Who is Judea Lyabboloma Constituency Councilor?

By Simon Liseli

HE is an independent candidate who took the constituency office in 2020, after taking an oath as a councilor of Judea Lyabboloma Constituency in the south of Zambezi region.

Honourable Humphrey Divai was born on 12 August 1974 at Sachona west of Caprivi (now Zambezi), he was raised and bred by his late parents, Induna Divai Sachona his biological father, a Mbukushu and the founder of Bantu Settlement area of Sachona and his mother (now deceased) Mrs. Christina Sachona, a Yeyi who hails from Mbambazi area south of Zambezi region.

Councilor Divai was born in a family of twenty-one (21) and unfortunately three (3) in their family have passed away, only eighteen are still surviving with ten (10) women and eight (8) men to bring a total of eighteen (18.

Divai started his School at Sachona now a combined School where he did his Sub-A, (today grade 1 up to standard 8 which is currently grade 10).

He was then transferred to Makanga Senior Secondary School by then, where he completed his matric in 1994.

After completing his secondary education in 1994 he stayed home being unemployed until 1997 when he applied for further studies at the then Polytechnic of Namibia, currently Namibia University of Science Technology (NUST), where he enrolled to study for a Diploma in Human Resources Management that he didn’t complete because he joined the Namibian Police Force and that was from 2000 up-to 2010.

In 2011 after he resigned from the Namibian Police, he became a labour inspector at Mariental, south center of Namibia in the Hardap region where he worked for a short period of time and resigned again.

In 2012 he came to Katima Mulilo, his home town in Zambezi region and worked at NaTis as an examiner, while working for Katima Mulilo Town Council (KMTC) and he only worked for one year.

In 2013 he went to the coast at Walvis Bay where he worked for nine (9) years in the Municipality of Walvis Bay.

In 2020 he returned back home and campaigned for the Regional Council elections in Zambezi region as an independent candidate of Lyabboloma Constituency where he scored more votes and defeated the former SWAPO party councilor and chairperson of the regional management committee comrade Beaven Munali.

Asked what was the cause of his resignations from different positions he held, Hon. Divai has this to say, “I had a lot of challenges because some positions I held were to maintain law and order, and people did not want to abide to the law and as such I was seen as someone wrong as I was trying to enforce the law” he explained.

Lyabboloma Constituency Councilor added that he was also threatened as he wanted change from people to follow the law.

Asked to shade some lights on why he joined politics, he said he became a politician to serve his people because previously when he used to come for holidays at home, he established that people in his constituency were struggling with basic essential needs such as water, electricity and many others that made him to come in and push where necessary.

“So far we have drilled a borehole at Kalomo and I have been sponsoring some events and my office has a strong relationship with people in my constituency because we are working together with the community and non- governmental organisations (NGOs) like Churches and traditional authorities” he explained.

Honourable Divai pointed out that his office is facing challenges like when requests are procured for developments to both regional and central government takes too long before they are approved.

“For example, when a borehole is broken and we put-up a request, it will take time to get that help and with those delays we normally used to go back to our people and explain to them, and we do that every quarter, like in a year we have three or four meetings just to up-date them on any development achieved” he added.

He said 2023/2024 he intends to do a lot, like in terms of tourism, his office need to have camp sites in the constituency that will be run by youth only, they will also try to have an open market at Sangwali and a bakery at a certain place within Judea Lyabboloma Constituency.

When asked to clarify as an Independent candidate on who brings him to order when he is wrong, Divai divulged that as an independent candidate being a councillor is ready to be brought to order by community members through communities like Churches, advisory committee that was formed, youth committee that works with the councilor and Community Development Committee (CDC) that carters representative from each area.

“As you are aware that some of the things, we requested cannot come in five years and most of the things that we have achieved were done by others, things that am busy with now will only come after this term has expired, so this is the way forward we need to tell our people to give us second chance to complete what we have started” Remarked Humphrey.

In his final message he appealed to his people to remain united and work together because without their support, nothing can be achieved, but when pulling together, “Just like the president said of ‘Harambe’, a Swahili word that means pulling together as a team, so once we work together, we can achieve but if you are pulling alone, you will not go anywhere”

He concluded saying working together with cooperation is the way that can lead people to what they want to achieve and to look at what they need in the constituency to make it the best place to be.

Hon. Divai is married to Madam Divai Claretha; He has eight (8) children three (3) boys and five (5) girls.

His favorite dish is a Zambezi Fish Bream with thick porridge and Fanta pineapple.

At school his favorite sport code was playing volleyball, throwing shot put, high and long jumping, he did not like soccer and athletics.