By William Mbangula Oshakati Some high-ranking government officials are accused of being behind a vindictive plot to destroy the Namibia National Construction Association (NANCA) by using former members. It is alleged that such powerful government officials want to destroy NANCA, a consortium of local contractors, so as to replace it with something else from which they and their cronies can benefit directly. Reacting to a story which appeared in the New Era of Friday, February 9, NANCA chairperson, Michael Heita, dismissed the allegations as lies and a misrepresentation of facts by former members of NANCA. The involvement of top government officials has been manifested in many ways, including the allocation of the tender for the construction of Mwadikange Kaulinge Secondary School at Ondobe which was given to NANCA after Cabinet was deadlocked for six months due to stiff resistance by anti-NANCA elements in government, he said. He accused disgruntled former NANCA members of being messengers of plotters in the government who want to do away with NANCA. In that story, former NANCA chairperson, Erastus Shamwene Kalola, accused NANCA’s current leadership of being autocratic. Sketching the background to the conflict, Heita explained that it all started way back in November 2004 when the disgruntled members conducted a clandestine meeting at the house of one of the members, Moses Thomas. The meeting was in contravention of a resolution taken on June 20,1997 which prohibits any member from holding meetings outside NANCA’s offices without the consent of the executive committee. It is clearly stated in that resolution taken at a meeting, also attended by Kalola, that if such unauthorized meetings take place, the members involved may face disciplinary action, including termination of membership. Prior to NANCA’s Annual General Meeting on November 13, 2004, such clandestine meeting took place the previous day which influenced some members to vote for Kalola as chairperson, but this was short-lived after it was discovered that the resolution was violated by Kalola and the ten other members. It was therefore agreed that disciplinary measures be effected by suspending them altogether. According to Heita, it appears that some of the suspended members, including Kalola and Moses Thomas, did not like the disciplinary action taken against them, hence their vigorous campaign to unseat the current leadership and to ‘create chaos” in NANCA. Even though their suspension was lifted on March 7, 2005 by way of letters presented to them in public, the group continued fighting the leadership. This again happened after a reconciliation meeting, attended by Oshana Governor Clemens Kashuupulwa as the representative of the government, was held. Heita disputed suggestions that Kalola and others are members of NANCA because he is in possession of a letter dated June 14, 2006 from Kalola himself in which he informed NANCA that they had formed a rival association called National Contractors and Electricity Services. Kalola said in his letter: “It is not a secret that we have already formed an association, and we have set up our goals and objectives of our association and we have also committed ourselves in different projects for which we need more resources urgently in order to carry our activities effectively.” Concerning the alleged misuse of funds by NANCA, Heita explained that each cent used by NANCA is accounted for, and the association has auditors who go through their books regularly. Regarding the N$20ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000 cheque issued following the death of Zambian national, Gordon Sachisengo who was employed by the Ministry of Works, Transport and Communications, Heita explained that the decision was taken at a meeting held on August 16, 2003, which was also attended by Kalola. At the meeting it was agreed, out of goodwill, sympathy with the family of the deceased and mutual co-existence, that since the late Sachisengo had done a lot for Namibian contractors, a contribution was to be made to his family. A donation of N$12ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000 was made to his family while the remaining N$8ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000 was used for transport and accommodation costs by the four delegates from NANCA who attended the funeral in Zambia, including Kalola. Such transport provided by NANCA also assisted the widow and children who were stranded in Windhoek because the government only paid for transport of the Sachisengo’s body to Zambia but not for other persons. This, he said, was not the first time NANCA had made a donation as part of its social responsibility. Others were done at Okatana Hospital, Indira Ghandi Clinic at Onemanya, Ministry of Education at Ondangwa, and many other places. On the complaint that Ben Zaaruka is a long-serving treasurer of NANCA, Heita explained that he is elected every year by popular vote because of his ability and dedication to the development of local contractors. Every time Zaaruka is elected, said Heita, he is challenged and he defeats all his challengers hands down. Concerning cheques alleged to have been issued by him, Heita denied this, saying all was done procedurally and he can produce documents to that effect. Another complaint regarding Zaaruka is the fact that he was paid N$85ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 756.54 for the work done at Omauni Primary School in 2001, where Zaaruka’s company B&A Construction was given a tender like any other contractor to do the work. The money was approved and paid by the Ministry of Works, Transport and Communication, like any other contractor. Kalola did the same work at Kayengona Primary School in Kavango and was paid in the same way. The NANCA chairperson believes that the Kalola group has been waging a war of character assassination and defamation against the leadership of NANCA by reporting unproven incidents to members of the Police, Parliament, Office of the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Works, Transport and Communication. The group convinced the Office of the Prime Minister on April 11, 2005 to secure a search warrant which enabled the Police to close the NANCA office for two days under the pretext of investigating an offence committed at the offices, he said. According to Heita, the police searched for two days for documents which could implicate the NANCA leadership in any wrongdoing, but they failed to find anything. Again, on November 2, 2006, the allegations made by the group in the New Era story were part of the questions raised by Phillemon Moongo, the DTA MP in which he accused NANCA of being corrupt. The turmoil in NANCA turned ugly with allegations that on June 15, 2005 at about 12h00 Kalola and Thomas Moses made death threats against two NANCA executives, Onesmus Haimbodi and Simeon Shikulo, in Oshakati. Following the alleged death threats, Kalola was arrested and his case is to be heard next month, according to documents dated September 27, 2006 from NANCA’s lawyers, Dr Weder, Kauta & Hoveka Inc.