Namibia’s anti-graft body has cleared the Roads Authority (RA) of any wrongdoing in awarding a multimillion-dollar road maintenance tender to one of its employees in 2013.
The RA was accused of conflict of interest after its industrial relations manager, Fredric Dausab, pocketed N$16.3 million from two companies in which he allegedly holds shares.
The companies were identified as L and D Trading Enterprises CC, in which he owns 50%, and FLD Trading Enterprises CC, which have both been granted RA contracts since 2011.
Yesterday, Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Director Paulus Noa told Namibian Sun that investigations into the RA’s conduct revealed that the tenders were awarded in accordance with the company’s prescribed code of conduct and ethics policy.
“The commission concluded its investigations and could not find evidence against the management of Roads Authority that merits referral of the docket to the Prosecutor-General as required in terms of the Anti Corruption Act,” Noa said.
However, Noa has written a letter to the RA’s chief executive officer Conrad Lutombi, urging him to review the company’s conflict of interest policy, which gives him the right to authorise his employees to do business deals with the
RA.
In the letter dated January 27, Noa said the ACC believes that granting permission to RA employees to do business with their employer creates suspicion of corruption and favouritism.
Noa added that this practice brings the company into disrepute and must be discouraged.
“The company has a duty to ensure that the decisions of the management are above board and leave no room for potential conflict of interest.”
“The management is therefore advised to ensure that the company adheres to good standards of practice to curb conflicts of interest,” reads the letter.
Noa further stressed that conflicts of interest result in improper management of public resources, as employees have a duty to dedicate their full-time services of the company.
“The public perception will not expect them to render maximum services and take fair administrative decisions on behalf of the company, while engaged in business with the same company. The practice creates opportunities for corruption.
“It is therefore our considered hope that the RA Board, together with its management, will put the necessary measures in place to prevent all possible conducts of corruption, favouritism and conflicts of interest,” said Noa.
According to media reports, Dausab’s L and D Trading Enterprises CC was awarded a N$3.8 million tender in October 2011 for routine maintenance of tarred roads in the Otjiwarongo area. This tender was extended from October 1, 2011 to October 31, 2013, and then again to September 30, 2014.
The second contract was awarded to FLD Trading Enterprises CC for a period of three years at a cost of N$6.7 million for maintaining tarred roads in Oshakati. This contact ends on June 30, 2015.
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