Veteran lawyer Dirk Conradie convicted on two Anti‑Corruption Act charges in long‑running MTC case

Veteran lawyer Dirk Conradie and a co-accused in a long-running trial in the High Court have been found guilty on two charges under the Anti-Corruption Act.

Judge Thomas Masuku convicted Conradie (66) and a family friend, Sara Damases (61), on the two charges in a judgement delivered in the Windhoek High Court yesterday.

The charges are one count of corruptly soliciting gratification as a reward for using influence in procuring a contract and a count of attempting or conspiring to contravene sections of the Anti-Corruption Act.

Conradie alone was also charged with corruptly using his former position as chairperson of telecommunications company MTC’s board of directors to obtain gratification for himself or another person. Masuku found him not guilty on that charge.

Conradie, who has been a legal practitioner in Namibia since 1989, and Damases denied guilt on all of the charges during plea proceedings before Masuku in March 2016.

The state alleged that in June 2012 Conradie offered to use his influence as chairperson of MTC’s board of directors to have an advertising contract worth about N$60 million awarded to the advertising company DV8 Saatchi & Saatchi (DV8), if the company’s directors agreed to take Damases on board as a black economic empowerment (BEE) partner.

The two directors of DV8 told the court that Damases arrived at their office on 12 June 2012 and invited them to a meeting with Conradie to discuss a Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC) advertising tender in which their company was a shortlisted bidder.

Although they were apprehensive about meeting Conradie while the tender was under consideration, they attended the meeting at the office of Conradie’s law firm in Windhoek, the court was told.

One of the directors, Mark Bongers, testified that Conradie proposed a BEE partnership arrangement between DV8 and Damases during the meeting, and also said he would have enough support in the MTC board to have the advertising tender awarded to DV8.

After getting legal advice, Bongers and his co-director decided to report the matter to the Anti-Corruption Commission.

As it turned out, the MTC board decided to award the advertising tender to another company, which had previously also had a contract to provide advertising services to MTC.

Testifying in his own defence, Conradie told the court he regarded the issues of transformation and BEE at MTC as major problems.

He said with the benefit of hindsight he realised he should not have had the meeting with the directors of DV8, and it was reckless of him to do so, Masuku recounted in his judgement.

Masuku added that it was not only reckless for Conradie to have attended the meeting, but it was also improper and unlawful.

As chairperson of the MTC board of directors, Conradie’s behaviour should have been exemplary, but instead he violated MTC’s policy on tender secrecy by discussing the advertising tender with the directors of DV8, Masuku said.

He found that Conradie and Damases conspired to set up a meeting with the two directors, and during the meeting tried to persuade the directors to take Damases on as a BEE partner.

It was also clear that Conradie attempted with all the powers of persuasion at his disposal to persuade the MTC board not to award the advertising contract to the company that was DV8’s main competitor in the tender process, Masuku said.

Having found Conradie and Damases guilty, Masuku ordered them to report to the police each Friday while awaiting their sentencing.

They have to return to court on 26 February for a date for presentence proceedings to be decided.

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