Five years ago, after the regional council and local authority elections, Swapo failed to retain control of over 30 towns and village councils across the country.
This included economic hubs such as Windhoek, Oranjemund, Lüderitz, Swakopmund and Walvis Bay.
Now, the ruling party wants to wrestle back its lost ground after being largely relegated to a village party after the 2020 local authority elections.
These elections resulted in widespread coalitions across the country - with some opposition parties vowing not to work with the ruling party.
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Swapo's deputy security, Uahekua Herunga, could yesterday not confirm whether the party might opt to enter into a coalition.
However, president Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah pleaded for a clear mandate last week.
"You have given Swapo the powers to lead the central government under the Netumbo administration and Cabinet and the parliament in the National Assembly I have set up.
"If you do not vote for Swapo I will face difficulties in the regional councils and local authorities," she said.
Last year, veteran politician Ben Amadhila called on Swapo members to rally behind their party and its candidate to protect the party from being forced into coalitions.
According to New Era, Amadhila warned Namibians of the consequences seen in countries like South Africa, where the governing party was compelled to form a coalition with an opposition party.
FRAGILE RELATIONSHIPS
The constant destabilisation at the City of Windhoek was attributed to, among others, outside influence from political leaders who shaped the agenda from afar.
This appears to be the case at Oranjemund.
Speaking to The Namibian yesterday, Oranjemund mayor Elias Kasemba said one of the challenges of the incoming council seeking to form a coalition is the involvement of party leaders who try to impose their rules on the council.
"The biggest challenge is when leaders of other political parties push their own agendas. It creates division and drives away other parties to rather be on their own," he said.
Another challenge is that whatever arrangement was made will now be disregarded, meaning all three-year plans need to be restarted.
Kasemba does not believe towns can sustain coalitions for a prolonged period of time.
Walivis Bay municipality Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) councillor Richard Hoaeb, who was part of a coalition, cites governance issues within localities due to political parties enforcing their own ideologies.
"National leaders do not necessarily know the needs of the localities, and their interference always strains the development of local authorities. This was a challenge we faced at some stage, but we were able to manage it," he said yesterday.
Hoaeb said party leaders often make those who enter into coalitions look bad, leading to an unhealthy working environment.
He said opposition parties enter into coalitions to have more seats and the ability to influence decision-making, but this does not always work.
If a political party, however, has political maturity, much can be achieved, he said.
"The plight of the people must always come first as soon as you go to council," Hoaeb said.
He said chaos only ensues at localities where each political party wants power.
Former Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) Lüderitz mayor Phil Balhao yesterday said coalitions could be a "lifeline" for some parties.
"If opposition parties want to influence their decisions against a stronger opponent, a coalition is definitely the way to go. I see many parties moving in that direction," he said.Balhao said a coalition is a good thing as it prohibits one party from having too much control.
He believes Namibia should move to a two-party state, as the current model has created too many ideologies and deviation from their goals.
ALLIANCE
Political analyst Henning Melber says political parties and associations should form alliances at municipalities where they hold the majority.
"It all depends on the election results. It seems likely that at many towns and municipalities none of the parties and candidates would get the necessary majority to lead alone.
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"This requires negotiating agreements and alliances between some of those elected to be able to run a smooth administration, " he says.
Melber says such coalitions are, however, rather fragile and not always reliable.
The running of local administrations remains an uphill battle at the expense of service delivery and residents, he says.
Political analyst Ben Mulongeni says political parties and associations are joining coalitions due to their common disapproval of the ruling party.
"Too often people have a common hatred for the ruling party. All they want is to unseat the ruling party, but there is no clear economic ideology that can reduce unemployment," he says.
Mulongeni calls on all leaders to sacrifice their personal interests when joining a coalition to be successful.
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