Court rejects PG recruitment of SA curators for Fishrot
The Windhoek High Court has rejected prosecutor general (PG) Martha Imalwa's application for the appointment of South Africans Johan Francois Engelbrecht and Coenaard Louwrens Stander as curators to oversee the restrained assets of the Fishrot accused.
Instead, the court has approved the appointment of Harald Hecht and Pierre Knoetze as new curators.
The appointment follows the termination of Ian McLaren and David Bruni as curators after they approached the court last year to ask to be relieved of their duties.
The duo, who were appointed in 2020 after the Windhoek High Court granted a provisional restraint order against the assets of those involved in the Fishrot bribery scandal, asked to be relieved because they do not have adequate capacity to execute their mandate.
Opposed
On 15 January, Imalwa wrote to Stander and Engelbrecht, both based in South Africa, to inform them of their appointment as curators for the restraint assets and informed the court that her office had been unable to secure a nomination of a
Namibian curator.
However, former attorney general and justice minister Sacky Shanghala, his business partner James Hatuikulipi and Pius Mwatelulo opposed this application, specifically pointing out that Imalwa’s choices are foreigners.
Hatuikulipi told the court it is worrying that a South African curator, neither based nor operating in Namibia, is appointed to replace Bruni and McLaren.
“The PG does not address the question of how a curator who is not based in nor operates in Namibia will meet the obvious challenges that he will face when his essential infrastructure, both personnel and physical, is so far away and in another country,” Hatuikulipi told the court.
Unnecessary costs
He also stressed that the appointment of a foreign curator would increase the cost of administering the restrained assets and this cost would have to be borne by the accused, or the State.
Hatuikulipi also highlighted that the fees that would be paid to these curators by the State would not benefit Namibia but instead South Africa.
The court further ordered the prosector general to pay the costs of the defendants' counter-application, together with the costs of the defendants for opposing her application, and such costs to include the costs of one instructing and one instructed counsel.
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Instead, the court has approved the appointment of Harald Hecht and Pierre Knoetze as new curators.
The appointment follows the termination of Ian McLaren and David Bruni as curators after they approached the court last year to ask to be relieved of their duties.
The duo, who were appointed in 2020 after the Windhoek High Court granted a provisional restraint order against the assets of those involved in the Fishrot bribery scandal, asked to be relieved because they do not have adequate capacity to execute their mandate.
Opposed
On 15 January, Imalwa wrote to Stander and Engelbrecht, both based in South Africa, to inform them of their appointment as curators for the restraint assets and informed the court that her office had been unable to secure a nomination of a
Namibian curator.
However, former attorney general and justice minister Sacky Shanghala, his business partner James Hatuikulipi and Pius Mwatelulo opposed this application, specifically pointing out that Imalwa’s choices are foreigners.
Hatuikulipi told the court it is worrying that a South African curator, neither based nor operating in Namibia, is appointed to replace Bruni and McLaren.
“The PG does not address the question of how a curator who is not based in nor operates in Namibia will meet the obvious challenges that he will face when his essential infrastructure, both personnel and physical, is so far away and in another country,” Hatuikulipi told the court.
Unnecessary costs
He also stressed that the appointment of a foreign curator would increase the cost of administering the restrained assets and this cost would have to be borne by the accused, or the State.
Hatuikulipi also highlighted that the fees that would be paid to these curators by the State would not benefit Namibia but instead South Africa.
The court further ordered the prosector general to pay the costs of the defendants' counter-application, together with the costs of the defendants for opposing her application, and such costs to include the costs of one instructing and one instructed counsel.
[email protected]
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