Namibian judges too close to Fishrot accused – Kukuri

Namibia has appointed a Zimbabwean-born judge to hear the Fishrot trial because many local judges declined due to conflict of interest. This according to Office of the Judiciary executive director, Benhardt Kukuri, who was responding to public outcry after Judge Moses Hungwe Chinhengo was sworn-in by Judge President Petrus Damaseb on Monday. Chinhengo, who was appointed by President Hage Geingob on recommendation of the Judicial Services Commission, was an acting High Court judge in 2021.Kukuri said there is a misconception that Namibia only appoints Zimbabwean judges, adding that the country has sworn-in many South African and Zambian judges in the past. “There have been some refusals from Namibian judges because of conflict of interest, because many of them know these people or are related to them one or the other way. Everyone wants this trial to start, and we have seen the many fights in court for recusals. “If we have a Namibian who might be conflicted, the trial will be delayed,” he said.ApplicationsThe Fishrot accused have brought myriad applications in the High Court, demanding the recusal of some judges hearing their bail applications. Last October, the High Court postponed one such application to December, putting the matter on hold for two months. In February, the accused parties filed an application in the Supreme Court seeking another recusal, which proved unsuccessful.Former fisheries and justice ministers Bernhardt Esau and Sacky Shanghala as well as former Investec Asset Management boss James Hatuikulipi, former Fishcor CEO Mike Nghipunya, Esau’s son-in-law Tamson Hatuikulipi and businessman Ricardo Gustavo are facing a total of 42 criminal charges. While other individuals have also been charged, these six form the alleged nexus of the case.The charges include allegations of fraud, bribery, corruption, racketeering, money laundering, and tax evasion.The State has argued that the accused collaborated to create a scheme through which they financially benefitted from arrangements that granted Icelandic-owned fishing company group Samherji access to Namibian fishing quotas. This, the State insisted, was facilitated through Fishcor and Namgomar Pesca Namibia, where Gustavo served as the sole director and employee.Millions in quota usage fees, paid by Samherji, were diverted to accused persons and various corporate entities and trusts represented by them, it said.The fishing quotas, originally intended for governmental objectives in the public interest, were allegedly exploited for personal gain.jemima@namibiansun.com

Namibian judges too close to Fishrot accused – Kukuri

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-02

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Namibian judges too close to Fishrot accused – Kukuri

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-02

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