FORMER National Fishing Corporation of Namibia (Fishcor) director Bennett Kangumu has said the Fishcor board of directors did not approve the payment of N$17,5 million that ended up in the pockets of
Documents filed in the Fishrot proceedings in Namibia reveal a case of extraordinary complexity and opacity.
Kangumu said the board learnt about payments which Fishcor had made to the law firm Sisa Namandje & Co for the first time in the media. The payments are linked to the Fishrot fishing quotas fraud and corruption case. After the money had been paid to the law firm, around N$15 million was later paid to businessman Vaino Nghipondoka and Swapo's Oshikoto regional coordinator, Armas Amukwiyu, in 2015. “I can confirm that the payments were not discussed or authorised by the board and there is no board resolution to that effect, for those amounts of N$15 million and N$2,5 million,” Kangumu stated in his affidavit. He added that the transactions did not reflect on Fishcor's bank account. However, when the board enquired from former Fishcor finance manager Paulus Ngalangi why the transactions did not reflect on the state-owned fishing company's account, Ngalangi allegedly said the payments were part of “governmental objectives” fishing quotas that were only reflected in the control accounts and not in Fishcor's bank accounts.
