Fishrot witness hires Congolese bodyguard
Stefansson determined to finish what he startedWith no guarantees made to him by the state over his personal protection as a witness, the Icelandic whistleblower says he will arrive in Namibia with his bodyguard of five years from DRC.JEMIMA BEUKES
WINDHOEK
Fishrot whistleblower Johannes Stefansson has reiterated that he will be available to testify in the corruption case, and may come with his Congolese bodyguard if the state does not provide protection for him.
“I leave my safety and protection in his hands as always, as has been the case for the past five years since 2016 when I left Samherji,” the Icelander told Namibian Sun yesterday from his home country, ahead of the pre-trial of the Fishrot accused today in the High Court.
“He was with me when I went to Namibia to report the Fishrot in August 2018 to protect me,” said the former fishing executive, who himself could be charged for facilitating briberies during his work in Namibia.
Stefansson will not be present at today’s pre-trial hearing, but said he would be available for the actual trial, whose date is likely to be announced today.
No immunity
Stefansson is perceived to have intimate knowledge of the bribery scandal that landed former ministers Sacky Shanghala and Bernard Esau in jail, along with five others.
There has been talk that Stefansson may become a State witness in exchange for immunity from prosecution, but he said no such agreement had been reached.
“I have no agreement of any kind so far and we have not gone into what will be my status, but I assume I’ll be a State witness.
“We will probably go into this very soon or when it’s clear when the main trial will be and how we resolve matters for me to be protected legally and physically but I will also bring my own security,” he said, emphasising that he wanted to finish what he started.
Stefansson was managing director of Icelandic company Samherji, which allegedly paid over N$150 million to the Namibian ministers and their cronies in return for fishing quotas, using state fishing company Fishcor.
Fishcor CEO at the time Mike Nghipunya and board chairman James Hatuikulipi are also in jail, and so are Esau’s son-in-law Tamson Hatuikulipi, James’s former colleague at Investec Ricardo Gustavo and Pius Mwatelulo, who worked for companies jointly owned by James and Shanghala.
No demands
Stefansson dismissed suggestions that he had demanded N$5 million, an army of bodyguards and immunity from prosecution as conditions for testifying in the Fishrot bribery trial.
“I have not asked for anything and it’s news to me. I also heard two days ago about something similar. Thank you for the info,” he said.
Director-general of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Paulus Noa yesterday said he was not aware of the allegations.
“Let me just treat that as rumours. Some of these rumours are interesting. It would not be something for my office to entertain, but even so, it would bring the credibility of the witness in question. To answer your question, I am not aware of this,” he said.
Prosecutor-general Martha Imalwa declined to comment on the matter.
The Fishrot seven were arrested between November 2019 and February 2020 in connection with the bribery scheme, and have been in jail since then.
They face several charges ranging from racketeering to fraud, money laundering, improperly using their office for personal gain, and contravening the country's Anti-Corruption Act.
In the last 18 months the accused made several bids in the Windhoek magistrate’s court to have their freedom restored, claiming the prosecution had no idea when they would conclude their investigations.
The accused also cited infringement of their rights and deteriorating personal, family and financial situations.
[email protected]
WINDHOEK
Fishrot whistleblower Johannes Stefansson has reiterated that he will be available to testify in the corruption case, and may come with his Congolese bodyguard if the state does not provide protection for him.
“I leave my safety and protection in his hands as always, as has been the case for the past five years since 2016 when I left Samherji,” the Icelander told Namibian Sun yesterday from his home country, ahead of the pre-trial of the Fishrot accused today in the High Court.
“He was with me when I went to Namibia to report the Fishrot in August 2018 to protect me,” said the former fishing executive, who himself could be charged for facilitating briberies during his work in Namibia.
Stefansson will not be present at today’s pre-trial hearing, but said he would be available for the actual trial, whose date is likely to be announced today.
No immunity
Stefansson is perceived to have intimate knowledge of the bribery scandal that landed former ministers Sacky Shanghala and Bernard Esau in jail, along with five others.
There has been talk that Stefansson may become a State witness in exchange for immunity from prosecution, but he said no such agreement had been reached.
“I have no agreement of any kind so far and we have not gone into what will be my status, but I assume I’ll be a State witness.
“We will probably go into this very soon or when it’s clear when the main trial will be and how we resolve matters for me to be protected legally and physically but I will also bring my own security,” he said, emphasising that he wanted to finish what he started.
Stefansson was managing director of Icelandic company Samherji, which allegedly paid over N$150 million to the Namibian ministers and their cronies in return for fishing quotas, using state fishing company Fishcor.
Fishcor CEO at the time Mike Nghipunya and board chairman James Hatuikulipi are also in jail, and so are Esau’s son-in-law Tamson Hatuikulipi, James’s former colleague at Investec Ricardo Gustavo and Pius Mwatelulo, who worked for companies jointly owned by James and Shanghala.
No demands
Stefansson dismissed suggestions that he had demanded N$5 million, an army of bodyguards and immunity from prosecution as conditions for testifying in the Fishrot bribery trial.
“I have not asked for anything and it’s news to me. I also heard two days ago about something similar. Thank you for the info,” he said.
Director-general of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Paulus Noa yesterday said he was not aware of the allegations.
“Let me just treat that as rumours. Some of these rumours are interesting. It would not be something for my office to entertain, but even so, it would bring the credibility of the witness in question. To answer your question, I am not aware of this,” he said.
Prosecutor-general Martha Imalwa declined to comment on the matter.
The Fishrot seven were arrested between November 2019 and February 2020 in connection with the bribery scheme, and have been in jail since then.
They face several charges ranging from racketeering to fraud, money laundering, improperly using their office for personal gain, and contravening the country's Anti-Corruption Act.
In the last 18 months the accused made several bids in the Windhoek magistrate’s court to have their freedom restored, claiming the prosecution had no idea when they would conclude their investigations.
The accused also cited infringement of their rights and deteriorating personal, family and financial situations.
[email protected]
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