Staff Reporter
THE First National Bank of Namibia (FNB) has taken Fishrot accused Ricardo Gustavo to court after he breached an agreement to pay back a home loan worth N$2.8 million, as well as an overdraft loan exceeding N$100,000.
Gustavo was arrested in November 2019 alongside several other high-ranking officials after being embroiled in the country’s largest fisheries corruption scheme, which generated kickbacks worth over N$300 million. Prosecutor General Martha Imalwa subsequently obtained a Prevention of Organised Crime Act restraining order in November 2020 over a wide range of assets that belonged to the Fishrot accused.
In April 2022, the High Court granted FNB the right to intervene in the prosecutor general’s application that seeks, in future, to sell assets deemed to have been acquired with Fishrot money, worth N$5.3 million, that belonged to Gustavo as well as James Hatuikulipi. FNB funded the assets worth N$5.3 million for some of the Fishrot accused. Among these are three houses, one of which is worth N$2.8 million and belongs to Ricardo Gustavo, while two houses, one worth N$987,000 and another worth N$613,000, belong to James Hatuikulipi.
The South African subsidiary bank, in the application against Gustavo for the N$2.8 million Finkenstein estate residence, states it is entitled to have the bonded property declared executable and to recover the costs on an attorney-and-client scale as per the home loan agreement. The matter is scheduled for a case planning conference on 4 July 2024.
In the particulars of the claim, court documents reveal that on or about 22 October 2018 in Windhoek, the plaintiff (FNB), duly represented by Mr. Zico Maasdorp in his capacity as Branch Manager, and the defendant (Gustavo), acting in his personal capacity, entered into a written home loan agreement in terms of which the plaintiff lent and advanced monies to the defendant.
The court documents detailed that the plaintiff would lend and advance the defendant the amount of N$2.8 million, and that loan was repayable in 240 monthly instalments in the amount of N$28,181.00. The loan would accrue interest at a variable rate of 10.25% per annum, calculated daily and accrued monthly.
FNB said that the defendant breached his repayment obligations towards the plaintiff in respect of the above loan as he has failed to repay any instalment when the same became due and owing since 20 October 2022, adding that it is entitled to have the bonded property declared executable and to recover the costs on an attorney-and-client scale as per the agreement. The bank, however, added that it is unknown whether the immovable property is the primary residence of the defendant or any other person.
In its second claim, the bank said that on or about 08 February 2021, it entered into an oral overdraft facility agreement with Gustavo, in which he was advanced N$148,549.57. FNB added that the defendant is in breach of his repayment obligations towards the plaintiff in respect of the above agreement as he has failed to repay any instalments when the same became due and owing since 08 February 2021.
Gustavo, who is opposing the claim, said in an affidavit that due to the Restraint Order made under the Prevention of Organized Crime Act, 2004, his entire estate is not under his control at the behest of the Prosecutor-General, who made the application for the Restraint Order. “It is the same Prosecutor-General whose appeal to the Supreme Court against my bail has resulted in my inability to work, earn an income, and honour my payment obligations,” Gustavo said.
