‘Bigoted’ Nangolo falls on her sword
• Pressure piles on legal aid lawyer
The justice minister acted decisively after a public uproar over the controversial lawyer's social media activities.
Jemima BeukesWINDHOEK
Justice minister Yvonne Dausab has revoked the legal aid certificate of government lawyer Eva Nangolo, following her tribal Twitter remarks about the Damara people on Sunday. A disciplinary process has been set in motion in the meantime, the ministry’s executive director Gladice Pickering told Namibian Sun late yesterday.
The ministry acted swiftly to kick into motion a disciplinary process against Nangolo, who made what many construed as tribalist and derogatory remarks towards the Damara people over the weekend.
The ministry this week distanced itself from the controversial statements made by Nangolo, a Legal Aid Directorate lawyer, after a storm broke loose on Twitter, where the remarks were made, and the ministry was called upon to take action.
The ministry’s executive director, Gladice Pickering, told Namibian Sun on enquiry that action was being taken against the lawyer after the ministry received complaints from offended members of the public.
“The disciplinary process in line with our legal policies kicked off today. The minister [Yvonne Dausab] has signed what she needed to sign [in this regard],” said Pickering.
Tweet stirs outcry
Nangolo landed in hot water when she tweeted on Sunday: “For once, the Damara people are doing something beautiful, cultural identity. I love this! This overshadow that violence image of breaking bottles, knife stabbing, insults, no culture identity that I only know of them (sic).”
The tweet was still on Nangolo’s timeline at the time of going to print yesterday. Many people on Twitter have urged the lawyer to delete her comment, but she dug in her heels.
She was commenting on photos of Damara people clad in traditional attire at the launch of the Horokhoes event in Windhoek, designed to encourage speakers of Khoekhoegowab to wear their traditional dresses.
Serial offender
In a separate tweet dated 17 October 2022, Nangolo commented that President Hage Geingob’s food bank initiative is a “typical Damara mentality thing”.
She allegedly tweeted: “Food bank is a typical Damara mentality thing... begging bowl day after day. It’s disgusting way of living and must end (sic).”
When she was told by other Twitter subscribers in 2022 that the latter remarks were insensitive and tribalist, she replied: “Totally agree, poor choice of words. I meant to say kwankara mentality, but in Oshiwambo. So I delete the word Damara?”
When contacted, Nangolo declined to comment on the tweets and also said she was yet to be informed of the disciplinary process to be launched against her.
“I really cannot comment. I have just left the Katutura court; I am not aware of anything. I cannot comment on anything,” she said.
Collectively shaken
Human rights lawyer Norman Tjombe said Nangolo’s comments are “most disturbing and should shake our collective to the very core of our foundation as a nation.”
He said such conduct is specifically outlawed by the Racial Discrimination Prohibition Act of 1991, which makes it a serious criminal offence to use any language or publish or distribute any written material with the intent to threaten or insult a group of persons on the grounds that such persons belong to a particular racial group, or cause, encourage, or incite hatred between different racial groups, and to disseminate ideas based on racial superiority.
“To demonstrate the seriousness of such conduct, a person can be sentenced to a fine up to N$100 000 to prison for a period up to 15 years, or to both when convicted,” said Tjombe.
“The constitutional rights to dignity of the Damara community as a collective and the individual Khoekhoegowab speakers were severely infringed. I am sure that every Namibian, regardless of his or her ethnic origin, would feel offended that a member of the Namibian nation would be so grossly insulted.”
Work review
Tjombe said the justice ministry must now conduct an investigation into all cases handled by Nangolo with a view to determining whether her prejudiced views have influenced the outcomes of some of the cases of the clients she represented.
“It should be noted that the typical client of the Directorate of Legal Aid would be persons of extreme poverty, unsophisticated in law, and in desperate need of a competent, passionate lawyer,” he said.
“Some of them may now be incarcerated for lengthy prison terms as a result of not being provided with only the most vigorous legal representation because their lawyer has such bigoted views of them. This is as serious as it ever gets,” concluded Tjombe.
