The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) has called on Finance Minister Iipumbu Shiimi to release the report of Ernst & Young into the operations of TransNamib as well as responses by the board and management to the report.
The call comes after the report by the auditing firm allegedly revealed some procurement irregularities.
The report follows an independent investigation by Ernst and Young that commenced in 2021 after allegations and perceptions of poor governance and mismanagement at TransNamib.
The forensic report implicates the struggling parastatals' board and management, which IPPR's researcher Fredrico Links says has uncovered apparent procurement irregularities.
The exoneration of TransNamib's management despite allegations raised in the report, Links says, paints a rather messy picture of governance at the parastatal.
The report was submitted to the then Public Enterprises Minister Leon Jooste, and it has now been passed on to Finance Minister Ipumbu Shiimi.
It was also later forwarded to the ACC and shared with TransNamib's board, which responded in March of this year.
In his presentation titled "TransNamib procurement irregularities flagged," Links highlighted that the report also primarily points to procurement concerns within TransNamib's contractual relationship with Tradeport Namibia.
"This is just a clear example of a lack of consequence management, a lack of accountability, and that is why the procurement tracker is on the business of spotlighting. In the report, it states, Transnamib appears to have bypassed requirements in terms of the procurement act, in terms of the said agreements."
IPPR is calling on the Minister to release both reports and responses by Ernst & Young as well as those of TransNamib's board.
Links also says procurement irregularities contained in the report should be investigated by the procurement policy unit with a view and understanding of internal procurement processes and practises at the parastatal.
"The relationship between Transnamib and Tradeport that has been flagged as prima facie evidence of potential fraud and theft should be thoroughly investigated by relevant enforcement agencies that deal with these matters."
The latest Procurement Tracker Namibia edition, among others, focused on what an official investigation report into governance at TransNamib says about procurement policies and practises at the strategic public enterprise.
nbc News attempted to reach out to Finance Minister Iipumbu Shiimi to respond to IPPR's call; however, he did not respond to calls made to his mobile phone or to messages sent to him.