Controversial catering contract extended

THE Office of the Attorney General has recommended that a multi-million-dollar school hostel catering contract, held since 2003 by Independence Caterers, be extended until March 2008 to allow for a “tender regime review”, The Namibian has established.

A letter to this effect, signed by Attorney General Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana, was sent to the Ministry of Education early last month, various officials confirmed. It could not be immediately established if Tender Board exemption had already been applied for or granted (as required by law).No reply could be obtained from the Tender Board or the Ministry of Finance.It is however the second time that Tender A9-11: 2003-2006 will have been extended since Cabinet ordered a formal, inter-ministerial investigation in mid-January last year after The Namibian exposed a raft of irregularities in the hostel and hospital catering trade.Independence Caterers, via its CAN syndicate of companies, controls most of the State’s catering contracts for hostels, hospitals and vocational training centres.The company was accused of violating contractual quality specifications by supplying sub-standard meat and milk products to hostel containing excessive amounts of salt-based food additives.RECIME REVIEW Internal company correspondence seen by this newspaper warned of the risk that a diet excessively high in salt posed to the health of developing children.Milk and meat make up about 60 per cent of the cost of any catering contract, industry, experts say.At the time, Independence claimed the meat products mentioned in company documents referred to ongoing experimental products not given to children.They shut down their Otjiwarongo meat plant shortly afterwards.Sackey Shanghala of the Office of the Attorney General, responsible for drafting the final report, denied that his investigation amounted to a whitewash and had ignored potential tendering irregularities.Shanghala said he was restricted by the investigation’s terms of reference.It was not immediately clear how these were drawn up.Cabinet released a statement on the investigation late last year that amounted to little more than a slap on the wrist for the catering contractor: Independence Caterers had to replace a “sub-standard” milk powder, but no proof of excessive salt in the meat could be found, a Cabinet statement of November 16 said.Cabinet also noted that hostel infrastructure was in a very poor condition and in urgent need of upgrading.It also noted that the Ministry of Education was to forward Independence’s catering contract to the Office of the Attorney General “…for advice on how to address the weaknesses.[..]”, the statement said further.Shanghala, who said he had travelled “…all over the country” to test the original allegations contained in the newspaper article, admitted that he found that the so-called ‘Nam-Mix’ blend of powdered milk supplied by Independence Caterers had no nutritional value.The original Cabinet statement said: “The milk-powder blend was also found to be of low nutritional value and contrary to specifications,” adding that the company was ordered to replace it with a better quality product.The explanation to the apparent contradiction between “low” and “no”, Shanghala suggested, should be obtained at Ministerial level.So far, efforts to do this have been unsuccessful.He also denied that the latest extension of the contract amounted to Independence being rewarded by being given another year without having to go to tender.In a lengthy interview, Shanghala defended his recommendations as necessary to “…institute a total regime review” of the State’s catering needs.”My investigation …[showed] … a total failure of management systems” that allowed for abuses to happen, he said.A similar high-level investigation in 2001-2002 made similar findings and recommendations, which proved to be impossible to fully implement, sources familiar with that investigation said.Gerard Enssle of the Ministry’s Hostel Inspectorate this month angrily rejected allegations that his inspectors had failed the children by not ensuring that caterers stuck to the terms of their contracts.Enssle, who formed part of the technical investigation, also rejected allegations that initial attempts last year to collect meat samples had to be rejected for failing to adhere to scientific methods.”That’s not true, I still have some of those samples here [at the Ministry],” he said, but then refused to discuss the subject further.SECRET REPORT The Inspectorate of Hostels also failed to implement a system of regular, independent testing of food supplied to hostels as had been agreed to with other players in the industry, including the City of Windhoek’s health officials.Despite an official undertaking to make the final report public, its contents still remain a tightly guarded secret: only a limited number of copies of the report were made, with each recipient’s name printed large across every page to prevent any uncontrolled copying.The company’s former MD Ed Davies, who resigned shortly after the story broke, has denied all previous allegations against them.Independence Caterers’ Chairman Aaron Mushimba, in his personal capacity, as well as Outjo-based sub-contractor, Welwitschia Caterers CC, have launched a legal claim for defamation against The Namibian and this reporter as result of the original expose and subsequent articles.The claim is opposed.