2016-11-10Staff Report 2 Windhoek - In yet another ugly twist of events the chief administrator of the Namibia Professional Boxing & Wrestling Control Board (NPBWCB), Joe Kaperu, has been suspended with immediate effect by the board for alleged insubordination. Upon inquiry late yesterday, Kaperu confirmed his suspension, saying he was given clear instructions in a letter from the board to pack all his belongings and vacate the office with immediate effect. Pressed to shed light on what actually led to his shocking suspension, Kaperu was a bit hesitant to go into detail, saying it was too early to discuss the content of the suspension letter as his lawyers were busy going through the letter and weighing their options as far as the legality of the suspension is concerned. Despite his halfhearted disclosure, what is clear however is that Kaperu was suspended for various reasons, all amounting to gross insubordination but as per his own words he termed it pure “victimisation’’. “I received the suspension letter today and all I can really confirm at this moment is that I’m under suspension and busy packing all my belongings now as we speak. Without going too much into the content of the suspension letter, all I can say is that my lawyers are busy reviewing the letter and also scrutinizing its legality, as I was not even given a written or verbal warning,” said Kaperu, who added that his lawyers were now handling the matter. Contacted for comment, NPBWCB chairperson Ellison Hijarunguru point-blankly refused to comment on the matter, saying it is not a media issue and hence it will not be discussed in the media. “I will not comment on the issue nor will I discuss it with you my brother, I don’t discuss board issues and decisions in the media. If you want to find out the reason why he (Kaperu) was suspended, I would advise you to call him yourself and he will perhaps tell why we took the decision we took. We as a leadership are in charge and when we take a decision it is within the best interest of boxing, so don’t think we are driven by sentiments. Leadership is not for the fainthearted,” a clearly irritated Hijarunguru said before accusing this author of having an agenda against him. 2016-11-10Staff Report 2
