NBC cash crisis deepens, owes Receiver N$29m

FINANCIAL worries continue to haunt the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) with revelations that the State broadcaster has struggled to pay the Receiver of Revenue millions in taxes, The Namibian can reveal.

Documents in possession of the newspaper showed that as of January 2005, the NBC had accumulated some N$28 709 898,23 in unpaid tax. It is understood that the debt ballooned between April 2004 and January this year.Further, the NBC had an overdraft of N$29 million with a leading bank.Director General of the NBC, Gerry Munyama, confirmed that the debt existed at one stage but added that the situation had changed remarkably.Munyama said the debt situation arose because of delays in the tabling of the National Budget this year.The Budget, which is usually tabled in March, was only submitted to the National Assembly in May.The NBC chief said: “Yes, the debt came into being as a result of the delayed presentation of the 2005 National Budget.However the situation has since changed.”However, Munyama could not provide details of the current debt situation, insisting: “Your information is not updated.”Munyama said as a State broadcaster his institution depended heavily on subsidies from Government.On the overdraft issue, the Director General said: “We would like to thank First National Bank (FNB) for extending the help.”However, reports were that NBC cheques were being referred back because of a lack of money in the broadcaster’s account.Two cheques, one for N$306 621,54 (cheque number 94148) and N$136 820,31 (number 94150) are alleged to have bounced earlier this month.Some concerned staff voiced concern, saying Government had extended some N$10 million to the NBC after retrenchments in 2003 but nothing much could be achieved.Munyama said the NBC was a service provider that was not making a profit at the moment.In a bid to improve service provision and boost revenue, added Munyama, the NBC was embarking on a restructuring exercise, which was likely to affect management.The process, said Munyama, would try to revitalise the institution so that it could become more profit-oriented.”We acknowledge that we made a mistake when we brought [together] human resources and finance as one unit.However, the restructuring exercise will look at that and try to come up with a better and more effective structure,” said Munyama.According to the NBC head, the State broadcaster was in search of competent and skilled personnel to lead the department.Munyama said his institution needed to depart from the past and not entirely depend on State coffers.Therefore, consultations with key stakeholders, notably members of staff, would be conducted before embarking on the restructuring.It is understood that the debt ballooned between April 2004 and January this year.Further, the NBC had an overdraft of N$29 million with a leading bank.Director General of the NBC, Gerry Munyama, confirmed that the debt existed at one stage but added that the situation had changed remarkably.Munyama said the debt situation arose because of delays in the tabling of the National Budget this year.The Budget, which is usually tabled in March, was only submitted to the National Assembly in May.The NBC chief said: “Yes, the debt came into being as a result of the delayed presentation of the 2005 National Budget.However the situation has since changed.”However, Munyama could not provide details of the current debt situation, insisting: “Your information is not updated.”Munyama said as a State broadcaster his institution depended heavily on subsidies from Government.On the overdraft issue, the Director General said: “We would like to thank First National Bank (FNB) for extending the help.”However, reports were that NBC cheques were being referred back because of a lack of money in the broadcaster’s account.Two cheques, one for N$306 621,54 (cheque number 94148) and N$136 820,31 (number 94150) are alleged to have bounced earlier this month. Some concerned staff voiced concern, saying Government had extended some N$10 million to the NBC after retrenchments in 2003 but nothing much could be achieved.Munyama said the NBC was a service provider that was not making a profit at the moment.In a bid to improve service provision and boost revenue, added Munyama, the NBC was embarking on a restructuring exercise, which was likely to affect management.The process, said Munyama, would try to revitalise the institution so that it could become more profit-oriented.”We acknowledge that we made a mistake when we brought [together] human resources and finance as one unit.However, the restructuring exercise will look at that and try to come up with a better and more effective structure,” said Munyama.According to the NBC head, the State broadcaster was in search of competent and skilled personnel to lead the department.Munyama said his institution needed to depart from the past and not entirely depend on State coffers.Therefore, consultations with key stakeholders, notably members of staff, would be conducted before embarking on the restructuring.