The Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) has questioned the government’s decision to extend its emergency fuel supply agreement with Vitol Bahrain EC, warning that the arrangement raises serious procurement and transparency concerns.
IPC shadow minister of international relations and trade Rodney Cloete says the Ministry of Industries, Mines and Energy confirmed to Reuters on 10 September that the three-month agreement, initially due to end on 30 September, has been extended into October.
The ministry describes the extension as a “one-off and final arrangement” that will not continue beyond October, but has not disclosed the cost of the additional month or what will replace the agreement.
“The deal was concluded without an open tender under emergency measures linked to the Iran conflict, with Vitol supplying the country’s bulk petrol and diesel,” Cloete says.
Cloete says repeatedly extending an emergency arrangement without making the relevant instrument publicly available risks turning a temporary measure into a procurement method.
He calls on the ministry to table the extension instrument and its price basis in the National Assembly, publish an invitation for fuel suppliers from 1 November and gazette the relevant regulations before the agreement expires.
Cloete also raises concerns over rising fuel costs, noting that diesel increased by N$1.60 a litre on 2 September to N$27.86, while the road user charge rose from 243 to 273 cents.
“Namibians deserve a contract they can read, a tender they can see and a minister who answers parliament,” Cloete says.
Cloete raises this in a statement released on Thursday.
