Sostenus Wilherm
The municipality of Gobabis is facing a claim of nearly N$1.8 million from Bethlehem Builders over an eight-year-old sewerage project, with the legal battle set to continue in the High Court after the municipality’s legal representative failed to appear for a scheduled hearing.
The matter, involving businessman Petrus Nangoro and his company Bethlehem Builders, was postponed on Friday by High Court judge Hannelie Prinsloo to 12 August 2026 for a civil part-heard hearing concerning an application for absolution from the instance.
According to the court order, the postponement followed the absence of the municipality’s legal practitioner, who reportedly experienced car problems and could not make it to court.
The dispute stems from a tender awarded to Bethlehem Builders in 2015 for the construction and reticulation of the Ongulumbashe sewerage system under tender GO 07/2015.
Court documents indicate that the contractor initially submitted a tender amount of N$7.46 million, which increased to N$11.2 million following verification and arithmetic checks.
The municipality subsequently awarded the project to Bethlehem Builders at a negotiated price of approximately N$4.3 million.
The contract was later increased through Variation Order No. 1, dated September 2016, by N$810,000 to accommodate the bypassing of existing tin houses located in the path of the proposed sewer line. This brought the revised contract amount to N$5.09 million.
The contractor’s claim centres largely on what it describes as unforeseen quantities of hard rock encountered during construction.
According to Nangoro, the tender made provision for the excavation of 553.30 cubic metres of hard rock, but the quantity encountered during the project allegedly increased substantially.
He claims that the additional excavation and disposal of unsuitable material resulted in extra costs of N$1.305 million.
Nangoro further alleges that repeated attempts were made to obtain clarity from the municipality’s engineer on how the quantities for rock excavation were calculated and says the municipality’s representatives failed to maintain proper records.
The contractor claims the total cost of the project eventually reached N$6.395 million, while payments amounting to N$4.599 million were made.
This, according to the claim, left an outstanding balance of N$1.796 million, which Bethlehem Builders is seeking from the municipality, with a 20% interest per annum, legal costs and further or alternative relief.
The project was handed over on 12 June 2018, but Nangoro says he did not sign a discharge note because the final payment had allegedly not been made.
The contractor subsequently attempted to resolve the dispute outside court, writing to the municipality’s chief executive officer on 19 January 2023. A response was reportedly received on 3 February 2023, but the dispute proceeded to litigation.
The claim also refers to a draft communication from the ministry of urban and rural development concerning a revised bill of quantities for the project.
The municipality, in the documents provided, has not conceded liability for the amount claimed by Bethlehem Builders. The proceedings therefore remain contested, and the contractor’s allegations have yet to be finally determined by the court.
The latest postponement means the dispute will return to court on 12 August 2026, when the parties are expected to proceed with the part-heard civil matter and the application for absolution from the instance.
