President Bola Tinubu has mourned the death of Namibian President Hage Geingob, whom he described as a veteran in the fight for democracy.
The 82-year-old leader, who acknowledged last month that he was getting cancer treatment, died on Sunday, according to acting President Nangolo Mbumba’s statement.
Tinubu, in a sympathy condolence issued on Sunday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, highlighted that Geingob’s death happened at a time when Africa needed his visionary skills.
“President Tinubu mourns the painful loss of this veteran in the struggle for democracy, a proponent of good governance, and an advocate of economic, social, and political solidarity among African peoples.
“The President notes that this tragedy comes at a time when Africa needs more visionary leaders who believe in the common destiny of the continent and who can strengthen bonds across borders and spread the tendrils of cooperation across all fields of human endeavour.
“As Namibia mourns, President Tinubu assures the Republic that his thoughts and prayers, and indeed those of Nigerians, are with them,” the statement read in part.
Geingob was Namibia’s longest-serving prime minister and third president, having been elected in 2014.
Geingob had brain surgery in 2013 and an aortic operation in adjacent South Africa last year.
He had been having treatment at Lady Pohamba Hospital in Windhoek prior to his death.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
