NAC’s N$40m truck purchase without tender draws fire

The Namibia Airports Company (NAC) has defended its direct procurement of two airport firefighting trucks worth about N$40 million, saying the purchases were necessary to meet operational needs and standardise its emergency response fleet.

The trucks, procured for Hosea Kutako International Airport and Walvis Bay International Airport, were each valued at about N$19 million.

Documents seen by Namibian Sun show both vehicles were acquired through direct procurement.

This allows public entities to procure goods or services without competitive bidding under specific circumstances during the 2021/22 and 2023/24 financial years.

The transactions have attracted scrutiny after internal documents questioned whether they should have been subjected to additional procurement oversight and whether direct procurement was adequately justified.

The documents also identify NAC executive for infrastructure development and asset care (IDAC), Ralph !Gaoseb, as having played a role in initiating the procurement.

An internal document alleges the purchases amounted to "artificial splitting" of a larger procurement and argues they should have been treated as a single acquisition because their combined value exceeded NAC's procurement threshold, requiring additional oversight.

No request submitted

Head of the Procurement Policy Unit (PPU) in the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises, Phineas Nsundano, told Namibian Sun: “The Procurement Policy Unit has no record of any request submitted by the Namibia Airports Company seeking approval for the procurement of firefighting trucks for Hosea Kutako International Airport or Walvis Bay Airport during the 2021/22 or 2023/24 financial years".

He stressed, however, that the PPU does not have a mandate to approve or reject procurement transactions undertaken by public entities.

According to Nsundano, NAC is classified as a Category 1 public entity under the public procurement regulations, with a procurement threshold of N$25 million for goods.

He said procurement exceeding that threshold must be referred to the Central Procurement Board of Namibia (CPBN) unless the finance minister grants an exemption.

“Any procurement of goods exceeding N$25 million must be referred to the Central Procurement Board of Namibia (CPBN) for handling, unless an exemption has been granted by the Minister of Finance in accordance with section 4(2) of the Public Procurement Act, 2015."

Nsundano said there is no record showing the NAC applied for or was granted an exemption.

He added that direct procurement remains lawful provided the conditions and justifications contained in Section 36 of the Public Procurement Act are satisfied.

NAC defends decision

NAC chief executive officer Bisey /Uirab confirmed the company used direct procurement, citing technical and operational considerations.

According to /Uirab, NAC adopted a strategic decision to standardise its Airport Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) fleet on the Rosenbauer Panther platform after experiencing reliability problems with other manufacturers.

“NAC's experience with other ARFF vehicle brands has been less satisfactory over the years, with recurring breakdowns not observed in Rosenbauer units operating under the same conditions," /Uirab said.

He said the purchases were driven by operational requirements and supplier availability rather than an attempt to avoid procurement rules.

Rosenbauer manufactures only a limited number of right-hand-drive Panther units each year, with the vehicles allocated globally on a first-come, first-served basis, /Uirab said.

“The transactions therefore reflected supplier availability and operational needs rather than an attempt to circumvent procurement thresholds or approval requirements," he told Namibian Sun.

Asked about !Gaoseb's role, /Uirab rejected suggestions that responsibility rested with a single executive.

He said the decision to standardise on Rosenbauer vehicles and pursue direct procurement was taken jointly by the airport operations department and the infrastructure development and asset care department.

“The two departments have worked collectively on how best to provide the service," he said.

"The user department, which is the airport operations department, and the supporting department, which is the IDAC responsible for the maintenance of the vehicles.

“So, I find it inappropriate that the decision to follow the direct procurement route should be apportioned to one single individual,” /Uirab stressed.