Supreme Court reprimands ACC Investigators'' conduct in Hailulu case ''deplorable'' The Supreme Court has denied an appeal by former NHE boss Vinson Hailulu, but slammed the Anti-Corruption Commission''s handling of the case. The arrest of former National Housing Enterprise CEO Vinson Hailulu about eight years ago was again in the spotlight last week when a Supreme Court judge took on the Anti-Corruption Commission over its conduct in the matter.Although Hailulu failed to succeed in his appeal and was ordered to pay the costs of the application, the ACC was nevertheless rapped over the knuckles by acting judge of appeal Kate O''Regan, who described its conduct “deplorable”.
At the time of his arrest, Hailulu was embroiled in a dispute with a trade union over a restructuring exercise at the NHE.
“The commission is established as an independent and impartial institution to prevent and punish corruption. It is an institution of national importance pursuing a goal that is central to the wellbeing of Namibia''s democracy. Its conduct must be beyond reproach,” the judge stated.
“The fact that appellant has not succeeded in this appeal should not obscure the fact that it is a cause for grave concern that the commission was found by the High Court to have advanced the cause of the union and its members in effecting the arrest of appellant. Such conduct is deplorable and the appellant is entitled to feel aggrieved by it.”
Hailulu was arrested at his office in late 2008, after ACC officials investigated his dealings at the parastatal.
He was accused, among other things, of abusing NHE resources and paying for personal expenses with a company credit card.
Another accusation was that he had appointed and promoted employees without following procedures.
Hailulu, represented by Sisa Namandje, initially had his arrest on corruption charges reviewed in the High Court. However, in 2013 he failed with an attempt to stop the ACC investigation of allegations levelled against him, but succeeded in getting a court order declaring that his arrest in 2008 was unlawful.
Appeal judge Sylvester Mainga and acting judge of appeal Yvonne Mokgoro agreed with the judgement.
Probes
Hailulu, who stepped down as NHE boss last year, has been embroiled in a number of controversies in recent years. Last year, the ACC cleared him of any wrongdoing following an investigation into possible Mass Housing tender irregularities.
Hailulu was accused of awarding a Mass Housing tender to a company whose local partner''s director is related to his wife.
Hailulu has always maintained that he did not influence the decision to award the tender to Colgram in partnership with Afrikuumba – owned by Titus Nakuumba, a relative of Hailulu''s wife.
In 2014, he had to explain to investigators how he had acquired a GL500 Mercedes-Benz SUV, worth about N$1.5 million. A whistle-blower had reportedly tipped off the ACC, leading to the investigation to determine whether it was acquired with ill-gotten gains.
It later emerged that Hailulu had bought the car with a loan from Bank Windhoek, with a monthly repayment of N$23 000. In the same year, the ACC also absolved him of wrongdoing after he had been accused of pocketing N$10 000 for personal use.
STAFF REPORTER