City's outgoing councillors’ November travel bill nears N$2 million
Projections suggest that outgoing City of Windhoek councillors may have spent up to N$2 million on international trips in their final month in office, despite a directive prohibiting travel before the local and regional authority elections.
Minutes from the City of Windhoek management committee meeting, seen by Namibian Sun, show that one trip took councillors to Bogotá, Colombia, from 30 to 31 October to attend the World Cities Day event, at a projected cost of N$431 227.
Another trip, to Barcelona, Spain, for the 14th Smart City Expo World Congress from 4 to 6 November, was estimated to have cost N$668 359. The visit was not sponsored, meaning the council was expected to cover the full expense of its participants.
Travel to Mannheim and Berlin, Germany, from 14 to 16 November carried a projected cost of N$375 514, with the City of Mannheim covering return flights and accommodation. The final trip was to Nanjing, China, for the Global Mayors Dialogue from 19 to 21 November, estimated at N$437 227, with the host covering the mayor’s airfare, accommodation and meals.
Minister orders payback
Urban and rural development minister Sankwasa James Sankwasa confirmed that some councillors travelled despite the directive and said he had issued an order for the funds to be repaid before the councillors vacate office.
“They travelled because, according to them, they got permission from their corporate manager for legal services, who completely misinterpreted the law without doing any proper legal assessment," the minister told Namibian Sun on Monday.
"But I have already written a letter to them stating clearly that they must repay the money before they leave office,” he said.
“The mayor already received that letter. I issued the directive on Friday, the directive to refund the money. The travel directive they claim to rely on goes back to the time of then-minister Peya Mushelenga, when I was also serving in the ministry. This issue has been there for a long time," Sankwasa added.
According to Sankwasa, the policy and directive were clear during Mushelenga’s tenure. “It was even turned into a regulation. So they knew about it. Why choose to defy it now, after all these years in office? They have been there for six years, why now? After Mushelenga came minister Erastus Uutoni, and the directive still stood,” he explained.
Sankwasa said councillors have "been deliberately ignoring it because they were looking for money to use for campaign purposes. How does a reasonable person justify travelling to attend a conference to ‘learn’ new things when elections are just one month away? How do you implement what you’ve learned in that short time?”
‘Money-making’ trips
Sankwasa added that even cabinet ministers are banned from travel from August through October.
"No minister was allowed to travel outside Namibia. What are they going to learn there? And where will they apply that knowledge? They are leaving office; they can’t even pass it on to the next council. So clearly, this was just a money-making exercise, a way to fund campaign activities,” he said.
The minister added that government cannot tolerate such conduct. “The laws of the government must be respected. After all, every councillor took an oath before a magistrate to uphold the laws of the Republic. So which laws are they upholding now?”
‘Our own funds’
When reached for comment, Windhoek mayor Ndeshihafela Larandja confirmed receiving the directive from the minister but argued that it lacks any legal foundation.
“In a legal entity, when you talk about governance systems, those systems must comply with certain laws. But if something is just a directive based on emotions or political agendas, it becomes very difficult to simply follow one directive after another, very, very difficult. If we take the route of following directives blindly, we end up in the situation we are in now," the mayor said.
“We are a first-tier municipality, we are not appropriated by the government. Only when you are appropriated by the government can you say, ‘This is the government’s house; I must follow the directive of the line minister,’” she argued.
“Unfortunately, the minister in question is a fellow politician, not an administrator. When we talk about budget approval, one must ask: why should our budget be approved by the ministry when we are not funded by them? We raise our own funds through the services we provide to residents.”
Larandja claimed that "such directives aim to make the opposition-led council look bad. There have been many such attempts against the City of Windhoek. The City of Windhoek is an elected body in its own right. We operate by the book."
She added that City officials cannot "just comply with any directive that lacks a legal basis. The minister cannot simply decide to withhold or reduce someone’s salary because of personal dislike; there must be a legal provision for everything, and we stand by that principle.”
She further explained that international partnerships are key to improving service delivery. “The purpose of visiting other local authorities is to enhance service delivery to our people."
Projections misleading
She added that if Windhoek officials do not "reciprocate visits to our sister cities after they visit us, how do we continue to build these relationships and improve service delivery?"
The mayor also underlined that most trips are funded by other parties.
"The accommodation, meals, and air tickets are covered, especially for the mayor. All mayoral trips are by invitation, addressed to the Office of the Mayor. It’s then up to the council or management committee to assign a councillor to accompany the mayor. In most cases, the host countries sponsor the tickets and accommodation. The only thing the City provides is the daily allowance, which every official, even ministers and government employees, receives depending on the standard rates and whether the trip is sponsored or not.”
All sponsored trips
On the nearly N$2 million reflected in the management committee minutes, Larandja clarified that the amounts are projected, not actual spending.
“The financial advisors must always indicate required funds should there be no sponsorship. The real figure only becomes clear after expenditure, projections can be misleading."
She added: “What I have in front of me isn’t even close to that figure, not even N$20 000. That’s the truth. My trips, as mayor, were all sponsored. Only councillors who accompany mayors have to be covered locally, but the mayor’s trips are always sponsored."
Of the four trips listed to Colombia, Spain, Germany and China, Larandja said she attended those in Colombia, Germany and China, not Spain.
