Windhoek
In view of the settlement agreement reached between TransNamib and its exonerated chief executive officer Sara Naanda, the board of directors says her employment record with the parastatal is left untarnished as a result of all the charges having been withdrawn against her.
Their views follow a negotiated settlement between TransNamib and Naanda which was sealed this week, subsequent to an endorsement of her settlement package by Minister of Works and Transport, Alpheus !Naruseb.
Answering queries by New Era regarding Naanda’s departure, the board of directors made it clear that Naanda was not fired as was previously widely speculated.
“The current board of directors has considered it in the best interest of both Ms Naanda and TransNamib not to pursue and continue with the suspension and disciplinary hearing of Naanda. Naanda is therefore, in view of the settlement agreement reached between the parties, cleared of the disciplinary process and all charges levelled against her are unconditionally withdrawn,” the board stated.
TransNamib spokesperson Cassius Moetie declined to shed any light on the settlement agreement speculated to amount to several millions of Namibian dollars, referring queries to the chairman of the board, Paul Smit.
“We are not privy to that information. Those are highly confidential staff of the board. We are not part of it. If you want that information call the chairman directly,” Moetie said.
!Naruseb also declined to comment on the settlement agreement, saying, “TransNamib has a board who should answer.”
The chairman was not available for comment at the time of going to press.
Equally, Naanda was also not available for comment now that she has been cleared of any charges against her.
Further, the board said the “irreparable pain and damage caused to her good name and reputation is deeply regretted. Ms Naanda’s employment record with TransNamib is left untarnished as a result of the withdrawal of all charges.”
Naanda’s much publicised intimate relationship with business executive Augustinus Katiti had come into sharper focus after being cited in a set of draft charges served on her by the company in October last year.
Naanda – who was suspended on October 30, 2014 – received the charges after the completion of an investigation into the company by audit firm Ernst & Young.
She was cited in three charges – breach of confidentiality obligations, conflict of interest and breach of trust – documents seen by New Era indicate.
The charge sheet is littered with Katiti’s name, especially under the subjects of breach of confidentiality and conflict of interest.
However, Naanda’s lawyer Richard Metcalfe would contend that his client was being charged under the authority of former board chairman – Dr Pieter Oosthuizen – who allegedly had no legal papers to work in Namibia.
“This board is deeply pleased to inform the public that the relationship between Naanda and TransNamib was amicably terminated and as such, TransNamib wishes Naanda all the best for the future,” the board noted.
Even though Naanda has been cleared of any charges against her, the Swapo Party Youth League (SPYL) had expressed concern that many heads of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) who had been relieved of their duties are female.
SPYL secretary for information, mobilisation and publicity, Neville Andre Itope, recently said one of the issues discussed at a meeting was that women at the helm of SOEs were mainly the ones being fired by their respective boards of directors.
“On this basis, we see progressive females being victimised by their respective boards. We are calling for their rights to be protected and for them to be given a fair opportunity to serve their country,” Itope said.
He urged the government to find control mechanisms to end this situation.
Some of the female heads of SOEs who have been fired are former managing director (MD) of Air Namibia Theo Namases and Maria Nangolo-Rukoro, the former MD of the Namibia Training Authority.