Foreign Affairs at centre of Bangladeshi storm

BLAME for the scandal which led to the deportation of 372 Bangladeshis who came to Namibia in search of work has been placed squarely at the door of the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

At the centre of the storm is Namibia’s High Commissioner to Malaysia Neville Gertze under whose authority work visas were issued to the workers without the approval of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Officials at the Home Affairs Ministry charged yesterday that “irregularities” were definitely at play in how the men obtained entry into Namibia.Its investigations revealed that it had not received visa applications for any of the Bangladeshi men who were recruited to work at the Ramatex Textile Factory.Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lempy Lucas said the matter was being investigated but referred queries to the Deputy Permanent Secretary Nicky Nashandi.Contacted several times for comment, Nashandi requested to be called back each time but did not respond to the queries.Home Affairs Under Secretary Freddy Eliphas said that procedurally all applications for work or holiday visas submitted to Namibian embassies abroad had to be approved by Home Affairs in Windhoek.This, she said, had not been done in the case of the Bangladeshi workers.She added that the Home Affairs Ministry had also not given the Malaysian Embassy permission for these visas to be issued.”There was a degree of irregularity.The Ministry knows that they are not part and parcel of those visas [visas approved by the Ministry of Home Affairs].”The Bangladeshis all came to Namibia on work visas issued in Malaysia and valid for three months.The Ramatex Textile Factory put a stop to the Bangladeshis work permit applications in Namibia when, they maintain, they discovered that the men were unskilled workers.Eliphas has said that it would now be the responsibility of the Foreign Affairs Ministry to take action against its officials for the unauthorised issuing of visas.Gertze’s father and brother, through a company Saujana Blossom Import and Export, were involved in illegal renovations to a residential house which was used to house more than 300 of the Bangladeshis during their stay.Earlier this week Gertze’s father Willy, said his son Neville, had nothing to do with this arrangement, but had only helped with facilitating visas.The Ministries of Home Affairs, Foreign Affairs and Trade and Industry have formed a ministerial committee to discuss matters related to the recruitment of Bangladeshi workers to Namibia.Trade and Industry Permanent Secretary Andrew Ndishishi said yesterday it planned to submit their findings to Cabinet.Ndishishi said the scandal that erupted, especially over the men’s living conditions, had been “a wake-up call”.”We knew they were here but no one knew where they were sleeping,” he said.Ndishishi said it was imperative that a full investigation be carried out and that recommendations were made to avoid a repeat situation.Late on Tuesday, a meeting was held with the Bangladeshi High Commissioner to South Africa, who sought to stall the deportation of his countrymen, but it was in vain.By that time, all of the Bangladeshis, save the four cooks, had been sent back home.Said Ndishishi yesterday:”We are not against Bangladeshis.Those who meet the skills requirement for Namibia will always be welcome.”Officials at the Home Affairs Ministry charged yesterday that “irregularities” were definitely at play in how the men obtained entry into Namibia.Its investigations revealed that it had not received visa applications for any of the Bangladeshi men who were recruited to work at the Ramatex Textile Factory.Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lempy Lucas said the matter was being investigated but referred queries to the Deputy Permanent Secretary Nicky Nashandi.Contacted several times for comment, Nashandi requested to be called back each time but did not respond to the queries.Home Affairs Under Secretary Freddy Eliphas said that procedurally all applications for work or holiday visas submitted to Namibian embassies abroad had to be approved by Home Affairs in Windhoek.This, she said, had not been done in the case of the Bangladeshi workers.She added that the Home Affairs Ministry had also not given the Malaysian Embassy permission for these visas to be issued.”There was a degree of irregularity.The Ministry knows that they are not part and parcel of those visas [visas approved by the Ministry of Home Affairs].”The Bangladeshis all came to Namibia on work visas issued in Malaysia and valid for three months.The Ramatex Textile Factory put a stop to the Bangladeshis work permit applications in Namibia when, they maintain, they discovered that the men were unskilled workers.Eliphas has said that it would now be the responsibility of the Foreign Affairs Ministry to take action against its officials for the unauthorised issuing of visas.Gertze’s father and brother, through a company Saujana Blossom Import and Export, were involved in illegal renovations to a residential house which was used to house more than 300 of the Bangladeshis during their stay.Earlier this week Gertze’s father Willy, said his son Neville, had nothing to do with this arrangement, but had only helped with facilitating visas.The Ministries of Home Affairs, Foreign Affairs and Trade and Industry have formed a ministerial committee to discuss matters related to the recruitment of Bangladeshi workers to Namibia.Trade and Industry Permanent Secretary Andrew Ndishishi said yesterday it planned to submit their findings to Cabinet.Ndishishi said the scandal that erupted, especially over the men’s living conditions, had been “a wake-up call”.”We knew they were here but no one knew where they were sleeping,” he said.Ndishishi said it was imperative that a full investigation be carried out and that recommendations were made to avoid a repeat situation.Late on Tuesday, a meeting was held with the Bangladeshi High Commissioner to South Africa, who sought to stall the deportation of his countrymen, but it was in vain.By that time, all of the Bangladeshis, save the four cooks, had been sent back home.Said Ndishishi yesterday:”We are not against Bangladeshis.Those who meet the skills requirement for Namibia will always be welcome.”