Staff Reporter
SALATIEL Mwanyenga Ntinda, the former Managing Director of August 26 Logistics, who was dismissed in June 2023 after the disappearance of N$2.5 million from the military-owned entity, has lost a court case in which he sought to have his dismissal declared unlawful and set aside.
This is according to a court order handed down by Deputy Judge President Hosea Angula in the Windhoek High Court on 5 November 2024. Justice Angula dismissed the application and ordered Ntinda to pay the legal costs of August 26 Logistics, as well as those of its Board of Directors and the chairperson of the disciplinary hearing.
An internal investigation last year found Ntinda and the company’s former finance manager, Karel Nel, guilty of paying N$2.5 million of taxpayers’ funds to a private entity, Penda Enterprises, without authorisation. The Board Chairperson, Major General Petrus Nathinge, who approved the deal, was also removed, while Chief Financial Officer Kalie Nelie resigned.
The men are alleged to have provided Penda Enterprises with a N$2.5 million loan for a weaponry deal the company allegedly held with a foreign firm. It is further alleged that the loan was not authorised by the Board. However, Major General Nathinge maintained that the full board held an extraordinary meeting on 30 May 2023 and endorsed or ratified the transaction but later reversed the decision due to external pressures.
August 26 board chair Kelvin Thembikozi said last year that August 26 Logistics is pursuing Penda Enterprises to recover its funds and that it holds an admission of debt to aid in reclaiming the amount.
