Corruption allegations in Namibian 5G deal with Huawei
A city councillor in Namibia's capital has alleged she was
offered a bribe by a local politician to ensure Chinese tech giant Huawei would
win an exclusive contract to build the 5G telecommunication network in
Windhoek.
Brunhilde Cornelius made the allegations in an affidavit
that was filed with police on June 19.
Cornelius, who is also the secretary-general of the
opposition Rally for Democracy and Progress Party (RDP), alleged the bribe was
offered by Nicanor Ndjoze, a fellow RDP member who is the party's director of
elections.
Ndjoze was allegedly working on behalf of his nephew,
Reckliff Kandjiriomuini, otherwise known as "Minge", the head of the
ICT division of the City of Windhoek (COW).
The allegations come months after Namibia was rocked by
several corruption scandals sparked by the so-called the Fishrot files,
revelations that saw two government ministers - the former Minister of Justice
Sacky Shanghala and the former Minister of Fisheries Bernhard Esau - resign
after a joint investigation WikiLeaks and Icelandic media.
Shanghala and Esau have been in detention since late
November 2019, pending trials for corruption, money laundering and fraud.
In the affidavit, Cornelius claims that Ndjoze referred to a
40 million NAD ($2.4m) slush fund available for potential beneficiaries of the
deal that would give Huawei exclusive rights to develop the infrastructure for
a 5G telecommunication network.
Following her opposition earlier this year to the signing of
a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the COW city council and Huawei,
Cornelius claims she was offered 5-6 million NAD ($300,000 - $360,000) to drop
her objections and allow the city council to approve the signing of the MoU.
According to Cornelius, Ndjoze told her on May 12 she could
receive the payment in exchange for dropping her opposition to signing the MoU
with Huawei. Ndjoze allegedly told Cornelius the deal with Huawei was
spearheaded by his nephew.
Kandjiriomuini allegedly enlisted Ndjoze's help, knowing
that he was a member of the same political party as Cornelius, to persuade her
to accept the bribe and allow the MOU to be signed, according to Cornelius.
There is no evidence Huawei has any knowledge of these
events.
Cornelius states in the affidavit that following Ndjoze's
alleged offer, she reported the attempted bribery to the police, who equipped
her with hidden recording devices for future meetings with Kandjiriomuini and
Ndjoze.
The affidavit explains how the following day, on May 20,
Kandjiriomuini requested a meeting with Cornelius and Ndjoze. Picking her up
from the COW municipality, Ndjoze drove Cornelius to a petrol station at the
edge of town. En route, Ndjoze informed Cornelius that "local guys who we
can trust" would set up a joint venture with Huawei.
Cornelius describes how Ndjoze told her to "relax"
and that she was in "good hands" after Cornelius let him know she was
scared to participate in such a scheme given the backlash caused.
Surveillance footage obtained confirms that Ndjoze arrived at the petrol
station with Cornelius at 16:44 local time, about 10 minutes after
Kandjiriomuini. Ndjoze and Kandjiriomuini are seen having a discussion outside
the car, before Kandjiriomuini steps into Ndjoze's car, and they drive off.
The three then headed to the discreet Eagle's Beer Garden on
Windhoek's Avis Reservoir. Cornelius described Kandjiriomuini and Ndjoze as
being cautious to avoid anyone observing their meeting. During the
conversation, Kandjiriomuini told Cornelius everything they discussed should be
treated confidentially, that he was the driving force behind the planned deal
with Huawei, and that the deal would be "to the benefit of all of
us".
According to the affidavit, when Cornelius asked directly
when she should expect to receive her money, Kandjiriomuini responded that it
would come when the MoU was signed and the project began.
Cornelius claimed the meeting with Ndjoze and Kandjiriomuini
was covertly recorded using equipment hidden in her hat and undergarments as
part of the investigation by the police
Kandjiriomuini said in a written statement: "There is
no evidence of any recording in which I informed Ms Cornelius of any
individuals benefiting from the Huawei project" and claimed that Cornelius
had reasons for misrepresenting the position.
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