AIDS group’s books raise eyebrows

AIDS group’s books raise eyebrows

“OUTRAGEOUS” salaries, coupled with poor management of resources, are said to be hindering the effectiveness of Lironga Eparu – Namibia’s biggest organisation of people living with HIV and AIDS.

While the organisation is allegedly not visible in many areas of Namibia, with members struggling to make ends meet, its top three officials allegedly rake in a cool N$80 000, combined, a month. The Namibian was unable to verify the amounts with Lironga Eparu’s Executive Director Emma Tuahepa, but sources said some HIV-positive mothers who are members of the organisation’s ‘Orange Baby Support Group’, are forced to share milk formula with their babies because of hunger, while the top three people earn N$37 000, N$25 000 and N$18 000 a month.The Namibian made extensive efforts this past week to confirm the amounts with the organisation and those concerned.Questions were also submitted in writing.In addition, consultants used by the organisation are reported to easily walk away with up to N$35 000 a session.A session could be anything between an hour and a day.Unhappy members and staff claim that Lironga Eparu members have yet to ratify the six-year-old organisation’s constitution and that the organisation has not yet registered as a welfare body with the Ministry of Health.Following funding from the Global Fund, Lironga Eparu was instructed to change its constitution to a member-driven one.The organisation is registered as a trust.The process of changing the constitution started last year but has yet to reach the members.Last year the organisation, for the first time, organised a conference for people living with HIV.Its final report has yet to see the light of day, despite around N$80 000 being spent on consultants.Rose Madi of African Events, the consultancy that arranged last year’s conference, confirmed that the report was “not finalised yet”.”It’s on hold for some reason, but nothing serious,” Madi told The Namibian.Sources said there was a dispute over who should pay for the printing of the report.Problems at Lironga Eparu have already reached the ears of the organisation’s donors.”Funding partners have already met to discuss the situation.The next step will be to meet Lironga.The state of the organisation is not healthy at the moment,” said one independent source.Donors are reportedly unhappy that the people who benefit the least from Lironga Eparu’s existence are the HIV infected members.”The salary issue is a bit of a dilemma for the organisation,” said one source.”In order to do well they need to pay well.The best way to judge is probably to look at the impact Lironga has on its members,” said the source.The Namibian attempted to get reaction from Tuahepa and the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees, Peter van Wyk, but both were unavailable.Albertus Kulobone, Programme Manager at Lironga Eparu, wrote back to The Namibian saying Tuahepa was out of town.The allegations have been neither denied nor confirmed.Lironga Eparu means ‘Learn to Survive’.The Namibian was unable to verify the amounts with Lironga Eparu’s Executive Director Emma Tuahepa, but sources said some HIV-positive mothers who are members of the organisation’s ‘Orange Baby Support Group’, are forced to share milk formula with their babies because of hunger, while the top three people earn N$37 000, N$25 000 and N$18 000 a month.The Namibian made extensive efforts this past week to confirm the amounts with the organisation and those concerned.Questions were also submitted in writing.In addition, consultants used by the organisation are reported to easily walk away with up to N$35 000 a session.A session could be anything between an hour and a day. Unhappy members and staff claim that Lironga Eparu members have yet to ratify the six-year-old organisation’s constitution and that the organisation has not yet registered as a welfare body with the Ministry of Health.Following funding from the Global Fund, Lironga Eparu was instructed to change its constitution to a member-driven one.The organisation is registered as a trust.The process of changing the constitution started last year but has yet to reach the members.Last year the organisation, for the first time, organised a conference for people living with HIV.Its final report has yet to see the light of day, despite around N$80 000 being spent on consultants.Rose Madi of African Events, the consultancy that arranged last year’s conference, confirmed that the report was “not finalised yet”.”It’s on hold for some reason, but nothing serious,” Madi told The Namibian.Sources said there was a dispute over who should pay for the printing of the report.Problems at Lironga Eparu have already reached the ears of the organisation’s donors.”Funding partners have already met to discuss the situation.The next step will be to meet Lironga.The state of the organisation is not healthy at the moment,” said one independent source.Donors are reportedly unhappy that the people who benefit the least from Lironga Eparu’s existence are the HIV infected members.”The salary issue is a bit of a dilemma for the organisation,” said one source.”In order to do well they need to pay well.The best way to judge is probably to look at the impact Lironga has on its members,” said the source.The Namibian attempted to get reaction from Tuahepa and the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees, Peter van Wyk, but both were unavailable.Albertus Kulobone, Programme Manager at Lironga Eparu, wrote back to The Namibian saying Tuahepa was out of town.The allegations have been neither denied nor confirmed.Lironga Eparu means ‘Learn to Survive’.

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