Justice minister Yvonne Dausab has revoked the legal aid certificate of government lawyer Eva Nangolo, following her tribal Twitter remarks about the Damara people on Sunday. A disciplinary process has been set in motion in the meantime, the ministry’s executive director Gladice Pickering told Namibian Sun late yesterday.
The ministry acted swiftly to kick into motion a disciplinary process against Nangolo, who made what many construed as tribalist and derogatory remarks towards the Damara people over the weekend.
The ministry this week distanced itself from the controversial statements made by Nangolo, a Legal Aid Directorate lawyer, after a storm broke loose on Twitter, where the remarks were made, and the ministry was called upon to take action.
The ministry’s executive director, Gladice Pickering, told Namibian Sun on enquiry that action was being taken against the lawyer after the ministry received complaints from offended members of the public.
“The disciplinary process in line with our legal policies kicked off today. The minister [Yvonne Dausab] has signed what she needed to sign [in this regard],” said Pickering.
Tweet stirs outcry
Nangolo landed in hot water when she tweeted on Sunday: “For once, the Damara people are doing something beautiful, cultural identity. I love this! This overshadow that violence image of breaking bottles, knife stabbing, insults, no culture identity that I only know of them (sic).”
The tweet was still on Nangolo’s timeline at the time of going to print yesterday. Many people on Twitter have urged the lawyer to delete her comment, but she dug in her heels.
She was commenting on photos of Damara people clad in traditional attire at the launch of the Horokhoes event in Windhoek, designed to encourage speakers of Khoekhoegowab to wear their traditional dresses.
Serial offender
In a separate tweet dated 17 October 2022, Nangolo commented that President Hage Geingob’s food bank initiative is a “typical Damara mentality thing”.
She allegedly tweeted: “Food bank is a typical Damara mentality thing... begging bowl day after day. It’s disgusting way of living and must end (sic).”
When she was told by other Twitter subscribers in 2022 that the latter remarks were insensitive and tribalist, she replied: “Totally agree, poor choice of words. I meant to say kwankara mentality, but in Oshiwambo. So I delete the word Damara?”
When contacted, Nangolo declined to comment on the tweets and also said she was yet to be informed of the disciplinary process to be launched against her.
“I really cannot comment. I have just left the Katutura court; I am not aware of anything. I cannot comment on anything,” she said.
Collectively shaken
Human rights lawyer Norman Tjombe said Nangolo’s comments are “most disturbing and should shake our collective to the very core of our foundation as a nation.”
He said such conduct is specifically outlawed by the Racial Discrimination Prohibition Act of 1991, which makes it a serious criminal offence to use any language or publish or distribute any written material with the intent to threaten or insult a group of persons on the grounds that such persons belong to a particular racial group, or cause, encourage, or incite hatred between different racial groups, and to disseminate ideas based on racial superiority.
“To demonstrate the seriousness of such conduct, a person can be sentenced to a fine up to N$100 000 to prison for a period up to 15 years, or to both when convicted,” said Tjombe.
“The constitutional rights to dignity of the Damara community as a collective and the individual Khoekhoegowab speakers were severely infringed. I am sure that every Namibian, regardless of his or her ethnic origin, would feel offended that a member of the Namibian nation would be so grossly insulted.”
Work review
Tjombe said the justice ministry must now conduct an investigation into all cases handled by Nangolo with a view to determining whether her prejudiced views have influenced the outcomes of some of the cases of the clients she represented.
“It should be noted that the typical client of the Directorate of Legal Aid would be persons of extreme poverty, unsophisticated in law, and in desperate need of a competent, passionate lawyer,” he said.
“Some of them may now be incarcerated for lengthy prison terms as a result of not being provided with only the most vigorous legal representation because their lawyer has such bigoted views of them. This is as serious as it ever gets,” concluded Tjombe.
Comments
Namibian Sun
No comments have been left on this article