Why should we trust you?– NEFF to scammed PM

The Namibia Economic Freedom Fighters (NEFF) is questioning whether prime minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila can be trusted with government information if she is “easily manipulated”.

NEFF deputy president Kalimbo Iipumbu submitted this and other questions in the parliament yesterday.

“We ask this, because you gave your code to a fearless botsotso and you got scammed. Why should we not fear that you may give away government information, because clearly you are easy to convince and manipulate – even through a simple phone call,” he said.

The Namibian last week reported that a fraudster stole N$159 000 from Kuugongelwa-Amadhila in a scheme that involved a bank account belonging to her daughter.

Iipumbu yesterday asked why Kuugongelwa-Amadhila should continue in her position of authority.

“You were once our minister of finance and you are now handling a position that puts you in line to be Namibia’s president should anything extraordinary happen to the current president and vice president. “Can you give us a solid reason why you should continue in your position of authority when clearly you seem to not understand the high priority that should be placed on secret information that is guarded by secret codes?” he asked.

Iipumbu accused Kuugongelwa-Amadhila of being negligent when dealing with sensitive information.

Eben de Klerk, a banking law expert, this week told Desert Radio that many high-profile individuals are being scammed.

“It is a very violent crime and we feel sorry for the prime minister who is not the only one who has been scammed. Very high-profile people have been scammed and it is also understandable,” he said.

De Klerk said banks cannot be blamed for these crimes.

“The bank was not part of the scam and did nothing wrong with the money that was lost. The bank always advises everyone not to give their personal banking information to anyone.

“Scammers are very convincing. Somehow they manage to get information on you that makes them extremely convincing.

“When they call they pretend to be from banks, making it difficult for people to believe they are scammers. Sometimes they send SMSes with the bank’s number. Many people have lost their life’s savings to scammers,” he said.

Although national police spokesperson deputy commissioner Kauna Shikwambi has confirmed that the prime minister’s case is still under investigation, she says there are a number of fraud and theft under false pretense cases under investigation.
In some cases suspects have been arrested.

Financial crimes, including social media and online scams, are highly prevalent, she says.

“A number of victims have lost their hard-earned money to scammers. They have mostly cooperated and followed the instructions of scammers telephonically or through emails and have ended up depositing money or disclosing their pin numbers,” she says.

Shikwambi warns Namibians to be extremely cautious and vigilant, saying victims sometimes transfer their money unknowingly, or due to fear and panic.

“When you receive a call from an unknown caller who is asking about your finances and banking details, do not entertain such caller – not even when they say you are a winner, because that is exactly where everything starts,” she says.

“When you lend them an ear and they notice your interest, they will convince you. Therefore, do not provide your details to anyone nor make any payments to unknown people,” she says.