Tribal motivations raised in transfer of VIP Police chief

JUDGEMENT was reserved in the urgent interim relief sought by head of the VIP Protection Directorate (VIPPD) in the Namibian Police, Commissioner Christoph Nakanyala, to stop his transfer to the Omaheke Region.

The case was heard in the High Court on Friday before Judge Dave Smuts, who said he needed to consider submissions made by all parties. Nakanyala contested his transfer by accusing first respondent, Inspector General of the Police Sebastian Ndeitunga, of basing the decision to send him to Omaheke as the regional commander there on unjustified suspicions against him. Representing Ndeitunga, advocate Gerson Narib maintained that the urgent application was premature because Nakanyala has internal remedies available to him. He added that the transfer was not with immediate effect, but subject to Nakanyala making representations regarding the transfer and the completion of an investigation against him. The investigation revolved around an SMS which he sent to a Major General James Tjivikua on May 28 in which ‘a tribal connotation’ was made. Ndeitunga would not disclose the content of the SMS, except to say that it was ‘tribalistic natured’ with a ‘sensitive nature’. He said he would have to make a ‘very careful assessment’ of whether to disclose the SMS content ‘as it impacts on the dignity of a number of people within the State machinery including the Office of the President’. But Nakanyala is accused of having claimed that President Hifikepunye Pohamba was only surrounded by security personnel from the Mbalantu and Kwambi tribes, and that he said he was ‘tired’ of this. ‘The text message is inflammatory and has racial, tribal, ethnic and regionalist connotations,’ Ndeitunga said in his affidavit. He added that the position of head of the VIPPD is one of trust. ‘I am of the view, which view is and was supported by the findings of the preliminary investigation, that if the head of the VIPPD is involved with the sending of a serious and offensive tribalistic text message, that trust relationship is damaged and the security of the VIP’s is compromised,’ held Ndeitunga. He further said that he has doubts about Nakanyala’s ‘aptitude and commitment’ to execute the functions of commander of the VIPPD with the requisite skill and diligence. Once the cellphone is found, said Ndeitunga, it will be sent for forensic tests, saying that preliminary investigation proved ‘reasonable suspicion’ that the text message emanated from Nakanyala. Sisa Namandje acting for Nakanyala charged that the investigating team consist of criminal investigators, noting that a more appropriate action would be to call Nakanyala before a disciplinary hearing instead of the summary transfer. Ndeitunga’s defence was that Nakanyala was afforded an opportunity to respond to the allegations, or make representations. In fact, he continued, he was informed that Nakanyala was given more than one opportunity to make his presentations to the investigating committee, but that he failed or refused to do so. He said Nakanyala again on June 15 said he was not ready to make a statement to the committee, and that a meeting scheduled for June 17 did not materialise because Nakanyala had told the committee that he was no longer ready to make representations. Ndeitunga, however, acknowledged that Nakanyala was not given an opportunity to respond to his move to the Police head quarters, away from his VIPPD position. He maintained that he is entitled to transfer staff, and is thus continually attempting to balance and structure the Police force in respect of need, experience, gender, ethical groupings by deploying members to different positions, ranks and offices. Namandje questioned why someone whose trust was questioned was sent as regional commander of the Omaheke Region. He further maintained that the SMS could not pose a threat to anyone, and that it was probably addressed secretly. A more appropriate action, said Namandje, would have been to institute a disciplinary hearing against Nakanyala, or to suspend him if indeed he posed a security danger. Nakanyala in his founding affidavit claimed that Ndeitunga on various occasions through the years accused him of tribalism, and that he ‘was against the Kwanyama’ members of the Police.He said he was also accused of transferring Kwanyama members at the expense of other tribal members, and that he was frequenting the house of a retired prominent Swapo leader.