By Mbatjiua Ngavirue WINDHOEK General Secretary of the National Union of Namibian Workers, Evilastus Kaaronda, has accused Namibian politicians of deserting workers at Agribank because of the conflict of interest brought about by their huge debts at the bank. Speaking at a media conference yesterday, he said that politicians opted to desert the workers, thus leaving them to languish, perish or come to their own rescue. “The careless wait-and-see attitude conspicuously displayed by the political leadership of the country in the face of a looming social upheaval is gravely disturbing,” he warned. The workers of the country, he added, had little choice but to conclude that the politicians’ silence had something to do with most, if not all, the country’s political leaders owing Agribank large amounts of money for their farms. “They probably owe Agribank handsome amounts of money, and therefore the best thing to do is remain mute in the face of this challenge,” he said with obvious frustration. The conflict of interest Kaaronda mentioned could simply refer to politicians not wanting to make too much noise lest the bank looks too closely at their arrear balances. At a press conference last week, Namibia Financial Institutions Union President David Shikulo attributed the financial problems of Agribank to bad debt accumulated through ill-judged investments in Uri Khubis abattoir and the grape industry. People have however known for some time that the arrears book for the Affirmative Action Loan Scheme (AALS) has also reached huge proportions. It is an open secret that for some time politicians and others have agitated behind the scenes for Agribank to write off their entire farm loans, hoping they get the farms for virtually nothing. Kaaronda said it was particularly disturbing that Agribank CEO, Ambassador Leonard Ipumbu himself, owed Agribank N$1,9 million, saying this inevitably contributed to the current financial crisis the bank finds itself in. “On this score alone, the CEO of Agribank almost automatically qualifies to be on the list of retrenchment-affected employees, not to mention that he might not be suitably qualified for the position he holds,” the NUNW leader said. He reiterated that there is more than meets the eye as far as the proposed redundancies at Agribank are concerned. The same applied to the “allegedly financially ailing” National Housing Enterprise (NHE) where the CEO Vincent Hailulu was spending the company’s finances almost wastefully. Between November 2006 and January 2007, the CEO allegedly paid a consultant N$178 064,15 for consultancy services. Then again, between June 2006 and April 2007 he paid another consultant N$120 750 to advise the company on the same subject, namely retrenchments. This is despite the fact that the company has its own Human Resources and Industrial Relations departments staffed with qualified personnel. “Companies that rely so heavily on outside consultants must be led by incompetent leaders,” Kaaronda charged. Another example of the CEO’s unbridled wastefulness, cited by Kaaronda, was his purchase of a brand-new chair for himself at a cost of N$14 233,62. The NUNW is worried about the situation at the company because some monies withdrawn by the CEO between November and December 2006, amounting to N$46 074,95 remained unaccounted for. All this was happening while the company was bleeding to death and it laid innocent workers off. “The NUNW remains convinced that the hands-off approach, in effect the care-free attitude of government, especially the line ministry in the affairs of this parastatal is highly imprudent and must therefore be stopped. “Government’s inability to take charge of our country’s strategic development institutions is self-defeating as it contributes to the misery of our citizens as well as the reproduction of poverty in our country,” he criticised. He blamed a N$440 000 loss at the NHE between September 2006 and April 2007 to failure to collect interest income because of incompetence and gross negligence on the part of the NHE CEO. “These revenue leakages continue to persist as the competent employees are no longer with the company due to retrenchment,” he added. The NUNW believed that both the Agribank and NHE CEOs might not be suitably qualified for their jobs, and would therefore approach the courts to add the names of the CEOs to the list of employees earmarked for retrenchment. “As these CEOs are by definition also employees of their respective institutions, we would pray that they be treated just like other employees, most especially regarding their suitability,” he urged. Article 10 of the Namibian Constitution guarantees every Namibian’s right against discrimination or treatment less favourable than anyone else, including by the two parastatals. Kaaronda again raised an issue previously raised by Nafinu on numerous occasions – the relationship between Vincent Hailulu and NHE Board Chairperson Professor Gerhard TÃÆ’Æ‘Æ‘ÃÆ”šÃ‚¶temeyer. The two are partners in the consultancy firm, New Paradigm Consultancy, and allegedly often travel the world together at NHE expense – ostensibly on NHE business. Kaaronda described their relationship as unhealthy, because they were business partners at night and then employee and employer during the day at NHE, a situation he said could no longer remain unchallenged. “One wonders why the Anti-Corruption Commission is mute on this unhealthy state of affairs,” Kaaronda questioned. Regarding the NHE’s threat to forcibly remove workers picketing its premises using armed private security guards, Kaaronda strongly warned against such a move, saying it could have unpredictable consequences. “If they feel they can employ the same tactics used by the colonial government, they must know they are directing those actions against people who have dealt with those tactics before. “The workers will forcefully resist any attempt to remove them, and the results could be violent,” he warned.