Spending spree at Walvis Bay
Transactions totalling hundreds of thousands of dollars have been made with two credit cards issued to Walvis Bay town councillors.
JEMIMA BEUKES
Senior Walvis Bay officials have been caught with their hands in the proverbial cookie jar as documents show irregular use of the town council’s credit card, including a cash withdrawal of N$86 220 by Ngdishoshili Nghilumbwa.
In a letter dated 4 October 2018 the council’s financial manager, Frans Gonteb, alerted the CEO, Muronga Haingura, to cash withdrawals with the council’s credit cards.
Gonteb informed Haingura that he had requested detailed transaction statements from the bank for the period December 2015 to September 2018.
He added that the two cards in question had been issued to the mayor and the chairperson of the management committee.
Simson Nghilumbwa is the chairperson of the management committee while Immanuel Wilfred is the mayor of Walvis Bay.
In his letter Gonteb pointed out that the bank statement for the period December 2015 to September 2018 revealed that Wilfred had made speed-point payments to the tune of N$152 533 while Tobias Nambala had made speed-point payments of N$30 486.
Ngdishoshili Nghilumbwa made a cash withdrawal of N$86 220 and a speed-point payment of N$5 860.
When contacted for comment yesterday Haingura pleaded ignorance and said he had not received this information.
He did say, however, that he was aware of other credit-card irregularities reported late last year.
“I am not in the office now, can you forward the information to our PRO please? I am not aware of what you are specifically referring to. I am aware of the other incidents that were reported by New Era newspaper,” he said.
Wilfred wanted to know where Namibian Sun had got the documents and asked whether it was indeed his name that appeared in the documents.
“Go ask the CEO of the Walvis Bay, Mr Haingura, he is the one who is running the administration of this town. Go directly to him and ask him those questions,” he said.
When asked whether he was aware of the transactions and whether he had indeed used the council credit card to make payments, he asked: “To whom was the council credit card allocated?”
Another document shows that Wilfred used the council credit card assigned to him to buy a cellphone for N$12 707 while he was attending the 32nd Trade Expo in 2017.
According to bank statements this cellphone was bought at a duty-free shop in Dubai.
In a letter to Gonteb dated 7 November, Wilfred asked that this money be deducted from his salary in two instalments.
However it appears from a bold inscription on the letter that this money was not deducted.
New Era newspaper reported in October that an ongoing investigation of credit-card abuse at the Walvis Bay council had unearthed various irregularities and resulted in the suspension of councillor Simson Nghilumbwa.
Lies
Affirmative Repositioning movement (AR) activist Irvin Summers said Haingura was lying and must do the honourable thing and resign.
Another AR activist, Kasie Shikongo, said everyone in the municipality was aware of the irregularities.
“I was in the council meeting when they suspended councillor Nghilumbwa because of this issue. The mayor chaired the meeting where this took place. If they are denying it then they must step down,” he said.
Another Walvis Bay AR leader, Andre Eugene Gunther von Broen, said they would approach the courts if the councillors were not brought to book.
Senior Walvis Bay officials have been caught with their hands in the proverbial cookie jar as documents show irregular use of the town council’s credit card, including a cash withdrawal of N$86 220 by Ngdishoshili Nghilumbwa.
In a letter dated 4 October 2018 the council’s financial manager, Frans Gonteb, alerted the CEO, Muronga Haingura, to cash withdrawals with the council’s credit cards.
Gonteb informed Haingura that he had requested detailed transaction statements from the bank for the period December 2015 to September 2018.
He added that the two cards in question had been issued to the mayor and the chairperson of the management committee.
Simson Nghilumbwa is the chairperson of the management committee while Immanuel Wilfred is the mayor of Walvis Bay.
In his letter Gonteb pointed out that the bank statement for the period December 2015 to September 2018 revealed that Wilfred had made speed-point payments to the tune of N$152 533 while Tobias Nambala had made speed-point payments of N$30 486.
Ngdishoshili Nghilumbwa made a cash withdrawal of N$86 220 and a speed-point payment of N$5 860.
When contacted for comment yesterday Haingura pleaded ignorance and said he had not received this information.
He did say, however, that he was aware of other credit-card irregularities reported late last year.
“I am not in the office now, can you forward the information to our PRO please? I am not aware of what you are specifically referring to. I am aware of the other incidents that were reported by New Era newspaper,” he said.
Wilfred wanted to know where Namibian Sun had got the documents and asked whether it was indeed his name that appeared in the documents.
“Go ask the CEO of the Walvis Bay, Mr Haingura, he is the one who is running the administration of this town. Go directly to him and ask him those questions,” he said.
When asked whether he was aware of the transactions and whether he had indeed used the council credit card to make payments, he asked: “To whom was the council credit card allocated?”
Another document shows that Wilfred used the council credit card assigned to him to buy a cellphone for N$12 707 while he was attending the 32nd Trade Expo in 2017.
According to bank statements this cellphone was bought at a duty-free shop in Dubai.
In a letter to Gonteb dated 7 November, Wilfred asked that this money be deducted from his salary in two instalments.
However it appears from a bold inscription on the letter that this money was not deducted.
New Era newspaper reported in October that an ongoing investigation of credit-card abuse at the Walvis Bay council had unearthed various irregularities and resulted in the suspension of councillor Simson Nghilumbwa.
Lies
Affirmative Repositioning movement (AR) activist Irvin Summers said Haingura was lying and must do the honourable thing and resign.
Another AR activist, Kasie Shikongo, said everyone in the municipality was aware of the irregularities.
“I was in the council meeting when they suspended councillor Nghilumbwa because of this issue. The mayor chaired the meeting where this took place. If they are denying it then they must step down,” he said.
Another Walvis Bay AR leader, Andre Eugene Gunther von Broen, said they would approach the courts if the councillors were not brought to book.
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