Swapo MP linked to ‘Fishrot’ scandal

Swapo MP Tobie Aupindi is the latest ruling party politician to be linked to the Fishrot corruption scandal. He is accused of receiving up to N$1m from Icelandic seafood company Samherji. Legalbrief reports that several suspects have been charged with fraud, corruption and money laundering in connection with the fishing quotas corruption scandal. They are accused of having been involved in a scheme in which Icelandic companies paid them at least N$103m to get access to Namibian fishing quotas between 2014 and 2019. The Namibian reports that the alleged payment to Aupindi is contained in a documentary aired by an Icelandic television station. According to the investigation, Aupindi was paid when he was chair of the Namibia Fish Consumption Promotion Trust board – a state-owned entity set up in 2001 to make fishing catches accessible to Namibians. Aupindi, code named 'Mr Chairman' by a whistleblower, denied the allegations, labelling them ‘vague, embarrassing and unfounded’.