Esau eyes parliament comeback

Former Cabinet minister Bernhardt Esau says he still has hopes of returning to parliament in future, despite the corruption cloud that hangs over his head.

The former fisheries minister made these remarks earlier this week when he testified during his bail application in the Windhoek High Court, where he also denied bribery claims levelled against him, telling High Court judge David Munsu that he does not “touch things that do not belong to me".

During his testimony, the trade unionist-cum-politician expressed his hope of becoming a member of parliament again.

"I may go back to parliament," he said.

Vulnerable at the top

In a bid to distance himself from his co-accused, Esau told the court he met some of them for the first time in prison after their arrests for their alleged complicity in the corruption case.

Esau was cross-examined by public prosecutor Cliff Lutibezi on claims that he took bribes, which he denied.

Lutibezi focused on a black cellphone, which reportedly also featured in an Al Jazeera documentary exposé of the Fishrot corruption scandal, for the first hour of Esau's bail application.

Esau told judge Munsu that it is against his moral and ethical values to take things that do not belong to him.

"When you get into high positions, people try to bribe you. I had to play the game," he testified during cross-examination in response to questions about the cellphone that the State alleges he accepted as a bribe.

Version of events

Esau's lawyer, Florian Beukes, objected and said the iPhone is not relevant to the court proceedings, given that Esau has not been charged in relation to it.

However, Munsu allowed the questioning to proceed.

Esau testified that someone who identified themselves as an investor from Hong Kong gave him this cellphone as a gift. He explained that he brought the device back to Namibia and left it in his study before returning it.

"I returned it because I already had a work and a personal cellphone," Esau claimed.

He testified that he took the cellphone out of courtesy as well as for safety and security reasons.

He admitted making enquiries with the investor about iPhone-model phones that can take two SIM cards, but claimed he never explicitly asked for one.

"I said it's inconvenient to have a work phone and a personal cellphone," he testified. Furthermore, he said he did not declare that cellphone as an asset to parliament because it did not belong to him.