Hage Geingob, the president of Namibia, passed away early on Sunday in a Windhoek hospital.

Hage Geingob, the president of Namibia, passed away early on Sunday in a Windhoek hospital, the presidential office announced in a statement. He was eighty-two.

Last month, Geingob—who was in the midst of his second term as president—disclosed that he was undergoing cancer treatment.

The statement on X, formerly Twitter, written by acting president Nangolo Mbumba said, "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."

"His children and his beloved wife, Madame Monica Geingos, were by his side."

In January, after a normal check-up, a biopsy had shown "cancerous cells," according to what Geingob's office stated at the time.

Geingob, who was elected president for the first time in 2014, served as Namibia's third and longest-serving prime minister.

Geingob had brain surgery in 2013 and an aortic operation in adjacent South Africa last year.

Speaking to FRANCE 24, Namibian President Hage Geingob

He was a patient at Windhoek's Lady Pohamba Hospital till his passing. 

The principal architect of our constitution, a pillar of the Namibian house, a respected servant of the people, and an emblem of the liberation fight have all passed away, according to Mbumba.

"At this time of profound grief, I implore the people to maintain composure as the government takes care of all required state arrangements, preparations, and other formalities."

To prepare the required state arrangements, he said that the Cabinet will meet right away.

Geingob, the first president of the southern African nation not to be from the Ovambo ethnic group, which comprises over half the population, was born in a settlement in northern Namibia in 1941.

Geingob, the first president of Namibia, was born in a community in the country's north in 1941. The Ovambo ethnic group, which comprises over half of the country's population, is the main source of ethnic diversity.

Before being sent into exile, he began advocating against the apartheid government in South Africa, which at the time controlled Namibia.

He lived in Botswana and the United States for nearly thirty years before relocating to the latter in 1964. 

Elections for Namibia's national legislature and presidency are scheduled for later in the year.