Office of the President goes after Kaulinge

GOVERNMENT has dismissed suggestions that President Sam Nujoma used tax money for electioneering and says the authorities plan to prosecute the former senior official who made the statement.

Former Presidential aide Isaac Kaulinge made the allegation in a court paper after the Office of the President sued him for N$400 000, which he acknowledged was owed from travel and subsistence allowances. The Office of the Attorney General issued a press statement at the weekend announcing that Kaulinge had repaid the full amount Government had claimed from him.But the matter was far from over, the statement indicated.State House has given the Office of the Attorney General instructions to sue Kaulinge for another unspecified amount that he allegedly owes.Kaulinge yesterday declined to comment on the matter.Earlier he said he considered the case closed after an out-of-court settlement was reached.However, the Office of the Attorney General said more summonses to refund State House would follow.In addition, Kaulinge could face defamation claims by Government officials he had implicated.The former Secretary to the Presidency on Policy Matters had stated in his opposing affidavit of the initial lawsuit that he had been duped into signing an acknowledgement of debt on the understanding that the promissory note was to be used for the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly.Kaulinge also said he should never have been held accountable for the money because it was given to him as subsistence and travelling allowances for the President and some of it had been used during the 1999 election campaign.The cases pitted Kaulinge against the Secretary to the President, Dr Ndeutala Angolo, who is the chief administrator at State House.”Mr Kaulinge’s allegations, which were not supported in any fashion, gravely tarnished the reputation of Dr Angolo as well as the Office of the President, and are vehemently denied by the relevant officials implicated by Mr Kaulinge,” said the unsigned statement under the names of Sacky Shanghala and Deon Obbes.Kaulinge had said that the money he allegedly owed came from funds the President’s entourage used to carry on domestic and foreign trips.The amount could be as much as N$1,5 million in US dollars when Nujoma flew abroad, he claimed.The Office of the Attorney General said in the statement that “the vast majority of funds claimed relate to His Excellency, the President’s travels abroad and hence, quite obviously, can have no bearing on domestic political campaigns”.The case against Kaulinge highlighted a long-running rift between the two most senior advisors to President Nujoma after Kaulinge joined State House from his position as Cabinet Secretary in 1999.The Namibian understands that the animosity was so intense at times that the two did not talk to each other.Kaulinge resigned from Government in 2001 for reasons yet to be announced.The Office of the Attorney General issued a press statement at the weekend announcing that Kaulinge had repaid the full amount Government had claimed from him.But the matter was far from over, the statement indicated.State House has given the Office of the Attorney General instructions to sue Kaulinge for another unspecified amount that he allegedly owes.Kaulinge yesterday declined to comment on the matter.Earlier he said he considered the case closed after an out-of-court settlement was reached.However, the Office of the Attorney General said more summonses to refund State House would follow.In addition, Kaulinge could face defamation claims by Government officials he had implicated.The former Secretary to the Presidency on Policy Matters had stated in his opposing affidavit of the initial lawsuit that he had been duped into signing an acknowledgement of debt on the understanding that the promissory note was to be used for the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly.Kaulinge also said he should never have been held accountable for the money because it was given to him as subsistence and travelling allowances for the President and some of it had been used during the 1999 election campaign.The cases pitted Kaulinge against the Secretary to the President, Dr Ndeutala Angolo, who is the chief administrator at State House.”Mr Kaulinge’s allegations, which were not supported in any fashion, gravely tarnished the reputation of Dr Angolo as well as the Office of the President, and are vehemently denied by the relevant officials implicated by Mr Kaulinge,” said the unsigned statement under the names of Sacky Shanghala and Deon Obbes.Kaulinge had said that the money he allegedly owed came from funds the President’s entourage used to carry on domestic and foreign trips.The amount could be as much as N$1,5 million in US dollars when Nujoma flew abroad, he claimed.The Office of the Attorney General said in the statement that “the vast majority of funds claimed relate to His Excellency, the President’s travels abroad and hence, quite obviously, can have no bearing on domestic political campaigns”.The case against Kaulinge highlighted a long-running rift between the two most senior advisors to President Nujoma after Kaulinge joined State House from his position as Cabinet Secretary in 1999.The Namibian understands that the animosity was so intense at times that the two did not talk to each other.Kaulinge resigned from Government in 2001 for reasons yet to be announced.