Chief Inspector on the receiving end

THE driver’s licence of a Mariental-based Chief Inspector in the Namibian Police was suspended for three months this week after the officer was found guilty of driving under the influence of liquor.

The suspension of his licence was part of the sentence that Magistrate Hosea Noabeb imposed on Chief Inspector Saltiel Kahamba (52) in the Mariental Regional Court on Tuesday. He found the officer guilty on charges of driving under the influence of liquor, negligent driving and failing to submit himself to the taking of a blood sample.Kahamba had denied the charges.He was charged after a vehicle he was driving was involved in a collision with another car at Aimablaagte, Mariental, during the early evening of August 31 2002.Kahamba was accused of driving on the wrong side of the road when an oncoming vehicle, in an attempt to prevent a crash, tried to swerve out of the way.Kahamba’s vehicle nevertheless collided with the other vehicle’s rear.The Chief Inspector drove away from the scene, but was later found by the Police and arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, according to evidence in the case.When a sergeant took him to hospital to have his blood drawn for an alcohol test, he refused to let them take his blood, the court heard in evidence.Kahamba’s explanation was that as the Sergeant was a junior officer, he did not have the authority to require him to submit to a blood test.That explanation failed to help him avoid conviction on the charges.Magistrate Noabeb sentenced Kahamba to a fine of N$4 000 or two years’ imprisonment for driving under the influence and for failing to allow a blood sample to be taken from him as well as a fine of N$600 or six months’ imprisonment for negligent driving.In addition, the three-month suspension of Kahamba’s driver’s licence is a mandatory step in terms of the Road Traffic and Transport Act the first time that someone is found guilty of driving under the influence.Kahamba handled his own defence.Deputy Prosecutor General Johnny Truter prosecuted.He found the officer guilty on charges of driving under the influence of liquor, negligent driving and failing to submit himself to the taking of a blood sample. Kahamba had denied the charges. He was charged after a vehicle he was driving was involved in a collision with another car at Aimablaagte, Mariental, during the early evening of August 31 2002. Kahamba was accused of driving on the wrong side of the road when an oncoming vehicle, in an attempt to prevent a crash, tried to swerve out of the way. Kahamba’s vehicle nevertheless collided with the other vehicle’s rear. The Chief Inspector drove away from the scene, but was later found by the Police and arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, according to evidence in the case. When a sergeant took him to hospital to have his blood drawn for an alcohol test, he refused to let them take his blood, the court heard in evidence. Kahamba’s explanation was that as the Sergeant was a junior officer, he did not have the authority to require him to submit to a blood test. That explanation failed to help him avoid conviction on the charges. Magistrate Noabeb sentenced Kahamba to a fine of N$4 000 or two years’ imprisonment for driving under the influence and for failing to allow a blood sample to be taken from him as well as a fine of N$600 or six months’ imprisonment for negligent driving. In addition, the three-month suspension of Kahamba’s driver’s licence is a mandatory step in terms of the Road Traffic and Transport Act the first time that someone is found guilty of driving under the influence. Kahamba handled his own defence. Deputy Prosecutor General Johnny Truter prosecuted.