Govt failed Air Namibia: Kavekotora
MATHIAS HAUFIKU
Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) president Mike Kavekotora says the government must take the blame for the 660 jobs that will be lost when Air Namibia is liquidated.
Speaking during Namibian Sun’s ‘Evening Review’ show on Tuesday, Kavekotora said he had on numerous occasions approached the government - specifically public enterprise minister Leon Jooste - about the airline’s poor accountability track record but his efforts yielded no results.
Kavekotora said he even went as far as going to Jooste’s office to discuss the matter.
The former National Assembly public accounts committee chairman said the committee had in the past summoned the top management of the airline to appear before it.
Ignored
The RDP lawmaker said the committee made recommendations that were discussed and approved in parliament. The recommendations ended up collecting dust.
“The airline has been a going concern for very long but government turned a blind eye instead of devising remedial actions. Holding on to something that is not working is also costly to the nation.
“We pumped in billions over the years without assessing the return on investment. If something does not work, especially in business, you either maximise your profit or minimise your losses,” he said.
Kavekotora said he told Jooste that the decision to allow the airline to operate without producing financials was contrary to the law.
He also indicated that the decision to allow bigger airlines into Namibian airspace was a mistake.
“At the time Air Namibia was still making losses but it was an asset we could sell. I told minister Jooste to consider the status of our airline in the form of selling it off or finding a strategic partner but this was not done,” he said.
“Almost two weeks ago I was saying we are at a stage of liquidation until I saw a proposal from a Turkish airline to our government that changed my mind because it was clear that there is still interest in the airline. Clearly government did not do a thorough job before taking the decision.”
Kavekotora also expressed concern about rumours that the bid to liquidate Air Namibia was meant to create room for politically connected individuals to step in through a private airline.
“The culture of Swapo is that of hiding everything. When I raised the issue of the proposal from the Turkish airline, the deputy prime minister [Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah] was more worried about how the letter had leaked instead of the contents thereof. We must do things transparently,” he said.
Speaking during Namibian Sun’s ‘Evening Review’ show on Tuesday, Kavekotora said he had on numerous occasions approached the government - specifically public enterprise minister Leon Jooste - about the airline’s poor accountability track record but his efforts yielded no results.
Kavekotora said he even went as far as going to Jooste’s office to discuss the matter.
The former National Assembly public accounts committee chairman said the committee had in the past summoned the top management of the airline to appear before it.
Ignored
The RDP lawmaker said the committee made recommendations that were discussed and approved in parliament. The recommendations ended up collecting dust.
“The airline has been a going concern for very long but government turned a blind eye instead of devising remedial actions. Holding on to something that is not working is also costly to the nation.
“We pumped in billions over the years without assessing the return on investment. If something does not work, especially in business, you either maximise your profit or minimise your losses,” he said.
Kavekotora said he told Jooste that the decision to allow the airline to operate without producing financials was contrary to the law.
He also indicated that the decision to allow bigger airlines into Namibian airspace was a mistake.
“At the time Air Namibia was still making losses but it was an asset we could sell. I told minister Jooste to consider the status of our airline in the form of selling it off or finding a strategic partner but this was not done,” he said.
“Almost two weeks ago I was saying we are at a stage of liquidation until I saw a proposal from a Turkish airline to our government that changed my mind because it was clear that there is still interest in the airline. Clearly government did not do a thorough job before taking the decision.”
Kavekotora also expressed concern about rumours that the bid to liquidate Air Namibia was meant to create room for politically connected individuals to step in through a private airline.
“The culture of Swapo is that of hiding everything. When I raised the issue of the proposal from the Turkish airline, the deputy prime minister [Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah] was more worried about how the letter had leaked instead of the contents thereof. We must do things transparently,” he said.
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