Only 25% of SSC’s N$30 m recovered

ONLY about a quarter of the N$30 million that the Social Security Commission tried to invest in a monumentally botched deal in early 2005 has been recovered.

It has been retrieved from the company into whose bank account the bulk of the SSC’s money found its way more than four years ago.A liquidation and distribution account on asset management company Namangol Investments, one of the key players in the events that unfolded around the SSC’s decision to invest N$30 million through another asset management company, Avid Investment Corporation, during January 2005, has now been filed with the Office of the Master of the High Court.Liquidator Eric Knouwds reported to the Master that while claims against Namangol Investments totalled a little over N$29,527 million, they have so far only been able to realise some N$10,502 million of the company’s assets.The largest claim against Namangol Investments is one of N$29,5 million by Avid Investment Corporation. The portion of Namangol’s assets that have up to now been awarded to Avid, is N$7,375 million, Knouwds reported. That still leaves Avid with a shortfall of N$22,125 million in its claim against Namangol.The only other claims against Namangol are from First National Bank, which claims N$12 921,63 from the company for hire purchase financing, and a claim of N$14 101,86 from Old Mutual Properties for the rental of property.According to the account filed with the Master, the liquidator has awarded N$3 230,42 to FNB and N$3 525,46 to Old Mutual.Knouwds reported to the Master that the account that has been filed would probably be the first of many.He reported that assets of Namangol that have not yet been realised include a claim against the estate of Nico Josea, who was the Managing Director of Namangol at the time that it got involved with the handling of the SSC’s investment through Avid.Josea is, together with former directors of Avid, one of seven people now facing charges in a pending criminal case in the High Court in connection with the alleged embezzlement of the money that the SSC wanted to invest through Avid.Knouwds informed the Master that, once Josea’s personal estate becomes finally sequestrated, he would submit a claim against the estate for amounts that in his opinion should be recovered from Josea.A provisional order for the sequestration of Josea’s estate was lifted by Judge President Petrus Damaseb in the High Court in December 2007.According to Knouwds, he is appealing against that judgement, and the appeal is still pending.Josea could face a claim for at least N$15 million for SSC money that is alleged to have landed in his personal bank account.The bulk of the assets of Namangol that have been realised so far was found in South Africa, where assets with a total value of some N$9,91 million were recovered. Assets in Namibia amounted to N$587 659,69.The South African assets included an amount of N$6,3 million that was recovered from Dean Africa, a close corporation to whose account N$6,3 million had been transferred from a Namangol account after the latter had received N$29,5 million from an account of Avid.Namangol had also transferred N$20 million to a supposed investment broker in South Africa, Alan Rosenberg, after receiving the money from Avid. Rosenberg later paid back N$15 million to Josea.From Rosenberg, N$952 157,23 has been recovered so far in the liquidation process, Knouwds reported.After Namangol received the money from Avid’s account, Josea also transferred a large amount of money from Namangol’s account to the account of Fask Trading, a Congolese diamond company doing business in South Africa. From Fask Trading, the liquidator managed to recover N$212 512,83.Close to 5 000 carats of diamonds that belonged to Namangol were also recovered in South Africa. Most of these diamonds – some 4 759 carats – were of industrial quality, with the remaining almost 184 carats being higher-value gem-quality diamonds.The diamonds were sold in South Africa in October last year, Knouwds reported. A price of a little over N$364 000 was paid for the stones.The liquidator recovered more from the sale of a car that Josea had bought in South Africa. The vehicle – a BMW M3 – was sold in December 2005 already for N$500 000.Knouwds informed the Master that cash of some N$1,21 million remained undistributed in the Namangol Investments estate. This money would be distributed to the company’s creditors at a later stage.The costs of the liquidation already run to over a million Namibia dollars. Knouwds’s own fees as liquidator are a little over N$1,219 million so far, while fees of N$50 290 have been claimed by the Master, legal costs of over N$145 000 have been paid in South Africa, and fees of some N$293 930 have been claimed by the liquidator’s South African agents, PricewaterhouseCoopers.