By Patience Makwele

The Ant-Corruption Commission’s Director General Paulus Noah says the institution will not be dragged into the ongoing deep-rooted storm embroiling the corridors of the City of Windhoek, as three female councillors pull out knives to destroy each other politically at all cost.
This is also despite rife allegations of mismanagement of city credit cards, abuse of travel provisions, suppressed audit provisions, selective accountability and political collusion.This has exposed entrenched divisions and allegations of corruption as well as counterclaims of misconduct that threaten to overshadow the municipality’s credibility. 
The ongoing fight involves council bigwigs mayor Ndeshihafela Larandja of the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), her predecessor Sade Gawanas of the Landless People’s Movement (LPM) and chairperson of the council’s management committee Keister Elago of the Affirmative Repositioning (AR).

When asked whether the ACC will investigate the specific allegations, which some invloves concerns over how council resolutions and meetings are managed, Noa said: “This has got nothing to do with the ACC investigation. Council decisions may be taken to court for review if the aggrieved member is not happy with the procedure and decision taken. It is not a criminal investigation matter.”
Meanwhile, City of Windhoek Chief Executive Officer Moses Matyayi said: “Unfortunately [these] matters [are] still under consideration and it is premature to comment on it. Therefore I have no comments to make at this juncture.”

Background
At the heart of the storm is the Street House land deal, a matter which has lingered since 2022 and now risks becoming a symbol of political infighting within the council. While Gawanas maintains that her concern is rooted in transparency and governance, her rivals frame her as conflicted and unfit to call out corruption. 
Larandja accused Gawanas of being “desperate” to push the land deal by questioning her motives and reviving claims of conflict of interest dating back to her tenure as Mayor in 2022.
“She took it personal and one wonders why she was so desperate for the street house application to be resolved,” Larandja said. 
Larandja further laid a series of  accusations that broadened into an assault on Gawanas’ credibility. References were made to a municipal report alleging misuse of the mayoral credit card during her time in office which allegedly covered household groceries, pizzas and personal restaurant outings. 
“How can she convince the public to be ethical and observing good governance amid having a dark cloud hanging on top of her head.” 
In recent months, Gawanas has also documented her own grievances against council leadership in a series of letters sent to Matyayi with the most recent being a public statement. In these, she accuses the chairperson of council and the chairperson of the management committee of undermining transparency by rejecting motions without cause, abusing in-camera procedures to block debate and acting with what she described as “arrogance and disregard for accountability.”
She further called for targeted governance training for senior councillors to reinforce ethical  conduct, prevent political interference and address issues such as bias, nepotism and favoritism in decision-making. 
When contacted this week for further comment, Gawanas stated she had "no comment" on the accusations. She emphasized that the matter needs to be investigated and that people should go to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
“I would rather not say anything because I don't want to be involved in things that are going to be turned around and people are going to write their stories or sensationalize them," Gawanas said. "I am not interested in that so unfortunately No"
Questions sent to Keister were not responded to at the time of going to print.

PARTY TICKETS
When contacted, member of parliament and spokesperson for the IPC Imms Nashinge questioned the nature of the controversy, asking how the matter reached the media’s attention. While acknowledging that the allegations were directed at specific councillors, he stressed that, in his view, the dispute remains an internal council issue rather than one for his office to comment on.
“For us, I think it’s a bit of a challenge because it’s not a party issue, it is within there,” Nashinge said in a late-night call. “We can only come in if it develops into something else." LPM’s spokesperson Lifalaza Simataa said: "I must emphasize that council business is, by its very nature, rooted in open debate and scrutiny. Councillors are duty-bound to interrogate items, raise questions, and seek clarity to serve the city's residents and clients. That is the essence of democratic governance. To characterize such robust engagement as “conflict” would be misleading.
AR’s parliamentarian George Kambala could not be reached for comment.