Also known as: former attorney general and justice minister Sacky Shanghala · former Minister of Justice Sacky Shanghala · former minister Sacky Shanghala · former justice minister Sacky Shanghala · former attorney general and minister of justice Sacky Shanghala
Former attorney general and justice minister facing fraud, corruption and racketeering charges in the Fishrot case.
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February 2026
The Namibian
Sacky Shanghalacriticisedalleged N$1.5 million salary package for two state prosecutors
Source
“He criticised the alleged N$1.5 million package for the two state prosecutors, saying he and his co-accused, former fisheries minister Bernhard Esau, were not afforded the same consideration when they requested that the state pay their legal fees.”
Sacky Shanghalafiled application seekingacting judge Marilize du Plessis's recusal from Fishrot trial
Source
“Former attorney general and justice minister Sacky Shanghala and one of his co-accused in the Fishrot fraud, corruption and racketeering case, James Hatuikulipi, want acting judge Marilize du Plessis to step down from their trial.”
Sacky Shanghalahas been using a strategy todelay their trial
Source
“Former justice minister and attorney general Sacky Shanghala and two of his co-accused in the Fishrot fraud, corruption and racketeering case have been using a strategy to delay their trial, a judge remarked in a ruling delivered in the High Court yesterday.”
Sacky Shanghalalambastedalleged payment package of N$1.5 million for two state prosecutors
Source
“SACKEUS (Sacky) Shanghala, the former Minister of Justice entangled in the country's largest fisheries corruption and fraud case, has lambasted the alleged payment package of N$1.5 million for the two prosecutors representing the state in the matter.”
Shanghalaargued thatState should pay legal representatives able to abandon other cases
Source
“He further argued that the State should also pay legal representatives who would be able to abandon other cases, as the Prosecutor-General herself has described the Fishrot matter as complex, with over 300 witnesses.”
Sacky Shanghaladrovea change of law giving the fisheries minister broad discretionary powers
Source
“Well, the 'governmental objectives' were maliciously ill-conceived from the very start when former ministers Bernhard Esau and Sacky Shanghala drove a change of law that would give the fisheries minister broad and 'discretionary' powers to hold quotas and dish them out as he saw fit.”
Energy Minister Modestus Amutse granted Swiss commodity trader Vitol an exclusive mandate to supply Namibia's entire fuel needs from June to August under a contract valued at an estimated N$2.4 billion a month, raising concerns about fuel sector capture given Vitol's links to individuals connected to politicians and the decision's apparent circumvention of the Competition Commission's conditions on fuel sourcing.
Why it matters
Energy minister's exclusive fuel import grant to Vitol raises serious accountability concerns over sector capture and circumvention of competition safeguards.
Energy Minister Modestus Amutse granted Swiss commodity trader Vitol an exclusive mandate to supply Namibia's entire fuel needs from June to August under a contract valued at an estimated N$2.4 billion a month, raising concerns about fuel sector capture given Vitol's links to individuals connected to politicians and the decision's apparent circumvention of the Competition Commission's conditions on fuel sourcing.
An appeal filed by Fishrot accused Otneel Shuudifonya against a postponement ruling was struck off the High Court roll at Windhoek Correctional Facility after the acting judge found his notice for leave to appeal did not comply with Criminal Procedure Act requirements.
Defence lawyers for accused in the Fishrot fraud, corruption and racketeering case have argued that the trial of the 10 individuals charged should proceed while two accused pursue appeals against the judge's refusal to step down from the case.
An opinion piece argues the contradiction in Namibian law: 16-year-olds are allowed to become parents and enter relationships, yet must wait until 18 to vote. The author contends that if maturity is the standard, the current voting age threshold is arbitrary, particularly since young people are most affected by policies on education, healthcare, and employment.
Lawyer Florian Beukes argued in High Court that his client Bernard Esau, 69, has experienced oppressive pre-trial incarceration after seven years in custody since his arrest in November 2019, citing exhausted defence funds and violation of constitutional rights to a speedy trial. Esau and nine co-accused, including former Justice Minister Sacky Shanghala, face 42 counts including corruption and racketeering over allegedly receiving N$300 million in payments to favour the Icelandic fishing company Samherji.
A defence lawyer representing one of ten accused in the Fishrot fraud and corruption trial has argued to the High Court that proceedings should continue while appeals against earlier rulings are pursued, citing delays since 2021 and the constitutional right to trial within a reasonable period. Other defence lawyers largely supported the argument, though one disagreed, and the judge is scheduled to hear further oral arguments on 24 April.
Proceedings in the high-profile corruption trial of former justice minister Sacky Shanghala and others have stalled over a disagreement about which of two competing appeals applications should be heard first—a recusal challenge or a stay-of-proceedings request. The court has adjourned until 5 May 2026 to resolve the procedural impasse.
Namibia's Supreme Court has upheld a High Court order preventing those accused in the Fishrot corruption case from accessing forfeited assets, rejecting an appeal by former justice minister Sacky Shanghala, James Hatuikulipi and Pius Mwatelulo. The court found that the Anti-Corruption Commission had proper authority to conduct the investigation and that the restraint order remains valid pending the outcome of the criminal trial, which is scheduled to recommence in March 2026.
