’48 hours and I’ll pay back the N$30m’

JUST give Lazarus Kandara another 48 hours, and he will be able to return the N$30 million that the Social Security Commission invested through his company, Avid Investment Corporation, in late January, the High Court inquiry into the investment was told yesterday.

Kandara, the creator and Chief Executive Officer of Avid, which has been placed in provisional liquidation for being unable to repay the N$30 million and promised proceeds on the investment to the SSC, told Acting Judge Raymond Heathcote that financial trader Alan Rosenberg, who had received at least N$20 million of the SSC’s money, had undertaken that he would return N$5 million of this money by yesterday. That money of the SSC was safe, and would be returned, Kandara told the court, while stating that he had also instructed Rosenberg to transfer N$32 million directly to the SSC’s account.By the time that he testified yesterday, Kandara said he needed only another 48 hours to finalise that transfer of the SSC’s money back to its rightful owner.He had learned a lot in the process of trying to retrieve the SSC’s money, and he could assure the court that there was no scam in the sort of financial trading that was supposed to realise a sufficient return to pay back the SSC’s money, Kandara claimed – to sounds of tongue-clicking coming from an apparently sceptical mass of people who were crammed into the courtroom as he made this statement.His intention is to return the money of the SSC, and then to show the community that this sort of trade – in which he had seen a two-week investment realising a return as high as 280 per cent – was something that worked and through which Namibia could be built up, Kandara claimed.His statements of the promised return of the SSC’s money were met with derision by the SSC’s leading counsel, Andrew Corbett, who told the court that this same promise had been made by Rosenberg for the past three months already.”It’s utter rubbish,” Corbett scoffed.”The 48 hours are three months and 48 hours.What he keeps telling us is the same old rubbish, based on the same fraudulent documents.We believe this has been a scam from the beginning,” Corbett declared.”It’s pie in the sky.When the pie comes down to earth we’ll appreciate it.”According to Kan­dara’s explanation to the court, Rosenberg was involved in “a big trade” from where he was set to receive “a huge amount of money” this week, and it was from these funds, although it was not actually money that was due to Avid, that the SSC would be repaid N$32 million.The Swapo-owned Kalahari Holdings, which has also invested money through Avid, would likewise be receiving its N$7 million plus interest earnings of N$400 000 back by the end of this week, Kandara promised.Up to the point where Kandara started giving evidence in the inquiry, the version of events with regard to the major movements of the SSC’s money after N$30 million had been transferred to Avid on January 26, was that N$29,5 million of this money was transferred to another asset management company in Windhoek, Namangol Investments, two days later, and that N$20 million was transferred from there to Rosenberg that same day.From Rosenberg, N$14,89 million was again transferred to an account of the Chief Executive Officer of Namangol Investments, Nico Josea, on March 14.Josea had at first claimed that this was not money that was due to Avid or the SSC, then he indicated to the court last week that this money had indeed emanated from the SSC/Avid investment, and yesterday he appeared to indicate once again that it was his contention that this money was due to Namangol Investments rather than Avid or the SSC.According to Kandara, though, Rosenberg told him that this money had been part of the N$20 million that Namangol Investments had initially transferred to him to be invested.The money was returned to Josea when the investment transaction that the N$20 million had been earmarked for, did not proceed as planned, the court was told.That money of the SSC was safe, and would be returned, Kandara told the court, while stating that he had also instructed Rosenberg to transfer N$32 million directly to the SSC’s account.By the time that he testified yesterday, Kandara said he needed only another 48 hours to finalise that transfer of the SSC’s money back to its rightful owner.He had learned a lot in the process of trying to retrieve the SSC’s money, and he could assure the court that there was no scam in the sort of financial trading that was supposed to realise a sufficient return to pay back the SSC’s money, Kandara claimed – to sounds of tongue-clicking coming from an apparently sceptical mass of people who were crammed into the courtroom as he made this statement.His intention is to return the money of the SSC, and then to show the community that this sort of trade – in which he had seen a two-week investment realising a return as high as 280 per cent – was something that worked and through which Namibia could be built up, Kandara claimed.His statements of the promised return of the SSC’s money were met with derision by the SSC’s leading counsel, Andrew Corbett, who told the court that this same promise had been made by Rosenberg for the past three months already.”It’s utter rubbish,” Corbett scoffed.”The 48 hours are three months and 48 hours.What he keeps telling us is the same old rubbish, based on the same fraudulent documents.We believe this has been a scam from the beginning,” Corbett declared.”It’s pie in the sky.When the pie comes down to earth we’ll appreciate it.”According to Kan­dara’s explanation to the court, Rosenberg was involved in “a big trade” from where he was set to receive “a huge amount of money” this week, and it was from these funds, although it was not actually money that was due to Avid, that the SSC would be repaid N$32 million.The Swapo-owned Kalahari Holdings, which has also invested money through Avid, would likewise be receiving its N$7 million plus interest earnings of N$400 000 back by the end of this week, Kandara promised.Up to the point where Kandara started giving evidence in the inquiry, the version of events with regard to the major movements of the SSC’s money after N$30 million had been transferred to Avid on January 26, was that N$29,5 million of this money was transferred to another asset management company in Windhoek, Namangol Investments, two days later, and that N$20 million was transferred from there to Rosenberg that same day.From Rosenberg, N$14,89 million was again transferred to an account of the Chief Executive Officer of Namangol Investments, Nico Josea, on March 14.Josea had at first claimed that this was not money that was due to Avid or the SSC, then he indicated to the court last week that this money had indeed emanated from the SSC/Avid investment, and yesterday he appeared to indicate once again that it was his contention that this money was due to Namangol Investments rather than Avid or the SSC.According to Kandara, though, Rosenberg told him that this money had been part of the N$20 million that Namangol Investments had initially transferred to him to be invested.The money was returned to Josea when the investment transaction that the N$20 million had been earmarked for, did not proceed as planned, the court was told.