Dissolve NSFAF's board
Much has been written about the never-ending infighting at the beleaguered Namibia Students Financial Assistance Fund (NSFAF) amid reports of corruption. This institution continues to hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons and there appears to be no end in sight to the many problems befalling it. One of the key objectives of a company's board is to ensure sustainable direction whilst meeting the interests of its shareholders and stakeholders.
The management and board should at all times embrace good governance and there must be proper measures to provide good checks and balances. However, the infighting at NSFAF tells a different story. For many months the management and a divided board have been implicated in a number of irregularities.
There is a bitter power struggle that has been brewing for months at this important institution and at one point higher education, training and innovation minister Itah Kandjii-Murangi had to be roped in to help find a lasting solution. In 2015 there were reports that NSFAF board members were paid N$2.2 million in sitting fees, while there were allegations that N$120 000 was also paid to board chairperson Patty Karuaihe-Martin, for a trip to Cuba.
Many other allegations involving the under-fire CEO Hilya Nghiwete have also made headlines, with the latest reported this week in The Namibian. There is clearly a breakdown in trust, with the majority of board members not willing to work with Nghiwete. Calls for an inquiry into board members and the management also appeared to have fallen on deaf ears. It is further regrettable that government has failed to invoke its authority in mending this failed relationship.
Those in the upper echelons have allowed the NSFAF circus to continue unabated even though it appears cabinet has approved a new board to take over the reins.
It is high time leaders act decisively on under-performing state-owned enterprises instead of allowing the situation to spiral out of control. At the end of the day it is the poor staff and taxpayers who are faced with the brunt of the goings-on at parastatals such as NSFAF.
The management and board should at all times embrace good governance and there must be proper measures to provide good checks and balances. However, the infighting at NSFAF tells a different story. For many months the management and a divided board have been implicated in a number of irregularities.
There is a bitter power struggle that has been brewing for months at this important institution and at one point higher education, training and innovation minister Itah Kandjii-Murangi had to be roped in to help find a lasting solution. In 2015 there were reports that NSFAF board members were paid N$2.2 million in sitting fees, while there were allegations that N$120 000 was also paid to board chairperson Patty Karuaihe-Martin, for a trip to Cuba.
Many other allegations involving the under-fire CEO Hilya Nghiwete have also made headlines, with the latest reported this week in The Namibian. There is clearly a breakdown in trust, with the majority of board members not willing to work with Nghiwete. Calls for an inquiry into board members and the management also appeared to have fallen on deaf ears. It is further regrettable that government has failed to invoke its authority in mending this failed relationship.
Those in the upper echelons have allowed the NSFAF circus to continue unabated even though it appears cabinet has approved a new board to take over the reins.
It is high time leaders act decisively on under-performing state-owned enterprises instead of allowing the situation to spiral out of control. At the end of the day it is the poor staff and taxpayers who are faced with the brunt of the goings-on at parastatals such as NSFAF.
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Namibian Sun
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