Three accused in the Fishrot fraud case—former attorney general Sacky Shanghala, James Hatuikulipi, and Pius Mwatelulo—lost their Supreme Court appeal against an assets restraint order imposed under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act. The court upheld the High Court's 2023 confirmation of the restraint, which freezes assets including bank funds, property, vehicles, and luxury goods belonging to six of the accused, and ordered the three appellants to pay the prosecutor general's legal costs.
Government-appointed curators tasked with seizing assets linked to the Fishrot corruption scandal face legal hurdles and institutional delays in accessing foreign properties owned by suspects, with a February 2025 court order needed to extend seizure powers abroad. The curators report ongoing obstacles including uncooperative banks, missed meetings with defendants, and slow responses from financial institutions, hampering their efforts to catalogue and recover assets valued at over N$317 million.
Acting Judge Marilize du Plessis has dismissed an application by former justice minister Sacky Shanghala and James Hatuikulipi to recuse her from their corruption trial related to fishing quotas, finding that the applicants relied on inapplicable civil procedure rules and that their bias claims lacked sufficient factual foundation.
Acting judge Marilize du Plessis rejected an application by two accused in the Fishrot fraud and corruption case to recuse herself, finding that her factual observations about trial delays did not demonstrate bias and that her acquaintance with two state witnesses would not affect her impartiality.
Ex-Cabinet minister Sacky Shanghala is seeking to recuse Acting Judge Marilize du Plessis from the protracted Fishrot corruption trial, arguing her previous pronouncements show bias and prejudice, while co-accused Ricardo Gustavo opposes the application as a delay tactic unsupported by facts of actual bias.
Ricardo Gustavo, first accused in the Fishrot fraud and corruption case, says a recusal application by former attorney general Sacky Shanghala and James Hatuikulipi against acting judge Marilize du Plessis is intended to delay the trial. The judge is expected to rule on the recusal application on 23 March.
Former justice minister Shanghala has applied for High Court acting judge Marelize du Plessis to recuse herself from his corruption trial, arguing her statements characterizing his applications as delay tactics and her treatment of parties demonstrate bias. Co-accused and their legal representatives also challenge the judge's competence and impartiality.
Legal experts say engaging senior private practitioners to prosecute the Fishrot fraud case would cost the government at least N$6 million annually, far more than the state advocates currently handling it—though prosecutors benefit from job security and pension entitlements unavailable in private practice.
Vice President Lucia Witbooi unveiled a memorial tombstone at the ELCIN cemetery in Ongwediva for the 27 people killed in a bomb blast at Oshakati's First National Bank on 19 February 1988. Witbooi pledged that national reconciliation would remain central to Namibian democracy, while noting the blast was intended to intimidate SWAPO and destabilise the independence struggle.
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah is proposing to shift upstream oil licensing powers from the minister to the presidency, a move she argues is justified given her removal of a minister over corruption. However, according to an opinion piece by professor Roman Grynberg, the proposed legislation lacks transparency provisions and parliamentary oversight, and extends civil immunity to presidential appointees in ways that could facilitate future corruption similar to the Fishrot scandal.
Ricardo Gustavo's legal team says they will "oppose vehemently" an application by former attorney general Sacky Shanghala and co-accused James Hatuikulipi to have High Court judge Marilize du Plessis step down from the Fishrot fraud and corruption trial. Shanghala claims Du Plessis showed bias through remarks suggesting the accused were using delaying tactics, but the state is also opposing the recusal application, with arguments scheduled for 9 March.
Two high-profile state prosecutors leading the Fishrot fraud and corruption trial, Deputy Prosecutor General Ed Marondedze and State Prosecutor Cliff Lutibezi, threatened to resign over low pay and were subsequently granted a N$54,000 monthly salary increase. The salary increase has drawn criticism from some colleagues whose own pleas for raises have not been addressed, and from a former deputy prosecutor general who says the timing is problematic given the case's current stage.
Former attorney general Sacky Shanghala and co-accused James Hatuikulipi have filed an application asking acting judge Marilize du Plessis to step down from their Fishrot fraud, corruption and racketeering trial, alleging bias and partiality. This is the third recusal application in the case; two previous judges turned down similar requests.
Former justice minister Sacky Shanghala has applied for Acting Judge Marilize du Plessis to recuse herself from presiding over the Fishrot matter, alleging bias and apprehension of partiality based on the Judge's statements and treatment of defence applications. The matter has been postponed to 11 February 2026, with a hearing on the recusal application scheduled for 9 March 2026.
Acting judge Marilize du Plessis ruled that former justice minister Sacky Shanghala and two co-accused have been using a strategy to delay their Fishrot fraud, corruption and racketeering trial, which has been pending since October 2021 without witness testimony yet beginning. Du Plessis rejected their postponement applications and ordered the trial to continue, though she granted a brief postponement to allow defence representation time to prepare.
After nearly six years, the fishing quota corruption trial in which Namibian fisheries resources were allegedly stolen through deals with Icelandic company Samherji will begin on March 9, 2026. Acting Judge Marilize du Plessis rejected multiple postponement applications from former minister Sacky Shanghala and co-accused, ruling that lengthy delays in the civil review process and years of court proceedings weighed against further delay.
Former Justice Minister Sackeus Shanghala has criticized the state's decision to pay prosecutors N$1.5 million in the Fishrot corruption case while denying similar funding to defence counsel, arguing it violates fair trial principles and creates unequal arms between prosecution and defence. The High Court has postponed the matter to 21 January 2026 for a ruling on the remuneration dispute and whether the trial should be postponed.