Elizabeth Likoro
Penehupifo Pohamba was born on 16 June 1948, at Okatale village in Oshikango constituency in the Ohangwena region. She grew up with her family, where her father was a teacher and her mother a peasant. Pohamba attended her early education and nursing training at Odibo.
Beyond her nursing career, she was actively involved in the SWAPO Youth League, participating in the struggle for Namibia’s independence.
Veteran diplomat ambassador George Tuliameni Kalomoh, a close friend of the late Pohamba, narrated to New Era that in February 1972, she joined a peaceful demonstration organised by the youth movement to welcome the then United Nations Secretary General Kurt Waldheim, who was visiting Namibia on a fact-finding mission.
“While pregnant with her first child, she joined a peaceful demonstration organised by the youth movement. Despite opposition to the demonstrations, she participated alongside other activists. Her commitment to the liberation struggle led her into exile in 1974,” said Kalomoh.
Pohamba left Namibia travelling through Angola before reaching Zambia, while in exile she continued pursuing her nursing career. She received further nursing training in Mtwara, Southern Tanzania and later qualified as a nurse. In 1979 she travelled to Jamaica, where she qualified as a registered nurse.
Between 1979 and 1983, she returned to Angola as a nurse, where she continued serving wounded Namibian in combats, children and others in need of medical care.
Reflecting on their friendship, Kalomoh described her as a bright, brave and compassionate woman who valued community service and upheld the principles of freedom and justice.
“She smiles easily but under that smile is a tough character. She was faithful to the principle of freedom and justice, she intensely disliked discrimination of any kind,” Kalomoh said.
Following Namibia’s independence in 1990, Pohamba joined the ministry of health as a nurse.
To meet required professional qualifications, she undertook a bridging course at UNAM, qualifying as a registered nurse. She continued serving in the health sector until her early retirement in 2005.
In his closing tribute, he described her passing as a significant loss for the country, saying Namibia has lost a giant whose life was shaped by service, courage and an enduring commitment to justice.
The late Pohamba will be buried at a family cemetery in Okanghundi village next Saturday.
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