Two former executives of the Namibia Institute of Pathology (NIP) have questioned the manner in which the company handled a disciplinary process, which recommended their dismissal in October last year.
The two executives, Valerie Garises (chief technology officer) and Monika Pendukeni (chief human capital officer), have claimed through their lawyers Tjitemisa & Associates that they were not afforded an opportunity to appeal against the ruling of their disciplinary hearing.
Garises and Pendukeni were dismissed in October last year after what they claimed a “tedious and costly” disciplinary hearing.
Their sacking follows the dismissal of three other executives: Harold Kaura (chief operations officer), Cleophas Mbahijona (chief financial officer) and Jennifer Kauapirura (chief strategy and business development officer), who were shown the door in 2019 after they were found guilty of gross negligence.
Both Pendukeni and Garises appealed against the guilty verdict, claiming procedural unfairness and substantive unfairness.
“Subsequent to the employees and employer having submitted their respective written heads of arguments, the chairperson should have reconvened the proceedings as provided for in section 10.6.1 (j) in order to in the presence of the employees determine whether the employees have any mitigating and extenuating circumstances to submit before he recommended the sanction of dismissal,” their lawyers wrote to the NIP CEO Kapena Tjombonde in a letter seen by New Era.
“The employees were denied that right, as they were never called in to present any mitigating and extenuating circumstances and nor were they invited to submit same in writing before the chairperson recommended their dismissal. The sanction of dismissal meted out against the employees was done in the absence of any mitigating and extenuating circumstances from the employees.”
The executives were dismissed on allegations of mismanagement, fraud and corruption.
Their lawyers maintained that as per the ruling of the appeal chairperson Franscois Bangamwabo on 1 December 2020, the appeal should have been disposed of.
This, they say, is so because it is an undisputed fact that on 28 January 2019, the chairperson of the disciplinary hearing refused both the employees an opportunity to call their only witness, who is former NIP CEO Augustinus Katiti.
Katiti was sacked by NIP in 2018.
Garises and Pendukeni, through their lawyers, claimed the employer acted in contravention of its policy, the common law, the Labour Act and the Namibian Constitution in dismissing the employees without following a fair procedure.
As such, they opposed the original disciplinary hearing outcome is a nullity and should be set aside – and that was no need for a further appeal forum.
“The employees should be re-instated. The further conducting of an appeal in the face of the ruling of the appeal chairperson (although recused himself) is a waste of public funds and NIP, as a public entity relying on public funds, should act responsibly and fair[ly],” they demanded.
For fairness to all the parties, they urged NIP to obtain legal advice from a senior counsel, who is an expert in labour matters in this regard, before it embarks on a further appeal, which will be costly and tedious.
Contacted for comment this week, NIP manager for corporate affairs Johannes Klemens confirmed they have received the letter from the lawyers representing the two dismissed employees.
“The matter is being dealt with internally in accordance with the NIP policies and procedures,” he said.
The lawyers argued the sacked executives submitted their notice of appeal and extensive grounds of appeal – but until today, the employer has not submitted its written opposition and written grounds of opposition to counter the employee’s grounds of appeal.
“As per the direction of the appeal chairperson, the parties presented oral submissions – and thereafter, the appeal chairperson ordered the parties to make submissions in writing, which the parties complied with,” the lawyers stated. On 17 December 2020, the appeal chairperson delivered his ruling and found “the initial disciplinary committee committed procedural irregularity by not allowing appellants to call their only witness – that is Mr Katiti, the former CEO NIP”.
– anakale@nepc.com.na