Fredericks wins Athletics Namibia presidency
Submitted by editor on Sun, 06/21/2009 -
23:25. Athletics
Frank Fredericks won the presidency of Athletics Namibia in convincing fashion on Saturday when all seven of the regions in attendance voted for him. Only the Oshikoto region failed to attend the Special Elective Congress in Otjiwarongo which was also attended by the IAAF’s special representative Cheikh Thiarre.
Fredericks’ resounding victory brought to an end the impasse that had surrounded Athletics Namibia since original elections on November 28, 2008 ended in a stalemate when Kangueehi and Fredericks both garnered four votes.
Since then an Interim Committee was elected to run the affairs of AN, and this was later changed to an Ad Hoc Committee after the IAAF stepped into the fray by sending Thiarre to Namibia.
According to the chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee, Dr Donovan Zealand, Kangueehi tried to postpone the elections after sending a letter to the IAAF in which he questioned the legality of the congress.
“He made several allegations, amongst others, that notices of the special congress were not sent out to AN’s members and that the nominations were not made out properly, while he also questioned the mandate of the Ad Hoc Committee. All the members however refuted the allegations that he made,” he said.
Zealand ascribed Fredericks’ emphatic victory to the fact that the members had become ‘fed up’ with Kangueehi.
“He was trying to postpone the whole process and they were getting fed up with his delaying tactics,” he said.
Zealand said that Thiarre expressed confidence in the process and undertook to release funds to AN’s new council in the near future.
Meanwhile, Frank Slabbert was unanimously elected as secretary general after the other candidate, Charles Gordon didn’t sign his acceptance letter for the nomination.
Four new vice presidents were elected namely Alna Similo, Job Haindura, Linus Domingo and Modestus Mwila. Officials of various portfolios were also elected.