High Court has no jurisdiction over Kora founder

WINDHOEK, 03 JUL  – The High Court has no jurisdiction over Kora All Africa Music Awards founder, Ernest Adjovi and his company Mundial Telecom SARL to proceed with legal proceedings brought forward by the Namibia Tourism Board, Judge Herman Oosthuizen said Monday while delivering a judgement on the matter.
The NTB is suing Adjovi, his company and businessman Tonata Shiimi for allegedly swindling the government out of more than N.dollars 20 million in public funds in 2015, which were supposed to be used to host the Kora All Africa Music Awards in 2016, which never took place.
Delivering the judgement, Oosthuizen ordered that each party bear its own costs.
“It is ordered that the first defendant is barred from pleading, and its plea, which is filed without this court’s condonation was irregular and to be ignored,” the judge said.
The reasons for the order was that Article (80) 2 of the Namibian Constitution, which addresses the High Court’s jurisdiction over causes of action, had territorial operation and did not operate or have effect outside Namibia’s borders in the sense advanced by the Namibia Tourism Board (NTB).
A service contract in the form of a memorandum of agreement was entered into by the tourism board and Telecom Mundial for the procurement of a promotional package in 2015.
The agreement was signed on the Namibian side by the NTB in the interest of tourism promotion and development and cleared by the Office of the Attorney General.
The NTB procured a promotional package of about US.dollars 1.5 million (N.dollars 21 million) based on the exchange rate of the US.dollar which traded at N.dollars 14.35 at the time of the agreement on 04 December 2015.
NTB’s Chief Executive Officer Digu //Naobeb told Nampa on Monday he was not aware of the judgement and would have to consult with their lawyer, however, the NTB argued that despite the defendant residing in the Ivory Coast, the contract was signed in Namibia.
“We are going to go for criminal case as well, besides the civil litigation claim that we have made because we think that was a fraudulent act,” //Naobeb said.
The NTB is represented by Kangueehi and Kavendjii Incorporated, while Adjovi and his company are represented by Erasmus and Associates.
(NAMPA)