Huge travel perks for NBC chair

TRAVEL allowances paid out to NBC Board Chairman Ponhele ya France at the rate of N$7,24 per kilometre for a recent official trip of 1 600 kilometres – amounting to a whopping N$11 584 – was ‘standard procedure’, The Namibian was informed.

What would equal eleven months’ pay for a security guard or cleaner was paid to the NBC Chairman for his trip to Eenhana for Heroes’ Day in August this year. Copies of official documentation anonymously sent to The Namibian and signed by NBC Director General Bob Kandetu on August 16, ten days before the event, reveal that Ya France was paid according to the rates of the Automobile Association (AA) at N$7.24 per kilometre.For the 1 600-km trip, Ya France received an advance of N$11,584 plus N$500 for two nights’ accommodation, totalling N$12 084.It was alleged by the anonymous informer that the amount was too high.Approached for comment, Ya France told The Namibian that he used his own vehicle for the trip – a four-by-four.There is a good tarred road to Eenhana and an off-road vehicle is not needed to reach it.”It is NBC policy that board members may not use NBC company vehicles, so we use our own cars.I was invited by the Regional Councillor of the Eenhana constituency in my capacity as NBC Chairman,” Ya France said.A check on the AA website showed that the Association’s recommended rate for a 4×4 vehicle is indeed N$7,24 per kilometre.Government ministries, parastatals and private companies use these rates to reimburse officials’ travel costs.Ya France also received N$2 500 sitting fee in December 2006 for attending a tender board meting of the NBC.It was paid to him per cheque the same day.Just three weeks earlier, Ya France drove in his own car to Oshakati to attend a workshop, according to the travel claim.It is a distance of 1 168 km there and back, and he was paid at a rate of N$2,50 per kilometre, but it was a different car.Ya France received payment for three nights, from November 24 to 27, but the workshop lasted only one day – Monday, November 27.Again, the NBC Chairman was given a cheque before the trip for N$3 670, of which N$750 was for accommodation and N$2 920 for the mileage.”This is just a moneymaking opportunity,” a source close to the NBC administration told The Namibian.But Ya France denied this.”You can go to any board of directors in the country, this is standard procedure,” he stated.Copies of official documentation anonymously sent to The Namibian and signed by NBC Director General Bob Kandetu on August 16, ten days before the event, reveal that Ya France was paid according to the rates of the Automobile Association (AA) at N$7.24 per kilometre.For the 1 600-km trip, Ya France received an advance of N$11,584 plus N$500 for two nights’ accommodation, totalling N$12 084.It was alleged by the anonymous informer that the amount was too high.Approached for comment, Ya France told The Namibian that he used his own vehicle for the trip – a four-by-four.There is a good tarred road to Eenhana and an off-road vehicle is not needed to reach it.”It is NBC policy that board members may not use NBC company vehicles, so we use our own cars.I was invited by the Regional Councillor of the Eenhana constituency in my capacity as NBC Chairman,” Ya France said.A check on the AA website showed that the Association’s recommended rate for a 4×4 vehicle is indeed N$7,24 per kilometre.Government ministries, parastatals and private companies use these rates to reimburse officials’ travel costs.Ya France also received N$2 500 sitting fee in December 2006 for attending a tender board meting of the NBC.It was paid to him per cheque the same day.Just three weeks earlier, Ya France drove in his own car to Oshakati to attend a workshop, according to the travel claim.It is a distance of 1 168 km there and back, and he was paid at a rate of N$2,50 per kilometre, but it was a different car.Ya France received payment for three nights, from November 24 to 27, but the workshop lasted only one day – Monday, November 27.Again, the NBC Chairman was given a cheque before the trip for N$3 670, of which N$750 was for accommodation and N$2 920 for the mileage.”This is just a moneymaking opportunity,” a source close to the NBC administration told The Namibian.But Ya France denied this.”You can go to any board of directors in the country, this is standard procedure,” he stated.