Tjongarero in the dark over N$700 000 stolen from her account

Minister of sport, youth and national service Agnes Tjongarero says she has not received any communication from First National Bank (FNB) concerning the investigation into the N$700 000 that was stolen from her account.

Tjongarero was defrauded of N$711 200 in personal savings by a scammer pretending to be a FNB official on 18 November 2024.

She told The Namibian on Monday she has received no updates from the bank regarding any progress in recovering her money or whether any arrests have been made.

“I have not heard anything from the bank on the progress since last year.

“All I know is that the bank promised to investigate and I have not heard anything,” she said.

Tjongarero last year suggested that she should start putting her money back under the mattress, the old way. She said the money she lost was her savings.

“This money was my savings and I have lost it. It is very scary and it can happen to anyone.”

The minister said the suspect approached her under the pretext of helping her with her bank cards.

“The person came with a story of cards, wanting to assist me with my bank card,” Tjongarero said.

She said the bank has not done much to help locate the suspect, who is yet to be identified.

“All the police tell me is that they are still busy with investigations and no one has been arrested yet.”

FNB chief marketing officer Tracy Eagles on Monday referred The Namibian to Tjongarero.

The Namibian had asked how far the investigation is and if any suspects have been apprehended in connection with the scam, or if the bank has refunded her money.

“Please follow up directly with madam Tjongarero on the scam in which she was defrauded,” Eagles said.

The minister’s case is one among a string of recent high-profile banking fraud incidents, raising concerns about the security of financial institutions and the measures in place to protect customers from such scams.

Tjongarero joins a list of ministers who have been scammed in the past three years, including prime minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila (N$159 000), minister of defence and veterans affairs Frans Kapofi (N$200 000) and agriculture minister Calle Schlettwein.

Last year, The Namibian reported that deputy finance and public enterprises minister Maureen Hinda-Mbuende described Tjongarero’s scam incident as an inside job.

Hinda-Mbuende said it will be difficult for the bank to gain trust from its customers.

“How do you intend to restore public confidence in the banking system, especially after such high-profile incidents? ‘‘We have come a long-way in building customer confidence and a banking culture, we can’t go back to putting money under the mattresses, for example,” she said.

“It is not even identity fraud; the call was apparently traced back to a call centre.

It may have been an internal bank staff fraud,” Hinda-Mbuende said.

She said it is impossible for Tjongarero to be robbed of such an amount in one day without notification messages reported on her phone.

“Banks, as financial institutions, are responsible for protecting their customers and clients against fraud in general, including cybercrime. Some of the methods used to scam are highly suspicious and cannot be done without inside information.

“It is simply unacceptable that money can supposedly just disappear within the Namibian banking sector, which is highly regulated and protected,” she said.

Hinda-Mbuende, who has previously worked in financial markets, said the bank has a lot to answer for in the case.

“There are systems in place or available to protect your money, like daily or monthly withdrawal and transaction limits. It is puzzling to hear a personal account of someone fraudulently robbed of an amount of over N$700 000 in one day without a notification message to her for that matter. Her bank has a lot to answer, but after they refund her,” she said.

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