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Telecom scam widens

Telecom scam widens

A FORMER manager at Telecom Namibia has implicated several fellow top executives in intricate fraudulent and corrupt schemes said to have cost the parastatal millions of dollars.

The Namibian understands that Ivan Ganes, who was extradited from South Africa after fleeing Namibia to avoid a trial related to a copper contract, has written a confession outlining how top managers allegedly colluded to cheat Telecom. Ganes has allegedly also disclosed a range of scams perpetrated by other top managers, kickbacks paid and offshore accounts that have been used to conceal the bribes.Ganes, who is being held in the Windhoek prison, is expected to help Telecom and the State track down the alleged culprits.The confession was made in South Africa, where Telecom traced Ganes in an attempt to recover money they believed their former employee owed them from ill-gotten kickbacks he received in under-valued contracts or omitted invoicing.He worked for Telecom as Procurement Manager from April 1995 to July 2001, when he was reportedly forced to resign.It was around the time he was facing charges of fraud related to scrap metal.The former Telecom manager jumped bail and forfeited the N$100 000 he had paid to be released.In his confession, Ganes allegedly said “a network” was set up within Telecom by “long-time employees who know its workings well to manipulate” the company system for their personal benefit.In his scrap metal case, Ganes has reportedly implicated the owner of a game lodge, who also runs a scrap metal business, claiming that the scam to defraud Telecom was hatched at the lodge.The owner could not be reached for comment as he is out of the country.Other people named by Ganes included suspended Telecom senior manager James Camm and Ettiene Weakly, a manager at Dresselhaus Scrap.Weakly said last week that nobody had contacted him in connection with information reportedly given by Ganes.However, former Telecom Managing Director Theo Mberirua laughed when asked whether he was aware that Ganes had tried to implicate him in other alleged scams to personally benefit from Telecom business.”That’s a bloody joke,” said Mberirua, who is now Managing Director for Standard Bank Namibia.”You are welcome to get as much information as you can.We are the ones who brought him to book anyway.”Mberirua offered The Namibian blanket access to his financial records – assets and income – to check against the allegations.Ganes has reportedly given the authorities wide-ranging leads accusing former Managing Director Bo Eklof and the Telecom board at that time of ignoring conflicts of interest involving another former employee, Welbert Ockhuizen.Ockhuizen dismissed the allegations against him, and said he welcomed a Telecom investigation.He said he had always been guided by “principles” rather than “convenience”.Ockhuizen said concerns of conflict of interest were cleared at the time when he worked for Telecom more than seven years ago.The Namibian understands that four people allegedly shared equally in the scrap copper collection contract, from which Ganes is believed to have gained N$10 million.Telecom has declined to comment on information that more suspensions are expected at the company, based on Ganes’s confession.The parastatal said the investigation that led to Camm’s suspension was still ongoing.Ganes has allegedly also disclosed a range of scams perpetrated by other top managers, kickbacks paid and offshore accounts that have been used to conceal the bribes.Ganes, who is being held in the Windhoek prison, is expected to help Telecom and the State track down the alleged culprits.The confession was made in South Africa, where Telecom traced Ganes in an attempt to recover money they believed their former employee owed them from ill-gotten kickbacks he received in under-valued contracts or omitted invoicing.He worked for Telecom as Procurement Manager from April 1995 to July 2001, when he was reportedly forced to resign.It was around the time he was facing charges of fraud related to scrap metal.The former Telecom manager jumped bail and forfeited the N$100 000 he had paid to be released.In his confession, Ganes allegedly said “a network” was set up within Telecom by “long-time employees who know its workings well to manipulate” the company system for their personal benefit.In his scrap metal case, Ganes has reportedly implicated the owner of a game lodge, who also runs a scrap metal business, claiming that the scam to defraud Telecom was hatched at the lodge.The owner could not be reached for comment as he is out of the country.Other people named by Ganes included suspended Telecom senior manager James Camm and Ettiene Weakly, a manager at Dresselhaus Scrap.Weakly said last week that nobody had contacted him in connection with information reportedly given by Ganes.However, former Telecom Managing Director Theo Mberirua laughed when asked whether he was aware that Ganes had tried to implicate him in other alleged scams to personally benefit from Telecom business.”That’s a bloody joke,” said Mberirua, who is now Managing Director for Standard Bank Namibia.”You are welcome to get as much information as you can.We are the ones who brought him to book anyway.”Mberirua offered The Namibian blanket access to his financial records – assets and income – to check against the allegations.Ganes has reportedly given the authorities wide-ranging leads accusing former Managing Director Bo Eklof and the Telecom board at that time of ignoring conflicts of interest involving another former employee, Welbert Ockhuizen.Ockhuizen dismissed the allegations against him, and said he welcomed a Telecom investigation.He said he had always been guided by “principles” rather than “convenience”.Ockhuizen said concerns of conflict of interest were cleared at the time when he worked for Telecom more than seven years ago.The Namibian understands that four people allegedly shared equally in the scrap copper collection contract, from which Ganes is believed to have gained N$10 million.Telecom has declined to comment on information that more suspensions are expected at the company, based on Ganes’s confession.The parastatal said the investigation that led to Camm’s suspension was still ongoing.

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