Meatco Seeks New CEO as Mushokabanji’s Term Ends. The Meat Corporation of Namibia (Meatco) is in the process of finding a new chief executive officer (CEO) after the board of directors decided not to renew the contract of current CEO Mwilima Mushokabanji.
Patrick Liebenberg has been appointed as acting CEO for a six-month period or until a permanent CEO is hired. Liebenberg, who is currently the executive for livestock procurement and production, will assume the acting position starting 1 February.
This decision follows the publication and subsequent withdrawal of a vacancy announcement for the CEO position. Meatco’s board chairperson, Sakaria Nghikembua, confirmed the developments on Friday.
Meatco’s human capital executive, Amorey Pote, also confirmed that the vacancy had been advertised. “I can confirm that the document was authentic and had been posted on Meatco’s LinkedIn page in December before it was removed,” she said.
Further questions were referred to Nghikembua, who has not responded to messages or calls since last Monday. On Friday, Nghikembua stated that the board would release a formal statement soon, possibly by Friday or Monday.
In August, The Namibian reported that a Cabinet resolution deemed the decision not to renew Mushokabanji’s contract as contrary to the terms under which the Meatco board had been approved. Despite this, the Meatco board previously maintained its stance to not renew the contract.
Cabinet secretary George Simataa and Nghikembua had referred questions about the resolution to minister of finance and public enterprises, Iipumbu Shiimi. Last week, Shiimi directed inquiries to the ministry’s spokesperson, Wilson Shikoto.
Shikoto reiterated that decisions about the CEO position are the responsibility of the Meatco board and not the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises. “The contract of the CEO and the recruitment process are being handled by the board, so any questions should be directed to them,” he stated.