By Catherine Sasman
WINDHOEK
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) last week on Wednesday said it found no fault in the manner in which Namibia Liquid Fuels (NLF) was awarded a three-year tender to supply Namibia with an annual 830 million litres of fuel.
Reacting to an anonymous tip-off, the ACC lodged an investigation into the tendering procedure that has landed the empowerment group a very lucrative contract worth about N$400 million per year, in July last year.
The National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (NAMCOR) awarded the oil-transportation licence to NLF, in a joint venture with Sasol, South Africa.
At the time this had sparked public outrage with allegations that the tender was awarded to the group due to its high-powered shareholding, which included top public officials.
Philco 20 – a subsidiary of NLF – holds 51 percent shares in the joint venture with Sasol.
It consists of an assortment of empowerment partners, including shareholding by the former Secretary in the Office of the President, Ndeutala Angolo, and Andries Leevi Hugamo (Director of Economic Affairs in the same high office), the Etanga Business Development with Deputy Minister of Gender and Child Welfare, Angelika Maherukua as its sole shareholder, Sacky Shangala, and former unionist, Ranga Haikali, who is the chairperson of NLF.
After an investigation of nearly a year, the ACC concluded that there is no substance in the allegations that political influence was exerted in awarding the tender to Sasol and NLF and that these allegations were “speculative in nature”.
The ACC findings stated that NAMCOR had “correctly and fairly awarded the tender to the Sasol/NLF joint venture”.
It further found that it was still not against the law for public servants to “engage in remunerative work outside the public service provided permission thereof has been granted”.
Haikali said such permission was granted and confirmed.
At an earlier occasion Managing Director of NAMCOR, Sam Beukes, indicated to New Era that the national petroleum corporation “still believed that the process of awarding the tender [to NLF and Sasol] was fair” and that “all criteria that had to be undertaken had been done”.
“I can assure you that NAMCOR was not influenced by the government or anybody else when it decided to give the tender to NLF,” said Beukes at the time.
He also said that NAMCOR at the time “did not know the shareholding structure” of the NLF, and that the “shareholding was never a requirement” for the tendering procedure.
“The requirement was that they [the tenders] needed to be connected to a well-established international player such as Sasol,” said Beukes.
“NAMCOR indemnified itself by saying that it would not get involved in the structures that were being set up between companies and international and local players.”
The polemic around the Namibia Oil Corporation (Namenco) negotiations with Sasol, said Beukes, “was something that was outside the NAMCOR award”.
The contract with NAMCOR to bring in 50 percent of Namibia’s oil and gas supplies comes to an end at the end of this year.
Beukes at the time also indicated that the corporation had no intention to go out and have another round of tenders for the petroleum supply.
The corporation is in the process of readying itself to take over the supply itself.
Should it not be ready by the time the NLF contract comes to an end, said Beukes, NAMCOR would consider its options.
But, he said, the option was not with NLF or any other player.
“NLF will continue to look at other business opportunities but we would be happy if NAMCOR renews our tender,” said Haikali about the impending termination of the supply contract.
“NLF was not only created for the NAMCOR tender,” he said.