O’brien Simasiku
Conrad Lutombi who is touted to take over the helm of the City of Windhoek (CoW) says he has not been formally informed yet, thus he has nothing much to say on whether he accepts or rejects the offer.
Lutombi who is the current CEO of Roads Authority (RA) came tops in the three level interviews in which he scored 80%. But this was questioned by some city councillors who wanted to have the process scrapped and redone. Among the reasons were that Lutombi was politically associated to the ruling Swapo Party, and they did not want such an individual because of the political squabbles.
“I have not been formally informed about this appointment, I only learned about such news on social media, therefore it is very difficult for me to comment on how i feel because it’s something I am not familiar with personally,” he briefly told the Observer upon inquiry, considering that his appointment was a protracted one, even him resorting to legal advice to question the process.
“I am still to be informed only then can I respond on formal basis because I would be in a better position on whether I reject or accept the offer after I have familiarised myself with the terms and conditions,” added Lutombi.
On Wednesday evening following a special council meeting, a resolution was taken to endorse the recommendation taken by the interview panel to appoint Lutombi, a seasoned executive. “Council took that resolution to endorse the recommendation, while the actual appointment will be looked at and inform the said successful candidate,” CoW spokesperson Harold Akwenye on Wednesday evening while confirming the decision.
Lutombi at some point roped in his lawyers who requested CoW of to provide them with answers on how the interview process went, the reasons why interview candidates were not informed of the outcome as well as evaluation of the scorecards.
“I involved the lawyers with the aim to interrogate if there is going to be any injustice with the manner in which the appointment was to be carried out, so it was not necessary to sue the CoW. However, I can say that the matters were resolved as we got satisfactory answers,” he stressed when asked what was the status of the lawsuit threat.
Otjiwarongo CEO Moses Matyayi came second in the interview scoring 74%, and if Lutombi declines the offer he is likely to be made the offer.
Others were Eino Mvula who came third with 71%, followed by Charmil Zamuee, and Joyce Mukubi who all scored under 60%.
