He was a member of both the Turnhalle Conference and the then Transitional Government representing the Damara Council (DC).

During the same year, 1974, as a member of the DC, /Goagoseb, was among members who favoured cooperation with South Africa and planned to negotiate a constitution for Namibia. They broke away and formed the Damara United Front (DUF), which was later renamed the South West Africa People’s Democratic United Front (SWAPDUF) in 1976. The party later formed an alliance with the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance, DTA of Namibia. /Goagoseb was among the first Damara-speaking Namibians to request the then South African apartheid regime that Damaras be given their own Bantustan government.

In 1977, the Namibia Democratic Movement for Change President was one of the founding members of the DTA where he occupied the position of Chief Organiser. He represented the DTA in the National Council from 1992 until 2003 as regional councillor for the Gobabis constituency. He left the DTA and went on to form the NDMC in 2003 and became president, a position he holds to date. /Goagoseb, who is also Chief of the /Gobanin tribe, was also the founding chairman of a development organisation based in Gobabis called NASCAM, whose purpose is to help bury members of the marginalised San community. /Goagoseb is single and has 12 children. He is also a part-time farmer in the Gobabis district.

Joseph Upahaije Kauandenge (Secretary General)
Joseph Kauandenge, alias Jossy, was born on October 7, 1974 in the Khomas Region. He completed his primary education at the Theo Katjimune Primary School in Katutura and proceeded to the Rietquelle High School and Classic College for his secondary education. Kauandenge went on to study law with the University of South Africa (Unisa). He has, however, not practised law since obtaining his B-Juris Law Degree.

He is also a trained public relations officer, a qualification he obtained from the Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa (PRISA). He also holds various diplomas in Business Administration. Kauandenge’s involvement in politics started in 1987 while still a student. He was elected President of the Namibia National Council of Students (NACOS) in 1992. Several years later, he realised that the youth were often used as tools by veteran politicians and dumped after elections. This made him form the Namibia Movement for Independent Candidates (NMIC). The movement was affiliated to the DTA, which saw Kauandenge become the DTA Secretary for Youth between 1998 and 2003. He left the DTA and defected to the National Unity Democratic Organisation (Nudo) when it broke away from the DTA at the Nudo Congress in January 2004.

Kauandenge was elected Secretary General, a position he only served until September 2004 before being suspended.

He rejoined the DTA in 2005 but became frustrated and took up a short-term position with the Republican Party (RP). He took a break from politics after the short stint with the RP during which he developed a career in oviritje music. Between 2005 and 2007, he released two albums, namely ‘Mbakotoka’ and ‘Baby Baby’. The political animal in him though refused to die and in 2007, he rejoined politics and became a member of the NDMC where he serves as the Secretary General today. He still sings part time and recently released another album ‘Touch Me’. He is divorced and has three children.

New Era