Staff Reporter
THE High Court has rejected an application from Zhong Mei Engineering Group, a Chinese-owned company, which aimed to retrieve millions of dollars withdrawn from its account by the Namibia Revenue Agency (NamRA).
NamRA has levelled accusations of tax evasion against Zhong Mei Engineering Group, leading to NamRA’s decision to freeze a substantial N$30 million from the company’s bank account.
The subsequent legal dispute arose as the engineering company challenged the legality of NamRa’s fund attachment, seeking a court order to deem the agency’s action as unlawful. The company also contested the constitutionality of Section 91 of the Income Tax Act. Furthermore, they petitioned the court to mandate NamRa to return the frozen funds to their account.
The court determined that retaining the money from Zhong Mei within the agency’s account is in the public’s best interest until the case is resolved. The court added that, given the pending considerations of the case, funds cannot be returned to the company’s bank account yet. An inference will be made after the case’s facts are fully examined.
Zhong Mei Engineering Group has recently garnered media attention due to its contract award from the Roads Authority for the rehabilitation of the Usakos to Karibib road stretch (30.04 km) in the Erongo Region. The contract is valued at approximately N$343.7 million, VAT inclusive.
Since 2015, the company has been actively involved in various significant state projects, including the expansion and construction of the Rundu abattoir, the erection of main and site buildings, the establishment of the Oshakati to Ongenga district road, the construction of hostel blocks for the University of Namibia at Neudamm, and the second phase of the Ministry of Fisheries’ new head office construction.
