Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Werner Menges
Published on 2024-04-17 17:00:00
A legal battle is currently being weighed by a Judge of the Windhoek High Court regarding an agreement made in 2018 between the government and a company owned by a Russian billionaire, granting a 99-year lease of four farms east of Windhoek. The Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) is challenging this agreement and seeking to have it reviewed and set aside.
Judge Orben Sibeya recently heard oral arguments on the matter and has reserved his judgment, with a decision expected on 15 August. The PDM is specifically targeting the decision made by former land reform minister Utoni Nujoma to allow Comsar Properties SA, the Russian-owned company, to lease the farms from the government. The combined size of the four farms is over 17,000 hectares.
The PDM is also seeking to invalidate the arrangement in which the government became the owner of the farms after they were donated by Comsar Properties, only for the government to lease the land back to the company for 99 years. The party argues that this transaction was unlawful. Comsar Properties paid N$43.4 million to the former owners of the farms and further compensated them with N$118 million for the loss of their livestock farming business.
Prior to this agreement, Comsar Properties had acquired three other farms in the same area between 2012 and 2013, forming a game reserve known as Marula Game Ranch. These acquisitions were made with the approval of the minister of land reform, allowing non-Namibian entities to purchase commercial farmland under certain conditions.
During the court hearing, arguments were presented by both sides. The PDM’s representative, Jean Marais, contended that the lease agreement was a ploy to bypass the law and enable the company to acquire farmland unlawfully. However, the government’s lawyer, Gerson Narib, emphasized that the agreement was intended to facilitate a significant investment in Namibia.
Representing Comsar Properties, Wim Trengove argued that the company did not receive ownership rights to the land and was restricted from selling or leasing it. He maintained that the agreement was legal under the existing regulations. Sardarov, the Russian billionaire, has invested over N$1 billion in Namibia through Comsar Properties and its subsidiaries since 2012.
In the event that the court rules the lease agreement as invalid, Trengove suggested that the farms be sold on the open market and the proceeds returned to Comsar Properties. The outcome of this legal battle will have significant implications for the ownership and use of agricultural land in Namibia, as well as the legality of foreign investments in the country.
Read the original article on The Namibian
