April probe triggered NAC board's axing

The dismissal of the Namibia Airports Company (NAC) board on Tuesday followed an April investigation by the works and transport ministry that recommended the board's removal as well as the dismissal of three top executives over alleged governance, procurement and recruitment irregularities.

The recommendations are contained in a report dated 7 April, compiled by the ministry’s chief internal auditor, Lineekela Joseph, and seen by Namibian Sun.

The report has gained new significance after works and transport minister Veikko Nekundi on Tuesday this week dismissed five NAC board of directors with immediate effect.

In the firing line were Elizabeth Peterson, Lucien Mouton, Matheus //Gowaseb, Carol Williams, and Ferdinand Nghiyolwa.

Nekundi installed an interim board comprising Otniel Podewitz as deputy chairperson, Sophia Kasera, Phillip Iifo, Loide Ekandjo, and Natacha Kasera-Kandombo.

“The stewardship of public resources demands accountability and transparency at every level. The appointment of an interim board ensures seamless continuity of operations while we reinforce the governance structures required for effective service delivery,” the minister said in the statement.

The statement did not provide reasons for dismissing the five directors, or state whether the decision flowed from the investigation.

Board first to fall

The investigation recommended that the NAC board be relieved of its responsibilities, accusing it of neglecting its strategic and fiduciary duties and interfering in administrative matters.

“The board of directors relegated themselves to the level of petty administrative issues of filling positions,” the report reads.

It accused the directors of becoming entangled in the implementation of NAC’s recruitment and motor-vehicle scheme policies, instead of objectively exercising oversight over the company.

“The only option befitting and most appropriate recommendation is to recommend to the honourable minister to relieve them from their responsibilities,” the report reads.

The report also recommended that the minister consider referring the directors to the Anti-Corruption Commission over what it described as a violation of Section 43.

It claimed the directors had demonstrated that they could not be trusted and had failed to direct NAC officials to perform their functions properly.

The report’s findings were forwarded to the then NAC board chairperson, Leake Hangala, on 15 April.

‘Better off without him’

The investigation did not stop with the board.

It recommended that Nekundi remove Bisey /Uirab as NAC's chief executive officer, accusing him of failing to act fairly and in the company’s best interests.

The report questioned /Uirab’s handling of a contract awarded to Brumar Construction CC, alleging that he approved NAC’s purchase of materials needed to complete work for which the contractor had already been appointed and paid.

It further alleged that NAC’s maintenance employees were used to perform part of the contractor’s work while Brumar continued receiving payment.

According to the report, this concealed the contractor’s alleged incompetence, favoured the company and protected it from possible debarment.

The investigation also accused /Uirab of failing to provide strategic human-resources leadership during NAC’s transition from its motor-vehicle scheme to a total cost-to-company remuneration structure.

It alleged that he failed to address a toxic working environment and questionable promotions or placements of employees who did not possess the required qualifications.

“To preserve the best interest of NAC, the honourable minister should cause the relieving of his esteemed Mr Bisey /Uirab as CEO of NAC," the report recommends, suggesting "the NAC shall be better off without him".

Vehicle controversy

Nekundi’s dismissal of the directors follows Namibian Sun’s investigation into the transfer of 19 company vehicles, originally purchased for approximately N$14.7 million, to NAC executives and managers.

The vehicles were transferred into the beneficiaries’ names between 2023 and 2024 after each paid what NAC described as an administrative fee of N$5 000.

The beneficiaries included /Uirab, who received a Toyota Land Cruiser originally purchased for approximately N$1.39 million.

The ministerial investigation questioned the mechanism used to depreciate the vehicles and alleged that NAC did not obtain Treasury approval before disposing of them.

It found that the N$5 000 amount was not supported by an accounting policy or recognised accounting standard.

NAC previously rejected the findings, maintaining that the N$5 000 represented an administrative transfer fee and was neither the vehicles’ purchase price nor their depreciation value.

The company told Namibian Sun the vehicles formed part of contractual employment benefits and were transferred following the abolition of its motor-vehicle scheme in 2021.

NAC also maintained that the scheme’s abolition had saved the company approximately N$6 million annually.

Two executives targeted

The report further recommended the removal of the executive for human resources, Josephine Soroses, and the executive for infrastructure development and asset care, Ralph Gaoseb.

It called for Soroses’ contract to be terminated immediately or for her to be notified that it would not be renewed when it expires on 11 November.

The investigation accused Soroses of misrepresenting the circumstances surrounding the permanent placement of Calista Goabas as aviation security manager.

According to the report, the board was told that all successful candidates had failed vetting, while Goabas herself had allegedly not undergone vetting before being recommended for the position.

The investigation also questioned the extension of Soroses’ own employment contract, claiming she had initially placed fourth during interviews conducted by Potentia, a Windhoek-based recruitment agency.

It further accused her of employing an autocratic leadership style that contributed to an allegedly toxic working environment at NAC.

In Gaoseb’s case, the report recommended that he be relieved of his duties immediately and that his alleged unprofessional conduct be reported to the Engineering Council of Namibia.

The recommendation arose from his alleged handling of the Brumar contract, and several procurement processes.

The report accused Gaoseb of authorising advance payments, procuring materials without progress-payment certificates and buying a shipping container that was not included in the bill of quantities.

It also alleged that NAC maintenance employees were used to perform work allocated to Brumar.

The investigation further accused Gaoseb of artificially splitting procurement involving a low-bed trailer and an aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicle.

IT executive

The report also recommended disciplinary action against the executive responsible for information technology for what it described as reckless and negligent use of NAC funds.

Investigators questioned the direct procurement of Oracle services for approximately N$16 million, although an amount of N$8 million had allegedly been budgeted when four companies were invited to submit proposals.

It also described N$7.7 million paid to Onix Business Solutions for infrastructure upgrades as wasteful because NAC allegedly did not use the infrastructure and subsequently outsourced its data storage outside Namibia.

The report recommended that NAC consider hosting its data locally and use infrastructure installed at Hosea Kutako International Airport and Eros Airport for backups, business continuity, and disaster recovery.

Nekundi referred questions to the ministry’s executive director, Jonas Sheelongo, who in turn did not respond to the questions by the time of going to print.