Ex-soldiers caught in scam

A FLIMSY promise of up to N$490 000 in addition to a lifetime pension has seen around 5 000 former South West Africa Territory Force members swindled out of N$182 each over the past couple of days.

A representative of the SA Coloured Corps, which later became the SA Cape Corps, claimed the former SWATF members will get their money between September 30 and October 7 in Upington, South Africa.’That’s just another money-making scam. We don’t know about it and rumours about payouts are not as true as they were five years ago. Nothing has changed,’ said a senior official at the South African High Commission yesterday.A team from The Namibian visited a house in Khomasdal yesterday where former SWATF soldier Neville Waggie was registering people who had served in the SWATF before Independence.CONFLICTING CLAIMSWaggie told those registering that each of them was entitled to around N$34 000 but that the SA Cape Corps Trust had submitted a claim of around N$490 000 for each person because of the interest earned over the past 15 years.According to him, his organisation was different to previous registrations by other groups such as the South African National Military Veterans Forum, which took N$55 from each of around 5 000 former SWATF members who had registered in Rehoboth five years ago.Waggie had no papers about his organisation but insisted that a General January in South Africa was the head and had won a court case against the SA government to pay out former SWATF and Cape Corps members.’That is not coming from our government. We have absolutely no control (over the scam) unless somebody arrests them. It is a sad situation for Namibian people,’ said a South African diplomat.The Namibian Police have reportedly inquired with the SA High Commission about the latest scheme but have yet to act.A source said some Police officers in Namibia were also former SWATF members and were reluctant to move in on Waggie and others who have registered people in towns such as Rehoboth, Tsumeb and Mariental.Five years ago the Namibian Police confiscated papers from those who registered people in towns such as Katima Mulilo.The intention with the previous one was to get as many applications as possible and to put pressure on Pretoria to provide money to the former soldiers.The South African National Military Veterans Forum, which was based in Kimberley, claimed it had registered around 161 000 former soldiers but nothing came of it.Waggie told those who registered with him that they need to be in Upington on September 30 for final processing of their papers.For that they need to take along all their documents from the days they served in SWATF and must be there in person to sign some documents.There is no guarantee that the ex-soldiers will get the money. The only proof of the N$182 registration fee is a receipt they got from Waggie but there is no address or any detail of the Trust on the little piece of paper.Even the form the former soldiers filled out had no address or details of the Trust.Some of the former soldiers said they were ‘too desperate for money’ and would rather lose N$182 instead of missing out on the promised payout of N$490 000.Some of the former soldiers have even called friends in other parts of the country to encourage them travel to Windhoek.The deadline for registration was midnight last night.For now, Waggie and his group have collected a cool N$910 000 from the around 5 000 people who have registered.The SA High Commission has distanced itself from the activities of the Trust or any undertaking that the former soldiers will get money.In 2004 already the Department of Pensions Administration in South Africa’s Ministry of Finance wrote to some ex-SWATF members in Namibia, informing them that their documents had been destroyed.’It has to be pointed out that the Chief Directorate: Pensions Administration retains pension records only for a period of seven years after date of payment. As a result, all documents pertaining to the above-mentioned (pension benefits) have been destroyed,’ a letter by the National Treasury to a local former SWATF member states.In another communication seen by The Namibian, the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) in South Africa wrote that its N$80 billion pension surplus was only applicable to private pension funds and not individuals.Namibian SWATF members apparently only received N$1 300 each after Independence after the N$32 million given to the country by South Africa was split up between them and former People’s Liberation Army of Namibia (Plan) members.christof@namibian.com.na