* John Grobler is a freelance journalist; 081 240 1587It could not be immediately established if Tender Board exemption had already been applied for or granted (as required by law).No reply could be obtained from the Tender Board or the Ministry of Finance. It is however the second time that Tender A9-11: 2003-2006 will have been extended since Cabinet ordered a formal, inter-ministerial investigation in mid-January last year after The Namibian exposed a raft of irregularities in the hostel and hospital catering trade.Independence Caterers, via its CAN syndicate of companies, controls most of the State’s catering contracts for hostels, hospitals and vocational training centres.The company was accused of violating contractual quality specifications by supplying sub-standard meat and milk products to hostel containing excessive amounts of salt-based food additives. RECIME REVIEW Internal company correspondence seen by this newspaper warned of the risk that a diet excessively high in salt posed to the health of developing children.Milk and meat make up about 60 per cent of the cost of any catering contract, industry, experts say.At the time, Independence claimed the meat products mentioned in company documents referred to ongoing experimental products not given to children.They shut down their Otjiwarongo meat plant shortly afterwards.Sackey Shanghala of the Office of the Attorney General, responsible for drafting the final report, denied that his investigation amounted to a whitewash and had ignored potential tendering irregularities.Shanghala said he was restricted by the investigation’s terms of reference.It was not immediately clear how these were drawn up.Cabinet released a statement on the investigation late last year that amounted to little more than a slap on the wrist for the catering contractor: Independence Caterers had to replace a “sub-standard” milk powder, but no proof of excessive salt in the meat could be found, a Cabinet statement of November 16 said.Cabinet also noted that hostel infrastructure was in a very poor condition and in urgent need of upgrading.It also noted that the Ministry of Education was to forward Independence’s catering contract to the Office of the Attorney General “…for advice on how to address the weaknesses.[..]”, the statement said further.Shanghala, who said he had travelled “…all over the country” to test the original allegations contained in the newspaper article, admitted that he found that the so-called ‘Nam-Mix’ blend of powdered milk supplied by Independence Caterers had no nutritional value.The original Cabinet statement said: “The milk-powder blend was also found to be of low nutritiona
l value and contrary to specifications,” adding that the company was ordered to replace it with a better quality product. The explanation to the apparent contradiction between “low” and “no”, Shanghala suggested, should be obtained at Ministerial level.So far, efforts to do this have been unsuccessful.He also denied that the latest extension of the contract amounted to Independence being rewarded by being given another year without having to go to tender.In a lengthy interview, Shanghala defended his recommendations as necessary to “…institute a total regime review” of the State’s catering needs.”My investigation …[showed] … a total failure of management systems” that allowed for abuses to happen, he said.A similar high-level investigation in 2001-2002 made similar findings and recommendations, which proved to be impossible to fully implement, sources familiar with that investigation said.Gerard Enssle of the Ministry’s Hostel Inspectorate this month angrily rejected allegations that his inspectors had failed the children by not ensuring that caterers stuck to the terms of their contracts.Enssle, who formed part of the technical investigation, also rejected allegations that initial attempts last year to collect meat samples had to be rejected for failing to adhere to scientific methods.”That’s not true, I still have some of those samples here [at the Ministry],” he said, but then refused to discuss the subject further. SECRET REPORT The Inspectorate of Hostels also failed to implement a system of regular, independent testing of food supplied to hostels as had been agreed to with other players in the industry, including the City of Windhoek’s health officials.Despite an official undertaking to make the final report public, its contents still remain a tightly guarded secret: only a limited number of copies of the report were made, with each recipient’s name printed large across every page to prevent any uncontrolled copying.The company’s former MD Ed Davies, who resigned shortly after the story broke, has denied all previous allegations against them.Independence Caterers’ Chairman Aaron Mushimba, in his personal capacity, as well as Outjo-based sub-contractor, Welwitschia Caterers CC, have launched a legal claim for defamation against The Namibian and this reporter as result of the original expose and subsequent articles.The claim is opposed.* John Grobler is a freelance journalist; 081 240 1587