2015-09-17Staff Report 2 Windhoek A number of disgruntled Institute of Bankers (IOB) students on Tuesday locked out staff at the institution, bringing to a grinding halt its academic and administrative activities. Accompanied by the National Students Organisation (Nanso) members that include its president, Wilhelm Wilhelm, and in the presence of the police, irate IOB students expressed their dissatisfaction with the management style of the CEO of IOB, John-Day Mandey. “This offices will be shut until IOB chairperson Ipumbu Shiimi responds to our petition,” warned IOB Student Representative Council (SRC) president Simpson Nangolo on Tuesday. In the petition to Shiimi earlier this month, students had also demanded the immediate removal of Mandey, saying they want a competent person with a master’s or a PhD degree in education and administration, who can be interviewed and scrutinized by the IOB council and its examination committee. “An individual that values education and has the education of the Namibian child at heart to transform them into productive citizens of this country,” the petition said. Contacted for comment, Shiimi said he did not understand why students opted to shut the institution while knowing that a meeting was scheduled for Thursday (today) to brief them on what the council decided. I will hear from them tomorrow,” he said. Since the beginning of this year, students and staff at the institute have been unhappy with the management style of Mandey. They accuse Mandey of running the institute as a one-man show with no consideration of the students and staff’s interests. In the past Mandey has been unwilling to speak to the media. Yesterday his phone went unanswered and it was later switched off. It is alleged Mandey does not listen to students and staff’s grievances nor does he communicate with fellow staff members. Mandey, whom the students call “Mr Pass-By” because he does not talk to anyone and only walks by, is accused of not holding a graduation ceremony since 2013, and not giving them opportunities to do internships with local banks. Employees at the institute, who declined to be named for fear of victimisation, said that since the arrival of Mandey last year there has been no staff meeting. They said he at times he tells staff to go and report him to the Bank of Namibia Governor Ipumbu Shiimi, while he allegedly claims IOB belongs to him. Under fire …. John-Day Mandey. 2015-09-17Staff Report 2
