CONTROVERSIAL Chinese businesswoman Qiaoxia (Stina) Wu and one of her companies are being investigated by the Namibia Revenue Agency (NamRA) for allegedly falsifying a tax-good-standing certificate.
Property mogul Wu, who also owns the Marigold Hotel in Windhoek, is at the centre of an investigation between the home affairs ministry and NamRA. This was after her company, At Helmsman Group, was found to have submitted a falsified tax clearance certificate, while applying for a work permit for one of its employees.
Wu and her At Helmsman Group did not respond to detailed questions sent to her by the time of going to press. This was despite her office requesting proof of whether the questions were sent by a real journalist practising in Namibia.
The said employee, Qionghua Huang, was trying to apply for a work permit with the Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security, when his application was flagged for being suspicious, late last year.
Home affairs rules require that foreign nationals applying for work permit renewals submit both their personal tax good standing certificates as well as those of their employers. In this case, Stina Wu’s At Helmsman Group was the employer.
Government sources privy to the case said the tax-good-standing certificate in question was issued on 24 October 2023, but was declared ‘inauthentic’ by NamRA a month later, November 2023. It is not clear what happened to Huang or whether he left the country or not.
However, authorities have been reluctant to take stern action against Wu, who is considered well connected within the Namibian police and ruling Swapo party politicians. “The above allegation is without basis and very unfortunate,” said NamRA spokesperson Yarukeekuro Ndorokaze. Ndorokaze cited the Namibia Revenue Agency Act, as well as the Income Tax Act and the Value Added Tax Act, which prohibit the disclosure of information obtained during the process of executing duties set out in the said laws.
“Unfortunately, we are therefore unable to provide specific details on your inquiry,” he said in his response to The Issue.
Wu is no stranger to controversy, and allegations of breaking Namibia’s tax laws date back about nine years. Around 2016, Inland Revenue (now NamRA) sources said that Wu’s bank accounts were frozen for a short period after she was found to be in violation of the country’s tax laws. Her accounts were later unfrozen after negotiations and alleged intervention from ‘higher authorities’.
Those in the know have over the years said that Wu is known to have successfully ingratiated herself into the upper circles of the government and the ruling Swapo party. Some of her close friends are labour minister Utoni Nujoma and Ohangwena governor (former chief of the Namibian Police) Sebastian Ndeitunga.
This article was produced in partnership with Integrity Namibia.
