Renthia Kaimbi
Retired lieutenant general Martin Shalli says the late former cabinet minister and veteran Erkki Nghimtina was a great fighter and leader.
Nghimtina died on Sunday at the age of 78.
Shalli said his path was closely linked with Nghimtina’s for more than five decades.
He recalled that they both left Namibia in 1974 to join the liberation struggle and later received military training in the former Soviet Union.
“We joined the front at almost the same time,” Shalli said, recalling their early operations from Zambia.
He said Nghimtina distinguished himself in several battles before moving into communications, where he played a key role for the People’s Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN).
After the death of a senior comrade in 1982, Nghimtina took charge of PLAN’s communications department abroad, a position he held until independence.
Shalli said their service continued after independence when both joined the Namibian Defence Force.
“Thereafter, we both joined the Namibian Defence Force (NDF). He helped set up the communications department of the NDF,” he said.
Nghimtina later moved into government as deputy minister and then minister of defence from 1995 to 2005.
“He was a great fighter and a great leader. It’s a long history, but I extend my heartfelt condolences to the entire bereaved family, especially to his wife and children and all the comrades and veterans of the liberation struggle for this great loss.”
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah described Nghimtina’s death as a loss to the country.
“His passing robs the Namibian nation of a committed freedom fighter and dedicated national leader,” she said on Monday.
Nghimtina served as a member of parliament from 1995 until 2020.
During his 25 years in parliament, he held several Cabinet portfolios, including Defence, Works and Transport, Mines and Energy and Labour and Industrial Relations.
President Nandi-Ndaitwah said that after independence, “he continued to serve the nation with distinction and made a meaningful contribution to its development,” highlighting his role as both a liberation fighter and a national leader.
She then extended condolences to the bereaved family.