“Those records are in the books. Invitations are extended to me, but I must prioritise based on advice from the CEO and the external relations department, who determine which trips are most crucial. I do not just decide on my own,” she explained.
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Minutes from the City of Windhoek management committee meeting, seen by Namibian Sun, show that one trip took councillors to Bogotá, Colombia, from 30 to 31 October to attend the World Cities Day event, at a projected cost of N$431 227.
Another trip, to Barcelona, Spain, for the 14th Smart City Expo World Congress from 4 to 6 November, was estimated to have cost N$668 359. The visit was not sponsored, meaning the council was expected to cover the full expense of its participants.
Travel to Mannheim and Berlin, Germany, from 14 to 16 November carried a projected cost of N$375 514, with the City of Mannheim covering return flights and accommodation. The final trip was to Nanjing, China, for the Global Mayors Dialogue from 19 to 21 November, estimated at N$437 227, with the host covering the mayor’s airfare, accommodation and meals.
Minister orders payback
Urban and rural development minister Sankwasa James Sankwasa confirmed that some councillors travelled despite the directive and said he had issued an order for the funds to be repaid before the councillors vacate office.
“They travelled because, according to them, they got permission from their corporate manager for legal services, who completely misinterpreted the law without doing any proper legal assessment," the minister told Namibian Sun on Monday.
"But I have already written a letter to them stating clearly that they must repay the money before they leave office,” he said.
“The mayor already received that letter. I issued the directive on Friday, the directive to refund the money. The travel directive they claim to rely on goes back to the time of then-minister Peya Mushelenga, when I was also serving in the ministry. This issue has been there for a long time," Sankwasa added.
According to Sankwasa, the policy and directive were clear during Mushelenga’s tenure. “It was even turned into a regulation. So they knew about it. Why choose to defy it now, after all these years in office? They have been there for six years, why now? After Mushelenga came minister Erastus Uutoni, and the directive still stood,” he explained.
Sankwasa said councillors have "been deliberately ignoring it because they were looking for money to use for campaign purposes. How does a reasonable person justify travelling to attend a conference to ‘learn’ new things when elections are just one month away? How do you implement what you’ve learned in that short time?”
‘Money-making’ trips
Sankwasa added that even cabinet ministers are banned from travel from August through October.
"No minister was allowed to travel outside Namibia. What are they going to learn there? And where will they apply that knowledge? They are leaving office; they can’t even pass it on to the next council. So clearly, this was just a money-making exercise, a way to fund campaign activities,” he said.
The minister added that government cannot tolerate such conduct. “The laws of the government must be respected. After all, every councillor took an oath before a magistrate to uphold the laws of the Republic. So which laws are they upholding now?”
‘Our own funds’
When reached for comment, Windhoek mayor Ndeshihafela Larandja confirmed receiving the directive from the minister but argued that it lacks any legal foundation.
“In a legal entity, when you talk about governance systems, those systems must comply with certain laws. But if something is just a directive based on emotions or political agendas, it becomes very difficult to simply follow one directive after another, very, very difficult. If we take the route of following directives blindly, we end up in the situation we are in now," the mayor said.
“We are a first-tier municipality, we are not appropriated by the government. Only when you are appropriated by the government can you say, ‘This is the government’s house; I must follow the directive of the line minister,’” she argued.
“Unfortunately, the minister in question is a fellow politician, not an administrator. When we talk about budget approval, one must ask: why should our budget be approved by the ministry when we are not funded by them? We raise our own funds through the services we provide to residents.”
Larandja claimed that "such directives aim to make the opposition-led council look bad. There have been many such attempts against the City of Windhoek. The City of Windhoek is an elected body in its own right. We operate by the book."
She added that City officials cannot "just comply with any directive that lacks a legal basis. The minister cannot simply decide to withhold or reduce someone’s salary because of personal dislike; there must be a legal provision for everything, and we stand by that principle.”
She further explained that international partnerships are key to improving service delivery. “The purpose of visiting other local authorities is to enhance service delivery to our people."
Projections misleading
She added that if Windhoek officials do not "reciprocate visits to our sister cities after they visit us, how do we continue to build these relationships and improve service delivery?"
The mayor also underlined that most trips are funded by other parties.
"The accommodation, meals, and air tickets are covered, especially for the mayor. All mayoral trips are by invitation, addressed to the Office of the Mayor. It’s then up to the council or management committee to assign a councillor to accompany the mayor. In most cases, the host countries sponsor the tickets and accommodation. The only thing the City provides is the daily allowance, which every official, even ministers and government employees, receives depending on the standard rates and whether the trip is sponsored or not.”
All sponsored trips
On the nearly N$2 million reflected in the management committee minutes, Larandja clarified that the amounts are projected, not actual spending.
“The financial advisors must always indicate required funds should there be no sponsorship. The real figure only becomes clear after expenditure, projections can be misleading."
She added: “What I have in front of me isn’t even close to that figure, not even N$20 000. That’s the truth. My trips, as mayor, were all sponsored. Only councillors who accompany mayors have to be covered locally, but the mayor’s trips are always sponsored."
Of the four trips listed to Colombia, Spain, Germany and China, Larandja said she attended those in Colombia, Germany and China, not Spain.
“Those records are in the books. Invitations are extended to me, but I must prioritise based on advice from the CEO and the external relations department, who determine which trips are most crucial. I do not just decide on my own,” she explained.
[email protected]
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