Omaheke Council in financial straits

THE Omaheke Regional Council is experiencing financial problems and has suspended all payments to outstanding creditors, The Namibian has established.

Omaheke’s acting Chief Regional Officer, Pedereus Tjihoreko, on June 1 ordered his staff that “no further payments are to be made to outstanding creditors, suppliers etc. until further notice.” According to reliable sources in Omaheke, the situation is so serious that the Regional Council might struggle to pay salaries at the end of this month.”The [Omaheke Regional] Council is almost not functioning at the moment because there are no funds available,” one staff member said on condition of anonymity.The Namibian has learned that the Council ran into financial difficulties after the Ministry of Regional and Local Government and Housing suspended its quarterly subsidy earlier this year.The Ministry has apparently been angered by the Omaheke Regional Council’s refusal to accept former Walvis Bay Deputy Mayor, Balbina Pienaar, as their new Chief Regional Officer.The defiant Council instead made Tjihoroke its acting Chief Regional Officer and started paying him an acting allowance without approval from either the line ministry or the Public Service Commission.Tjihoroke is part of a group of several regional Chief Executive Officers with a pending High Court application to block Government’s move to freeze their positions and replace them with new Chief Regional Officers.The Namibian has learned that last week Local Government Minister Joel Kaapanda summoned Omaheke regional councillors to register his displeasure over their continuous reluctance to employ a new Chief Regional Officer, and ordered them to resolve the matter with immediate effect.Omaheke Regional Governor Laura McLeod acknowledged that her Council was going through financial difficulties, but denied that the Ministry of Local Government had suspended its subsidy.”This [financial] problem is not only unique to Omaheke… the Ministry has cut budgets to all regions because its Ministry’s] allocation from the national budget was drastically cut,” she told The Namibian.Responding to allegations that the Council was reluctant to employ a new Chief Regional Officer, the Governor said that the Council merely needed to clarify a few things after the Ministry had recommended Pienaar, while it (the Council) had wanted to give the position to Tjihoreko.”The ministry made its recommendation and the fact that we have one or two questions does not mean that we are refusing,” McLeod retorted.”It’s a fact that as the employing body, the Council wanted to the post to go to the old CEO because we were satisfied with his performance and there are programmes which we have already put in place with him.”The Governor could not say when exactly the new Chief Regional Officer will be appointed or if the Council had resolved its differences with the ministry over the matter.She revealed that the issue would be discussed at a meeting of the Omaheke Regional Council today.”I can’t comment on the matter now because I do not want to pre-empt discussions of the meeting.Council has to pronounce itself on this issue,” McLeod said yesterday.According to reliable sources in Omaheke, the situation is so serious that the Regional Council might struggle to pay salaries at the end of this month.”The [Omaheke Regional] Council is almost not functioning at the moment because there are no funds available,” one staff member said on condition of anonymity.The Namibian has learned that the Council ran into financial difficulties after the Ministry of Regional and Local Government and Housing suspended its quarterly subsidy earlier this year.The Ministry has apparently been angered by the Omaheke Regional Council’s refusal to accept former Walvis Bay Deputy Mayor, Balbina Pienaar, as their new Chief Regional Officer.The defiant Council instead made Tjihoroke its acting Chief Regional Officer and started paying him an acting allowance without approval from either the line ministry or the Public Service Commission.Tjihoroke is part of a group of several regional Chief Executive Officers with a pending High Court application to block Government’s move to freeze their positions and replace them with new Chief Regional Officers.The Namibian has learned that last week Local Government Minister Joel Kaapanda summoned Omaheke regional councillors to register his displeasure over their continuous reluctance to employ a new Chief Regional Officer, and ordered them to resolve the matter with immediate effect.Omaheke Regional Governor Laura McLeod acknowledged that her Council was going through financial difficulties, but denied that the Ministry of Local Government had suspended its subsidy.”This [financial] problem is not only unique to Omaheke… the Ministry has cut budgets to all regions because its Ministry’s] allocation from the national budget was drastically cut,” she told The Namibian.Responding to allegations that the Council was reluctant to employ a new Chief Regional Officer, the Governor said that the Council merely needed to clarify a few things after the Ministry had recommended Pienaar, while it (the Council) had wanted to give the position to Tjihoreko.”The ministry made its recommendation and the fact that we have one or two questions does not mean that we are refusing,” McLeod retorted.”It’s a fact that as the employing body, the Council wanted to the post to go to the old CEO because we were satisfied with his performance and there are programmes which we have already put in place with him.”The Governor could not say when exactly the new Chief Regional Officer will be appointed or if the Council had resolved its differences with the ministry over the matter.She revealed that the issue would be discussed at a meeting of the Omaheke Regional Council today.”I can’t comment on the matter now because I do not want to pre-empt discussions of the meeting.Council has to pronounce itself on this issue,” McLeod said yesterday.