Former minister Bernhard Esau seeks to advance delayed Fishrot trial
via The Namibian5 min read
A lawyer representing former minister of fisheries and marine resources Bernhard Esau argued on Friday that the judge presiding over the Fishrot fraud, corruption, and racketeering case should order the trial of the 10 individuals charged to proceed. Defence lawyer Florian Beukes addressed acting judge Marilize du Plessis in the High Court at Windhoek Correctional Facility, stating that the trial should continue while two of the accused, former attorney general and minister of justice Sacky Shanghala and his business partner James Hatuikulipi, are appealing a ruling where Du Plessis dismissed an application for her to step down from the case. Shanghala and Hatuikulipi are seeking leave to appeal to the Supreme Court against Du Plessis's decision not to recuse herself. Defence lawyer Ileni Gebhardt, representing Ricardo Gustavo, previously requested the trial to proceed, arguing that criminal trials must reach finality and that other accused are being "held hostage" by the litigation choices of Shanghala and Hatuikulipi, which she described as a "deliberate strategy to delay the trial". Beukes noted that similar recusal applications and appeals have previously caused delays of about two years. He reminded Du Plessis that Esau has been in custody for nearly six and a half years since his arrest in November 2019 and is still awaiting the state's first witness. Beukes stated that Esau's health has deteriorated and he lacks certainty about the trial's conclusion, asserting Esau's
Free daily or weekly digest of the most important stories from across 18 African countries. No spam, unsubscribe any time.
This summary was AI-generated from a story originally published by The Namibian.
Tadej Pogacar, a 27-year-old Slovenian cyclist, recently secured his fifth Tour de France victory, joining an elite group of riders including Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, and Miguel Indurain. This achievement has led to a debate among cycling enthusiasts and professionals, with rivals Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel calling him the greatest cyclist of all time. While Merckx was previously widely considered the best, Pogacar's emergence has intensified discussions. Pogacar has won six Grand Tours in total, the fewest among the five-time Tour winners, but he is still actively competing and has the potential to surpass the Grand Tour totals of Indurain and Anquetil. He also achieved his first and fifth Tour wins at a younger age than the others. Although he has not completed the Grand Slam of Grand Tours, having finished third in his only Vuelta a Espana appearance at age 20, his dominance suggests he could win it in the future. In terms of dominance, Pogacar's largest Tour de France winning margin was 6 minutes 26 seconds in 2026, which is less than the margins of Merckx, Anquetil, and Hinault in some of their victories, but his overall control in his four most recent wins is noted. Pogacar's all-terrain ability, including 13 Monument victories, places him second only to Merckx's 19. While Anquetil and Indurain were known for pure power, Pogacar's attacking style is likened to Merckx and Hinault. Despite the difficulty of comparing athletes across differ
Tadej Pogacar secured his fifth Tour de France title, matching the record held by Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, and Miguel Indurain. The 27-year-old Slovenian expressed pride in achieving this "big goal." Pogacar won five stages and wore the yellow jersey since the sixth stage in the Pyrenees. He now has 26 career stage victories, placing him fourth all-time, and has spent 70 days in yellow, surpassing Indurain and Chris Froome. He is also the youngest rider to win five Tours and the first to finish on the podium seven years in a row, as well as the only rider to be on the podium in nine consecutive Grand Tours. The final stage, shortened to 88.7km due to wildfires, saw Mathieu van der Poel win after a breakaway with Pogacar. Van der Poel, a two-time world champion, held off a chasing group to win by half a bike length ahead of Jasper Philipsen and Mads Pedersen. Remco Evenepoel finished second overall, with Isaac Del Toro in third, becoming the first Mexican to reach the Tour podium. Dane Pedersen won the green jersey, Richard Carapaz of Ecuador claimed the King of the Mountains jersey and was voted most combative, and Del Toro also secured the white jersey for best young rider. This Tour was notable for being the first time in 302 Grand Tours that no rider from France, Italy, or Spain won a stage, with stage victories going to riders from Slovenia, Mexico, Ecuador, and Denmark. The peloton also set a new record for the fastest road stage, with the 11th sta
The Namibian Ports Authority Namport has rejected a N$4 billion proposal from Ghanaian businessman Jory Adu-Boahene and his Namibian partners to develop an oil and gas supply base at the Port of L眉deritz. Namport stated that Alpha Nautical Services Limited Anol, Adu-Boahene's company, did not meet the requirements for developing and operating the facility under a proposed design, build, own, operate, and transfer concession. Namport chief executive Andrew Kanime cited Anol's failure to demonstrate sufficient financial capacity, technical expertise, delivery capability, and operational experience. Anol, however, disputes these findings, asserting its financial, technical, and operational capacity, and highlighting its efforts to prioritize local content and compliance with Namibian ownership regulations. Adu-Boahene also noted that Anol initiated the project and invested significant capital, and questioned Namport's consistency, pointing to a similar project awarded to a 100% foreign entity. Namport also raised concerns about Anol's proposed site at Robert Harbour, stating it does not meet the requirements for offshore oil and gas activities due to insufficient water depth and technical challenges. The rejection follows alleged political pressure on Namport to approve the proposal, and sources suggest it may lead to an open competitive process for the strategic project.