EDITORIAL: Shiimi’s letter to police inappropriate

Public enterprises minister Iipumbu Shiimi’s letter asking the police to provide protection for Namcor chairperson Jennifer Comalie, a day after the very same police arrested her, is inappropriate.

The raging debate about the origins and legitimacy of drugs allegedly found in Comalie’s vehicle, amid claims they were planted there by her corporate adversaries, should be left to the police and courts.

If Shiimi knows more than the rest of us as far as this matter is concerned, he must be a good citizen and exemplary leader by simply giving a witness statement to the police.

It is not his place to tell the police that instead of investigating the suspect, as is the routine with everyone found with drugs, they must actually provide personal security to that individual because they are a victim.

This is Shiimi essentially saying ‘leave her alone and stop investigating her’. This is not his prerogative.

The fact that the letter was written while charges were still being formulated – and before Comalie appeared in court – renders the minister’s action even more illegitimate.

We, in fact, suspect that the letter was leaked by the police themselves to expose and place in the public domain the nefarious attempts to influence the matter by a member of the executive. It smacks of interference in the purest form known to man.

This is a watershed moment for our country and everything in a matter like this must be handled professionally, by professionals.