ACC criticised for targeting small cases

Zambezi regional development activists have accused the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) of misaligning its priorities by chasing smaller cases, such as the traffic officer who was recently arrested for allegedly stealing N$750 in fine money.

Precious Kasika, the officer in question, was granted bail of N$8 000 after allegedly taking N$750 from the N$1 500 an offender had paid in March 2020 and changing the receipt book’s contents.

Kongola-based community activist Glen Shebo questions the ACC’s priorities, labelling its actions as unfair and lacking justice.

“They only target vulnerable people, leaving out those who are implicated in corruption cases worth millions. If you look at the bail that the traffic officer got for N$750 and compare it to the bail of N$50 000 that chief regional officer Regina Ndopu-Lubinda and senior managers got for a N$4.7-million corruption-related case, you will see the unfairness,” he says.

He urges the anti-graft institution to shift its focus to larger cases such as the matter involving the Katima Mulilo Town Council exchanging land for vehicles and computer equipment without ministerial approval.

“That exchange is also using the office for personal gratification because assets were acquired,” Shebo says.

Zambezi Development Association chairperson Blessing Maanda highlights the ACC’s pursuit of Kasika as a waste of resources as she had already been charged and dismissed at work.

“She is now being penalised twice. The government is also losing funds as ACC officials travel, investigate, and get judgment in court over the N$750 case. Such cases should just be given a recovery fine and penalty to recover extra money for the government,” he says.

Maanda further urges the ACC to investigate how N$100 million was spent in the recovery of the SME Bank’s N$130 million.

Katima Mulilo-based community activist Dobson Kwala also accuses the ACC of being selective in their fight against corruption cases and called on the ACC to take action against everyone.

He expresses disappointment in government institutions’ lack of action against staff committing corrupt practices.

“It’s interesting to see ACC take action against offenders, but it’s disappointing that government institutions and non-governmental organisations don’t take action against their staff,” he says.

ACC spokesperson Josefina Nghituwamata, in response, says the public should refrain from evaluating corruption cases solely on the financial loss involved.

She adds that they do not arrest people based on the money’s value but rather on the crime committed.

“Whether the value in question was N$20 or significantly more, the principle remains the same: corruption, in any form or scale, is unacceptable. When someone in a position of trust abuses their access and authority, it undermines the integrity of our institutions and erodes public confidence. Individuals entrusted with public responsibilities must be held to account, regardless of the size of the financial misconduct,” she says.

Nghituwamata argues that if the traffic officer had not been caught, she would have carried out more similar acts undetected.

“We remain steadfast in our mandate to combat corruption in all its forms and appreciate the continued support of everyone, including the media, in combating corruption in Namibia,” she says.

She says on Wednesday they arrested a Zambezi Regional Council employee and two other accomplices for fraud involving a N$4.1-million drought relief food supply scheme.

She says the council staff member allegedly conspired with the two private individuals to defraud the government by disbursing over N$4 million for drought relief supplies that were never delivered.

The suspects are expected to appear in the Katima Mulilo Magistrate’s Court on Friday.

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