Former fisheries minister Bernhard Esau says his arrest in connection with the N$150m scandal was politically motivated and that activist Job Amupanda put pressure on the Anti-Corruption Commission through demonstrations.
Esau is in custody together with former justice minister Sacky Shanghala, former Investec managing director James Hatuikulipi, Tamson Hatuikulipi, Ricardo Gustavo and Pius Mwatelulo.
They were arrested on 27 November when the elections were underway.
Tamson is Esau’s son-in-law as well as James’ cousin, while Gustavo worked with James at Investec. Mwatelulo worked for Shanghala and James at Hanganeni.
The six, who are in custody, have launched another urgent bid with the High Court for bail citing various reasons among them being Swapo member of parliament and the Politburo as well as the Central Committee.
“The agenda appears to be regime change and the other applicants and I were seen as convenient tools to achieve that objective,” Esau claims in his founding affidavit.
According to Esau, Paulus Noa, who is Anti-Corruption Commission director general arrested them under pressure and for ulterior motives.
Esau claimed that as the leader of the Affirmative Repositioning movement, Amupanda led demonstrations against the ACC and pressured Noa to arrest them.
The former fisheries minister complained about their rights being violated, especially considering that the police transported Shanghala and James in the back of police van that drove on rough gravel roads to their farms.
Being transported in the back of a van, Esau said, is like being kidnapped and that some of his co-accused suffered back problems after spending time in the back of the van.
Esau further said that this was despite they had told the investigators that they were not comfortable sitting in the back of a van on rough roads.
He suggested that it would be better if the police would transport them in a minibus or a double cab.
Furthermore, Esau complained about the type of food they were being fed and that they were not getting medicine.
He also complained about the media being allowed to photograph them when they were handcuffed and that their family members’ visits on Sunday were being limited.
The police, Esau further said, are allowing their lawyers to see them during working hours and that such visits should be known by the police well in advance.
The date for the hearing of the case has not been set yet.
