Hertta-Maria Amutenja
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has confirmed that its investigation into suspected fraudulent activities at the Business and Intellectual Property Authority (BIPA) is nearing completion, with potential prosecution on the horizon.
The case revolves around allegations of unauthorised amendments to the ownership structure of Orange River Exploration and Mining CC, owned by businessman, Peter Shifwaku.
The investigation has identified some BIPA officials as suspects. The names of the suspects are known to the Windhoek Observer.
“I confirm that the allegations are under investigation by ACC. Some officials at BIPA are suspects, and the docket is at an advanced stage for submission to the Prosecutor-General for a decision on whether to prosecute,” said ACC Director, Paulus Noa.
He reiterated the commission’s commitment to investigating and prosecuting corruption, noting that “corruption can destroy the economy and national development and must not be tolerated.”
According to documents seen by the Windhoek Observer, the allegations involve fraudulent changes to the founding documents of Orange River Exploration and Mining CC, which was registered on 19 March 2020.
These changes allegedly included the forgery of a signature from one of the company’s members and the submission of a notarised passport under questionable circumstances.
These actions were carried out without following proper procedures, such as creating a temporary file while the original documents were in BIPA’s custody.
The case came to light when BIPA’s chairperson, Immanuel Harebeb, alerted the former CEO, Vivienne Katjiuongua.
Katjiuongua confirmed through an internal inquiry that the submission and approval of the amended founding statement violated Section 15 of the Close Corporation Act of 1988.
“The signature of one of the members of the entity was forged and inserted onto the amended founding statement, and a copy of the passport was fraudulently obtained and notarised,” Katjiuongua’s statement reads.
In response, she moved the original file for safekeeping. Despite her precautions, fraudsters allegedly circumvented the safeguard by creating a temporary file, a process that flouted BIPA’s standard operating procedures.
Katjiuongua annulled the amendments in response to these irregularities, but the court later overturned her decision.
In September 2023, the High Court ruled that Katjiuongua’s decision to cancel the amended founding statement was unlawful.
The court determined that she lacked legislative authority to annul the documents, as it deemed her to have no further legal standing in the matter.
Consequently, the Supreme Court upheld the validity of the amended documents. In response, BIPA filed an appeal with the Supreme Court in October 2023.
The investigation also involves Mercia Tjazerua, a BIPA records clerk, who was approached by the ACC following an inquiry about the ownership structure of Orange River Exploration and Mining CC.
Tjazerua became involved after the company’s file was requested by Paulus Nghifikepunye of Sinco Holdings but could not be located in BIPA’s records or archives.
Despite extensive efforts to locate the file, it remained unavailable.
Tjazerua, who received the request after a two-week search by other staff members, confirmed that there was no procedure for creating temporary files in such cases.
She provided a sworn affidavit acknowledging the file’s unavailability and the lack of a procedure for creating temporary records.
Tjazerua was later questioned by Tuyuve Tuyuve of the ACC regarding these matters.
In June 2022, BIPA Board Chairperson, Immanuel !Hanabeb raised concerns with Katjiuongua about a potential fraudulent attempt to alter the ownership structure of Orange River Exploration and Mining CC.
Following these concerns, Katjiuongua reported the issue to the ACC.
The case is now before the Supreme Court.
BIPA spokesperson, Ockert Jansen stated that the matter is currently before the court and cannot be commented on as it is sub judice.
