Festus Nakatana
Agriculture, water and land reform minister Calle Schlettwein yesterday declared his personal worth for the second time after nearly 40 years in the public service.
Schlettwein, who had in 2016 declared assets worth N$7.78 million, said he is now worth N$15 million.
His personal property portfolio consists of two houses in Windhoek and Swakopmund.
The Swakopmund property is worth N$923 880, while his Klein Windhoek property is worth a little over N$9.6 million, compared to a rough valuation of N$3.5 million when he last declared his personal worth in 2016.
He said in a statement yesterday the value of his property in Windhoek has increased following renovations to the residence.
“I had our family residence renovated and extended with a stand-alone flat on the same property. This asset was valued by the bank and disclosed at the revalued balance in the declaration with a combined asset value of N$9.650 million (N$7.550 million for the main house and N$2.1 million for the flat),” he said.
“In the previous asset declaration, this was listed at N$3.538 million, therefore representing an increase of about N$6.1 million. I invested approximately N$3.5 million on the residence, thus the net increase in the asset declaration amounted to N$2.6 million.”
According to Schlettwein, the insured value of the household goods increased by N$500 000, which he said was largely attributable to inflation.
“I have included in this asset declaration the withdrawal benefit of the Political Office Bearer’s Pension valued currently at N$2.575 million, which was not covered in the declaration of 2016. In addition to this, I have been saving and re-investing a part of my personal salary, which results in the remaining increase in my net assets. The renovations and extension of my house were financed by increasing the mortgage bond on the property from N$119 964 in 2016 to N$1.8 million. Currently, the bond balance is N$1 001 852.”
The former finance minister also announced two endowment policies held with Sanlam matured after the 2016 declaration, saying he used the proceeds to partly fund renovations at his Windhoek home.
“The total termination value was N$526 125. Thirdly, the cash investment held in an FNB Flexi Fixed Deposit Account of N$519 764 was liquidated and used to pay for construction cost. The remainder of the N$660 000 construction cost was paid from my personal salary and monthly GIPF pension benefits,” he said.
Schlettwein also declared six cars, including a 2015 Mercedes Benz E400 valued at N$468 400, a 2000 Mercedes Benz C180 (valued at N$44 600), a 2006 Jeep Commander (valued at N$78 400), a 2002 Mercedes Benz C200 valued at N$68 200, as well as a 2010 Mercedes Benz E200 with a value of N$186 500.
– fnakatana@nepc.com.na