GIPF investigates Amazing Kids’ N$7m funding

This saga started in 2020 when the state-owned pension fund pumped N$10 million into Amazing Kids Private School (AKPS), which wanted to build a campus in northern Namibia.

The GIPF made the investment through the Namibia Mid-Cap Fund, which is managed by Myrtle Growth Capital, previously known as Musa Capital Namibia.

As a result, Myrtle Growth Capital ran the affairs of the school.

But the construction of the northern branch was never finalised.

Instead, about N$2,8 million funded salaries and school operations, while N$7,3 million was transferred to a company called FFO Securities Namibia.

The GIPF is now asking the school to return funds it has not used for the intended goal.

GIPF chief executive officer David Nuyoma in June said the fund has requested Namibia Mid-Cap Fund to demand 'unutilised' money from Myrtle Growth Capital.

“As per the provisions of our contracts with Namibia Mid-Cap Trust Fund, funds that are not utilised for the envisaged investments due to factors such as delays of projects must be returned to the GIPF,” he said.

Nuyoma said the issue of a possible conflict of interest is being handled through the governance structures of the Namibia Mid-Cap Trust Fund.

In this matter, Nuyoma said, corrective action is required from the fund manager.

“Our investigations and actions continue to use the governance structures as provided by the pension fund legislation and applicable regulations, as well as our contractual agreements with Namibia Mid Cap Trust Fund,” he said.

Nuyoma said the GIPF is engaging regulatory authorities to recover their investments.

“Rest assured that the GIPF is diligently taking all the necessary steps to safeguard this particular investment,” he said.

FFO Securities Namibia's directors included Marcelina !Gaoses, Jerome Mouton, Sigfridus Lohle, and Jan Albert de Kock. De Kock, a South African national, resigned from the company in March 2018.

!Gaoses represented Myrtle Growth Capital as a director on the school board.

Mouton, the managing director of Myrtle Growth Capital, which runs the school's affairs, is also a director in FFO Securities.

The battle for control at the school has entangled the GIPF and the Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (Namfisa), which are facing allegations of turning a blind eye on alleged irregularities, including claims that pension funds were paid to briefcase companies in South Africa using questionable invoices.

Namfisa is also accused of turning a blind eye to the alleged irregularities at the fund manager.

Namfisa spokesperson Victoria Muranda has declined to comment on the matter.

South African-based businessman Richard Akwei, who runs Amazing Kids Private School, earlier this year confirmed to The Namibian that the funds were moved to another account.

“The funds are in an investment account in FFO Securities. The AKPS board has played more of an executive role than the traditional oversight role because of a lack of management when the investment was made, including finance, human resources and strategy,” Akwei said.

Mouton in June declined to comment.

“You should direct your enquiry to FFO Securities,” he said.

He directed questions to !Gaoses, who also declined to comment.

Lohle and De Kock could not be reached for comment.

Auditors have since 2020 raised red flags about the financial affairs of Amazing Kids Private School.

Auditing firm MAC and Associates wrote a letter to the school board on 17 September 2021, detailing several financial irregularities at the school.

“During the execution of our audit of the 2020 annual financial statements of Amazing Kids Private School and Academy (Pty) Limited it came to our attention that the transactions or payments were not supported by appropriate and sufficient audit evidence.”

Some of the irregularities included the appointment of Sinclair Capital advisers, which were contracted to construct a sport field at the school to the tune of N$4,6 million.

Sinclair was in addition paid N$1,7 million as a consultation fee.