Mineworkers Union of Namibia faces allegations of dishonesty and neglect over unfulfilled promises to beneficiaries

A group of former and current members of the Mineworkers Union of Namibia (MUN) are calling out “dishonesty and neglect” by the union’s key leaders.

The MUN owns the Namibia Miners Investment Trust (Namit), which is the umbrella entity that owns the Namibia Mineworkers Investment Holdings (Nam-Mic).

Ndumba Kayundu, the chairperson of the Association of Mineworkers Beneficiaries Namibia (Ambena), in a letter addressed to The Namibian last month, said promises made in the deed of trust since Namit’s founding in 1997 remain unfulfilled.

No annual general meetings or consultations are held, and benefits do not reach them as intended, he wrote.

“We, the former and current MUN members, and the beneficiaries of Namit, as stipulated in its deed of trust, are here to inform The Namibian, more especially the current MUN members, about the dishonesty of the MUN, Nam-Mic directors and Namit trustees.

“We are saying so because the deed of trust was established in 1997, when all the promises in the deed of trust’s aims and objectives were made to former and current MUN members and beneficiaries of Namit, but up to date [there were] no annual general meeting and no consultation with the members, especially the former MUN members and beneficiaries, although we are also included in the initial deed of trust as members,” Kayundu said.

The Swapo-affiliated union was established to support MUN members and their dependants, however, the group alleges that the million-dollar union avoided addressing concerns and neglected their responsibility to engage with members and beneficiaries.

“You know all the above-mentioned companies are 100% ours, but because those trustees, directors and office-bearers know what they did and continue doing, that is why they are running away from us.

But we know all their tactics to weaken our Namit and strengthen their Namitvest.

“We have realised that of all the money coming from the Nam-Mic subsidiary companies through Nam-Mic, little is going to Namit. The big amount goes to Namitvest, because that is where they are benefiting.

“We see they are trying to brainwash current MUN members with shares instead of talking or answering the question of what happened to the promise made in 1997 as it is in the deed of trust’s aim and objective,” he said.

Despite the development of Nam-Mic into a multimillion-dollar enterprise spanning finance, insurance, mining and more, the members say no benefits have reached the intended beneficiaries.

They claim repeated attempts since September 2023 to arrange a meeting with Namit officials have been ignored, leaving them without answers about the promises made to them in the original deed of trust.

“Instead of giving their grand-grandfathers their benefits, but because of poverty indirectly they are forcing them to buy shares.

“We founded Nam-Mic and its subsidiaries to serve as a platform where current and former [MUN] members and their descendants may derive benefits through Namit.

“Nam-Mic and its associated subsidiaries have since grown into a multimillion-dollar empire that cuts into various industries, including finance and banking, short- and long-term insurance, mining, health, hospitality, transport and catering – to mention a few, yet until now there has been no consultation, and no single benefit to the beneficiaries. What happened?” Kayundu asked.

When approached for comment yesterday, MUN secretary general George Ampweya said he would not respond to the letter.

“We will not respond to the letter that was sent to The Namibian, because it was not sent to us,” he said.

The Namibian earlier this year reported that former and current members of the union want to know where the millions they have paid in dividends are.

They claim they have not benefited from this in 27 years.

When approached for comment at the time, Ampweya said the union would discuss the demands raised at a later stage.