Staff Reporter
THE Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) has denied allegations by Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) Member of Parliament John-Louw Mouton, who claimed that the NBC failed to pay taxes to the Namibia Revenue Agency (NamRA) amounting to N$353 million, and thus requested a government bailout after the non-payment and disappearance of said tax funds.
Stanley Similo, Director General of the NBC, said that these statements are blatantly false, grossly irresponsible, and a deliberate distortion of facts.
“They represent an abuse of the parliamentary platform—a platform of honour entrusted to elected leaders by the Namibian people—and a reckless attempt to mislead the public for political expediency. As of September 2025, NBC’s PAYE balance stands at N$3 million, reflecting statutory deductions for that month. This amount is due for payment to NamRA by 20 October 2025, fully within legal timelines. NBC is fully compliant and in good standing with NamRA, with no outstanding interest or penalties for late or non-payment,” Similo said.
He added that since 2021, NBC has maintained complete compliance with all NamRA requirements.
“Under the Tax Relief Programme, the Corporation settled N$122 million in capital arrears from its own revenue sources. A further N$76 million in penalties and interest were waived in line with the programme’s lawful provisions. A historic PAYE arrear of N$33 million, accumulated over several decades before NamRA’s establishment, was formally written off by the Ministry of Finance under the FY 2024/25 Appropriation Bill, as part of a once-off legacy debt relief measure across multiple state entities. The Appropriation Bill, tabled by Honourable Minister Ipumbu Shiimi, allocated N$1.4 billion to settle such legacy tax obligations for public enterprises, including UNAM, TransNamib, and NBC. This was a corrective fiscal measure, not a bailout—and certainly not an act of corruption,” Similo said.
He added that NBC is subject to annual statutory external audits conducted by the Office of the Auditor-General.
“These audits are tabled before Parliament as part of normal public accountability processes. To date, no malfeasance has ever been reported against the Corporation. The incentive payments cited by Honourable Mouton were lawful, contractual obligations applied uniformly across the NBC workforce, from executives to junior staff, under the Total Cost to Company (TCTC) remuneration structure. Honourable Mouton is rehashing old arguments which were part of a parliamentary inquiry that has since been debunked.” Similo said.
