Fuel tycoon, 34, at centre of N$380m Namcor scandal

At the age of just 34, Simaneka Victor Malima had charmed his way into Namibia’s fuel sector through connections and murky deals that later implicated him in a fuel corruption scandal.

Armed with political connections and ambition, he styled himself as Namibia’s next business mogul. Although he tried to live a quiet life with no social media, his taste has attracted scrutiny.

Malima’s house of about N$2 million at Ondangwa near the road that leads to Oshikango allegedly resembles a guest house.

This is where he held a Jeep, a 2024 M2 BMW valued at over N$1 million, and two Toyota Land Cruiser V8s.

He was living the good life.

Trouble started in 2023 when speculation about Enercon owing the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (Namcor) millions of dollars emerged.

Now, it appears the ongoing corruption case has fuelled a possible feud in the Elindi family about who is responsible for the irregularities linked to the Enercon saga.

Some relatives are pointing fingers at Malima.

He is allegedly one of the players in Enercon, a company accused of fleecing Namcor and dragging the state-owned entity into debt of N$380 million alongside Erongo Petroleum.

Rumours about Malima’s escape to Angola started early last week.

An associate yesterday told The Namibian that Malima has always wanted to be a successful businessman in any sector.

“Fortunately, he landed in the fuel business,” the associate said.

He preferred to remain anonymous.

Malima was just 23 years old when he entered the fuel industry. Before that, a family member said he honed his entrepreneurial skills at a young age.

“His intention was to grow the business and then take along the people close to him and plough back to young black women and men,” the family member said.

His company, Eco Fuel, was supposed to be his launch pad to greatness.

Instead, it has become one of the companies implicated in one of the country’s most explosive corruption scandals.

Today, Malima, the son of a former soldier, is a fugitive, with the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) hot on his heels.

He is accused of playing a big role in fuel deals that drained state coffers and turned Namcor into a glorified piggy bank.

But Malima has denied any wrongdoing.

Speaking to The Namibian last year, he said: “It is important to note that our company has not done any trading business with Namcor for the last 16 months. When I briefly became the chief executive of Enercon in 2023 we never did deals with Namcor.”

Sources yesterday told The Namibian that Malima plans to hand himself over to authorities.

“Victor is prepared to tackle the case. I believe he will hand himself over soon,” a source said.

ACC director general Paulus Noa yesterday said although Malima has escaped, the ACC is not offering a reward for information leading to his arrest.

“The public must just give information. If they are committed to fighting corruption, why should they be rewarded for information?” he asked.

EARLY LIFE

Malima was born at Onayena in the Oshikoto region in 1991.

His upbringing alternated between Onayena and Freedomland at Katutura in Windhoek.

His father is Jason Malima, a brother of former defence minister and head of the Namibia Central Intelligence Service Phillemon Malima.

“He is not one who really liked school. He dropped out and pursued business, that’s how he entered the fuel industry,” he says.

As Malima grew older, he built a home near Ondangwa close to the road that leads to the Oshikango road.

He also owned a boutique at Ondangwa, specialising in wedding decor.

THE RISE

To understand Malima’s rise to the petrodollar world, one has to trace his roots.

Malima at the age of 16 moved into the home of Peter Elindi, who is married to his aunt.

Elindi, along with his brother Malakia, were already carving out a family legacy in the lucrative fuel game.

Peter and Malakia started Enercon in 2007 and formed a partnership with August 26, an entity owned by the Ministry of Defence and Veterans Affairs.

Malima grew up with Peter’s son Austin Elindi, whose name has also cropped up in the Namcor corruption saga.

Austin has not been arrested.

Yesterday he said: “Please contact my legal representative if you want a comment from me.”

Politically plugged, Malima launched Eco fuel in 2014, a company that styled itself as a disruptor in the petroleum industry.

He didn’t bother going slow.

By 2022, Eco Fuel was already securing massive fuel supply contracts and credit lines from Namcor, some allegedly approved without proper due diligence.

Eco Fuel supplied entities such as Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR) and Enercon, which in turn supplied fuel to the NDF.

With Eco Fuel and Enercon both under Elindi-Malima control, the money moved fast. And so did the fuel. The only thing not moving? Repayments.

Namcor soon found itself liable for more than N$380 million in unpaid debts, most of it linked to Malima’s circle. It appears Namcor officials turned them away and ignored its credit rules.

Eventually, Eco Fuel’s debt vanished from Namcor’s books but reappeared under Enercon, of which Malima was at some point the chief executive.

“Malima never ran both Enercon and Eco Fuel together. It’s a lie. The debt of Eco Fuel to be absorbed was contractually approved by both Namcor and Enercon,” a source says.

The Namibian understands that one of the transactions being questioned by the authorities involves N$73 million that Eco Fuel initially owed Namcor, but this credit would later be quietly absorbed into Enercon.

The ACC calls it a sophisticated racket: fuel orders were made on credit, distributed or resold, and the cash disappeared.

Namcor’s own systems either didn’t detect or didn’t care about the red flags.

Insiders allege that Malima and his family are high flyers.

And his friends allegedly made sure the taps stayed open. Some say the saga is a family affair, including brothers, uncles and mothers.

Even Malima’s own brother has not escaped the scandal. He is out on bail for allegedly stealing fuel from Namcor’s Walvis Bay depot in 2024.

Last year, The Namibian reported on large-scale fuel theft after 69 trucks dispatched from Namcor reportedly failed to deliver their cargo to customers.

The value of the missing fuel was estimated to be worth N$49 million.

One of those arrested was Jason Malima.

Others facing allegations are Denzel Mulunga, a nephew of then-Namcor boss Imms Mulunga.

Investigators believe trucks were showing up to Namcor’s terminal and were filled up with fuel under false pretences.

Namcor employees allegedly faked readings, erased logs, and allowed syndicate members to drive off with thousands of litres of state-owned fuel.

Malima is also said to be a cousin of Leo Stefanus, with their parents being siblings. The ACC arrested Stefanus, a plumber, in connection with the scandal last week.

“Leo and Victor grew up in the same house at Onayena. Victor attended some of his primary grades at Onayena before he moved to Windhoek,” a source says.

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