Otjiwarongo councillors divided over appointment of HR officer

OTJIWARONGO, 27 JUN  – Five local authority members of Otjiwarongo’s management committee are divided over the appointment of a candidate to fill the position of human resources (HR) officer at the municipality.
The management committee (MC) comprises of its chairperson, Hilda Jesaja and Gottlieb Shivute and Sonia Iyambo as ordinary members.
Mayor, Bennes Haimbondi and his deputy, Moderattha Shaduka serve the committee as ex-officio members based on their positions.
The five council members, including their departmental strategic executives and chief executive officer (CEO), Ismael /Howoseb on 20 June 2018 held an ordinary council MC meeting to discuss, among others, the appointment of the HR officer for the municipality on a C-band level.
The post became vacant and was advertised internally after the incumbent was promoted to a more senior post and four internal candidates were shortlisted and interviewed on 08 June this year.
The 20 June meeting was aimed at briefing the MC councillors on the recruitment processes completed, and for the MC councillors to appoint the suitable candidate.
However, the councillors became divided over the two names of the top candidates, who scored the most points in the interviews.
It is alleged that one group of the councillors favoured the second candidate on the basis that he is non-Damara speaking, while some councillors demanded that the candidate who scored the highest points in the interviews be appointed.
MC chairperson, Jesaja in an interview with Nampa on Wednesday said her council members in that meeting had unanimously resolved to indefinitely put on hold the appointment of the HR officer, without explaining further.
Deputy mayor, Shaduka on her part when contacted on Wednesday said she agreed that the appointment be put on hold, because the entire human resource department is full of one tribe and that a balance was therefore needed.
Shivute on Wednesday said he suggested to the councillors in that meeting to consider the gender balance, adding “that the structure of the HR department of the municipality only comprised of women”.
According to Jesaja, the candidate who scored the highest points in the interview for the position is a woman already working in the HR department, while the second candidate is a man working in the finance department of the municipality.

NAMPA