Niël Terblanché
The Agro-marketing and Trade Agency (Amta) managing director Lucas Lungameni has been fired by the agency’s Board of Directors today after he was found guilty on eight counts of misconduct, which includes the disappearance of around N$6,2 million.
Lungameni was suspended last year after irregularities and rampant corruption were reported to the board.
In a statement, Lorna Shikongo-Kuvare, Chairperson of the Amta Board of Directors, confirmed the sacking of Lungameni and said he breached several contractual obligations to the agency.
“Despite the unfortunate outcome of the disciplinary hearing, the board of Amta assures the public and its stakeholders that it will continue to uphold the rule of law and strive for good corporate governance on behalf of the Agency,” Shikongo-Kuvare said.
Lungameni was suspended in January of this year and was subsequently fired by the board of directors.
He faced charges such as failing to protect the interests of the company, failing to act with due diligence, breach of trust and gross negligence.
Lungameni was found guilty of all eight counts of misconduct.
It was reported that a forensic investigation found that Lungameni ‘self-approved’ salary advances on four occasions while he did not have the power to do so.
During the disciplinary process, it was found that Lungameni was overpaid by N$3,1 million from 2014 to 2018 and that five other senior Amta officials were overpaid by N$1,5 million each over roughly the same period.
Lungameni was also held liable for cash withdrawals of N$14,2 million by his subordinates and third parties. The withdrawals were made from five Amta bank accounts.
