By James Kunda
LUSAKA, Zambia (AA) - A state memorial service was held Saturday for Namibian President Hage Gottfried Geingob at the Windhoek Independence Stadium ahead of his burial on Sunday.
Geingob, 82, died Feb. 4. at a Windhoek hospital. He had been undergoing treatment for cancer.
The funeral was attended by 18 foreign heads of state and government.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe said his country and the region had lost a pillar of support. William Ruto from Kenya said Africa had lost a progressive leader whose powerful voice for a more united continent will never peter out.
Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera said Geingob’s death was a great loss to the region and the entire continent.
Other tributes came from the country’s founding father Sam Nujoma and Geingob’s predecessor Hifikepunye Pohamba, among other mourners who filled the venue.
Geingob, who has been succeeded by Nangolo Mbumba, will be buried at the Windhoek Heroes Acre on Sunday, in a section reserved for presidents.