‘Irregular’ land deal under scrutiny at Walvis Bay

THE Walvis Bay municipality is being accused of facilitating an irregular land deal after two senior officials attempted to sell land through a private bidding process instead of making the process public.

On top of this, the municipality is currently investigating its chief executive officer, Muronga Haingura, along with other senior officials over irregularities regarding its massive urban land-servicing project.

The said land involves light industrial erven that were sold on auction on 6 August.

According to a media statement issued by the municipality last week, five erven were on auction.

Two bidders withdrew when they could not secure the erven they wanted.

The third bidder, whose bid was the highest, could not pay the required 10% deposit to secure the land, the statement read.

Despite the three bidders’ withdrawal from the auction, the municipality privately offered two erven adjacent to each other to the third bidder, XYZ Investments, which belongs to a Chinese businessman.

The businessman is said to be a permanent resident of Namibia.

The municipality stated that this sale was conducted in line with the town council’s policy on the sale and lease of land.

The policy states: “All properties and unimproved erven offered but not sold by way of public bidding shall be sold by private transaction at the upset price.”

However, the same policy stipulates that land sold by way of private transaction should be offered to fledgling entrepreneurs and previously disadvantaged persons.

The transaction should also be advertised publicly and bidders should attach an acceptable business plan to their purchase offer, the policy reads.

A source within the municipality claims the senior employees involved in the transaction approached the owner of XYZ Investments after the auction and told him to pay the 10% deposit into the municipality’s account.

When the businessman approached the council’s property division to pick up his sales agreement, employees allegedly had no knowledge of the deal.

“He told the people at the property division a senior official told him to come and collect his agreement as well as the registration documents. The officials had no knowledge of the deal and told him to go and get the sale agreement from the senior official,” the source says.

Community activist Amber Somses questions the legality of the transaction.

“Does this mean I can participate in land auctions, outbid everyone, pretend that I don’t have the money at the time, but go back to the municipality the next day and make an offer at the upset price?” he asks.

According to former municipal councillor Gibson Goseb, the deal is irregular.

“They should have waited for 21 days after which the sales conditions lapse. Thereafter, they can submit a proposal to the council to then buy the land by way of a private treaty,” Goseb says.