Evilastus Kaaronda
Namibian trade unionist
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Evilastus Kaaronda (born November 1975 in Otjiwarongo)[1] is a Namibian trade unionist and politician. He is president of the South West Africa National Union (SWANU) since May 2022[2] and since March 2023 occupies SWANU's sole seat in parliament.[3]
Evilastus Kaaronda | |
|---|---|
| Born | Evilastus Kaaronda 1974 or 1975 (age 50–51) |
| Occupation | Trade Unionist |
| Known for | Worker's rights |
Kaaronda is SWANU's presidential candidate for the 2024 Namibian general election.[4] He previously served as the secretary general of the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW).[5]
His criticisms include support on a people-oriented basic income grant, skepticism on the precarious short-term labour contracts proposed by the TIPEEG program, demands to hold accountable those who were responsible for the N$600 million Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF) lost through botched investments in a series of politically connected start-ups, and ultimately to improve the status of the workers rather than decrease them as incentive for foreign investment.[6]
In April 2011, an investigation against Kaaronda was launched following allegations of misconduct; specifically, Kaaronda was alleged to have made unauthorized public statements which discredited NUNW-affiliated unions.[7] In 2012, Kaaronda was fired from NUNW alongside its president Elias Manga, citing "gross non-compliance with regard to his duties and responsibilities", the "disunity, division and mistrust" on his part.[8] They were replaced by Connie Pandeni and Alfred Angula. In 2014, Kaaronda was instrumental in founding a competing national trade union center, the Namibia National Labour Organisation (NANLO).