On Crime And Punishment

A MULTI-MILLION-DOLLAR case of fraud involving a former Defence Ministry official could not but shock those who have followed it, even though Namibians are by now, to a large extent, largely immune to theft on grand scale.

What has possibly annoyed people most is the plea for leniency lodged by his lawyer on the grounds of his personal ill health and the vulnerability of the family of Emmanuel Mununga. When one considers the creativity and scale of the fraudulent acts this man committed, as well as the extensive time frame of some four years during which he continued to defraud Sanlam Namibia, it would be a pity indeed if the court were to lend a sympathetic ear to his request.He abused his position to commit some 186 cases of fraud, totalling some N$5,4 million all told, and most of which involved submitting false claims for payment of death benefits, which would ordinarily be paid to relatives of Namibia Defence Force members who had died.Mununga himself asked for the opportunity to address the court, but his apology and plea for mercy seem false when his acts were so clearly calculated and premeditated.Hard to believe also, that in a period of four years he can only account for a figure of N$500 000 which he indicated he was prepared to pay back to Sanlam, but the lion’s share of the amount, nearly N$5 million, has already been spent.It is not a case which elicits much in the way of public sympathy, and is once again one which highlights the almost endemic problem of theft and fraud in Namibia at this point in our history.Also this week, one of the FBI’s ‘most wanted’, a high-flying American businessman wanted in that country on a series of fraud charges, was arrested in Windhoek.Without doubt he will be extradited to the US in order to stand trial there, and will almost certainly receive a stiff jail term for securities fraud.We do not know why the businessman in question, Jacob ‘Kobi’ Alexander, chose Namibia to hide out, but his arrest in Windhoek simply served to underscore the concern of many Namibians about the crimes of theft and fraud, and linked with it, the punishment that is meted out to those who transgress.Somehow the message has to be driven home that it is unacceptable to steal and that people who do so, particularly those in positions of trust and responsibility, much like Mununga, and others who hold more senior posts, should be dealt with summarily and harshly.The Anti-Corruption Commission has been set up for this purpose and while they have gone public on a number of smaller cases that they have investigated involving theft, the ‘big fish’ and the larger cases have not been dealt with quite so speedily.Where cases have been thoroughly investigated, and the suspects have been charged, it is vitally important that these hearings be finalised as speedily as possible.Though not in the ambit of the ACC, court cases such as that involving the former Director General of the NBC, Gerry Munyama, should in fact have been finished already.This would send positive signals to the public that such cases will be expedited so that the perpetrators cannot delay or even escape justice by endless postponements.Even the Mununga case cited above has taken nearly six years to be finalised.He was arrested in November 2000, and this is an unacceptably long time for what appeared to be a case as open and shut as that of Munyama.With regard the Anti-Corruption Commission too, it would be positive to see an investigation such as that involving Namibia Liquid Fuels, and the payouts of millions of dollars in dividends to certain individuals, being dealt with very quickly.We would appeal for the institutions responsible, such as the ACC and/or the Police themselves, to ensure quick and thorough investigation; and for the courts in turn to finalise the trials as quickly as possible.It would be in the interests of fighting crime.When one considers the creativity and scale of the fraudulent acts this man committed, as well as the extensive time frame of some four years during which he continued to defraud Sanlam Namibia, it would be a pity indeed if the court were to lend a sympathetic ear to his request.He abused his position to commit some 186 cases of fraud, totalling some N$5,4 million all told, and most of which involved submitting false claims for payment of death benefits, which would ordinarily be paid to relatives of Namibia Defence Force members who had died.Mununga himself asked for the opportunity to address the court, but his apology and plea for mercy seem false when his acts were so clearly calculated and premeditated.Hard to believe also, that in a period of four years he can only account for a figure of N$500 000 which he indicated he was prepared to pay back to Sanlam, but the lion’s share of the amount, nearly N$5 million, has already been spent.It is not a case which elicits much in the way of public sympathy, and is once again one which highlights the almost endemic problem of theft and fraud in Namibia at this point in our history.Also this week, one of the FBI’s ‘most wanted’, a high-flying American businessman wanted in that country on a series of fraud charges, was arrested in Windhoek.Without doubt he will be extradited to the US in order to stand trial there, and will almost certainly receive a stiff jail term for securities fraud.We do not know why the businessman in question, Jacob ‘Kobi’ Alexander, chose Namibia to hide out, but his arrest in Windhoek simply served to underscore the concern of many Namibians about the crimes of theft and fraud, and linked with it, the punishment that is meted out to those who transgress.Somehow the message has to be driven home that it is unacceptable to steal and that people who do so, particularly those in positions of trust and responsibility, much like Mununga, and others who hold more senior posts, should be dealt with summarily and harshly.The Anti-Corruption Commission has been set up for this purpose and while they have gone public on a number of smaller cases that they have investigated involving theft, the ‘big fish’ and the larger cases have not been dealt with quite so speedily.Where cases have been thoroughly investigated, and the suspects have been charged, it is vitally important that these hearings be finalised as speedily as possible.Though not in the ambit of the ACC, court cases such as that involving the former Director General of the NBC, Gerry Munyama, should in fact have been finished already.This would send positive signals to the public that such cases will be expedited so that the perpetrators cannot delay or even escape justice by endless postponements.Even the Mununga case cited above has taken nearly six years to be finalised.He was arrested in November 2000, and this is an unacceptably long time for what appeared to be a case as open and shut as that of Munyama.With regard the Anti-Corruption Commission too, it would be positive to see an investigation such as that involving Namibia Liquid Fuels, and the payouts of millions of dollars in dividends to certain individuals, being dealt with very quickly.We would appeal for the institutions responsible, such as the ACC and/or the Police themselves, to ensure quick and thorough investigation; and for the courts in turn to finalise the trials as quickly as possible.It would be in the interests of fighting crime.