Martin Endjala
The Khorixas Town Council is accused of hiring debushing equipment from Tiricha Investment, a mining company that operates a few kilometres outside Khorixas.
The company approached the council to hire its machinery in November to de-bush the Unib riverbed in Khorixas.
The equipment includes tipper trucks and excavators, among others.
According to reports, Tiricha Investments received the tender without adhering to the procurement process.
A whistleblower said the town council’s chief executive officer, Andreas Howoseb bypassed a finance manager and deposited 50% of the payment into the contracted company’s account ahead of the project.
“Instead of appreciating that some people are using that opportunity to fight their battles. We are actually ready to help make Khorixas one of the cleanest towns in Namibia, not the other way around,” said the company in a statement.
The company’s costs of the project amount to N$348 000.
A deposit of about N$100 000 is said to have been paid to the company already by the council.
The Khorixas town council offered the hasty bid for debushing and cleaning the riverbed to the contractor, Tiricha Investment, in mid-November this year.
Tiricha Investment CC is a copper mining company that operates around the Mesopotamia area in the Kunene region and the company is owned by Zimbabwean nationals.
The mine operations are currently on hold, and the company is renting out its machinery to assist the Khorixas community with all the necessary work they currently require.
The company stated that they are not in it for the money but rather to use their machinery to solve sewage, water, and waste problems in the community.
“People can’t suffer while we have the machines parked. That is not fair, or to hire expensive equipment from far away while we are ready to give all the available and necessary equipment available in Khorixas already,” said the company.
It stated that it is a pity and a disgrace that people are using it to fight their battles when it’s actually an opportunity for the community to benefit.
The company also said all it requested was just to cover equipment transportation and labour for the operators, not for gain.
Both the company and council did not respond to the question of whether an advanced payment was paid to the company before carrying out its work as reported.
The personal assistant of the chief executive officer, Simson Ochurub, has denied the claims of unlawfully awarding a tender.
According to Ochurub, the council followed all processes indicating that the tender was awarded through the council budget and a resolution was made by the council.
“Perhaps it is a matter of lack of communication with the public, and in a few days, I will be on the radio to explain the whole situation. But to accuse the council that it awarded the tender illegally is not true,” he said.
The debushing contract was awarded through direct procurement due to urgent health concerns raised by the Khorixas health director about the possible cholera outbreak and sewer spillages that could occur should the council not address the issue.
“We do not have equipment of that nature, and we have put in a request to the line ministry for approval of purchasing this equipment,” he explained.
He explained that if the public or any councillor feels that the awarding was done unprocedurally, people should lodge their complaints with the Procurement Policy Unit (PPU).
A former Khorixas councillor, speaking anonymously, questioned the legitimacy of the contract.
The councillor claimed the tender was not approved by the council and accused the CEO of overstepping his authority.
“As per the standing rules, the CEO can only give recommendations and advice to the council, and then the council takes a decision. But in this case, the CEO has overstepped his authority,” said the councillor.
The former councillor also questioned the rationale behind paying a contractor before starting or completing the project, citing concerns about the legitimacy of the awarding process.
