Hage Geingob, Namibia’s president, died early Sunday in a hospital in Windhoek at the age of 82 after receiving cancer treatment, the presidential office said in a statement.
Geingob, first elected president in 2014, was Namibia’s longest serving prime minister and third president. He had been receiving treatment for cancer after a biopsy in January revealed “cancerous cells,” according to his office.
“It is with utmost sadness and regret that I inform you that our beloved Dr. Hage G. Geingob, the president of the Republic of Namibia has passed on today,” said acting president Nangolo Mbumba in a statement.
“At his side, was his dear wife Madame Monica Geingos and his children.”
Geingob underwent brain surgery in 2013 and heart surgery in neighboring South Africa in June 2023. Up until his death, he had been receiving cancer treatment at a Windhoek hospital.
“The Namibian nation has lost a distinguished servant of the people, a liberation struggle icon, the chief architect of our constitution and the pillar of the Namibian house,” Mbumba said.
“At this moment of deepest sorrow, I appeal to the nation to remain calm and collected while the Government attends to all necessary state arrangements, preparations and other protocols.”
Born in northern Namibia in 1941, Geingob was the country’s first president from outside the majority Ovambo ethnic group. He was a vocal advocate for Namibia’s independence from apartheid-era South Africa, representing the liberation movement SWAPO in exile.
Geingob served as Namibia’s prime minister from 1990-2002 and 2012-2014 before becoming president in 2014. He won re-election in 2019 but saw his margin of victory shrink amid economic troubles and corruption allegations.
The avid football fan earned the nickname “Danger Point” in his playing days. Geingob was married three times and had three children.
He suffered a couple of health scares in his later years, having undergone brain surgery in 2013 and heart valve surgery in South Africa in June 2023.
An avid football fan, he played as a young man, which earned him the nickname Danger Point.
He was married three times, in 1967, 1993 and again in 2015 and had as many children.
