Holme Investments Namibia is a joint venture between the Italians through a Switzerland-based company, who have 74% shares and Ndiitah Nghipondoka-Robiati, the Namibia Trade Forum chief executive officer, who owns Kahn Investments Number One Nine Nine.
Nghipondoka-Robiati's husband, Nabil Robiati, is among the shareholders of Holme Investments with fellow Italian nationals Marco Moscheroni and Roberto Crespi.
Despite objections from the public, the council rubber-stamped the deal with Holme Investments Namibia last week for the land close to the municipality offices along Independence Avenue that measures 7 800 square metres.
Six plots that are valued at N$61 million - which are set to go to the Italians - are erf 146, worth N$8 million; erf 147, worth N$8,5 million; erf 148, worth about N$9 million; erf 152, valued at around N$8 million; erf 150, valued at N$18 million; and erf 6577, which is worth N$9,6 million.
Even though the City wants N$61 million for those plots, the Italians are only willing to pay N$48 million, which is N$13 million less than what is requested by the municipality as per the land valuation.
The N$48 million that the Italians want to pay will not be fully provided in cash. Instead, they want to pay N$10 million in cash, while N$38 million will be bartered for a 600 square metre office space, which the municipality can use on top of the envisaged Rhino Towers.
The other option given by the Italians is that they get the land for free in exchange for office space covering 1 200 square metres on top of the proposed towers.
Ironically Holme Investments Namibia also suggested that the municipality expropriates one of the adjacent plots they are also interested in but is owned by a private individual, if talks to make the owner sell the land fail.
Windhoek municipality chief executive officer Niilo Taapopi wrote to Robiati in September this year, giving him the quotation for the plots.
Giuseppe Robiati, who is Nghipondoka-Robiati's father-in-law, wrote back on 2 October 2014, expressing his disappointment with the N$61 million quotation.
As the chief executive officer of Holme Namibia Investments, Giuseppe claimed that Taapopi's office had assured him that they would pay less than N$50 million for the land.
“The letter we have received exceeds this figure by 23%,” he said, adding that he hoped the amount would be re-negotiated at a later stage.
Taapopi told The Namibian last week that the municipality has not accepted the proposal of the Italians, and that the company will be informed about the council decision. The decision to sell was pushed by, among others, former Windhoek mayor Agnes Kufula who went against objections from the department of planning, which suggested that the sale be delayed to allow the city to finalise the transport master-plan.
Kafula insisted that development cannot be delayed.
Those who objected to the sale of the land include Shamrock Investment, owned by businessman Collin Venaani, that had offered N$57 million; Ghandy Properties, who offered about N$25 million; NDI Holdings, owned by businessman David Imbili; and the Universal Church which occupies one of the plots.
The Universal Church objected to the sale of land through their lawyers Conradie and Damaseb on 29 September this year. The church has been renting one of the plots and has been trying to buy it since 2002.
The church said it had invested millions to improve the facility and has been using the plot for youth upliftment projects, while Ghandy Properties said it was the first to apply for the plots in 2011 and that it is a wholly-owned Namibian company. The company owned by the Italians applied for the land last year.
Imbili wrote to the municipality, through his lawyers, explaining that he was the first to seek to buy the plot, but was elbowed out by a company formed a year after his application.
Imbili's previous lawyers, Koep & Partners, said Holme provided inadequate information such as the company's shareholding, business plan, financial offer and capacity, as well as the consultants they intended to use.
Imbili's current law firm - Etzold-Duvenhage - also wrote to the municipality, saying: “It is unfortunate that the process leading up to council's decision to sell the properties to Holme seems to be tainted with favouritism and undue preference.”
Nghipondoka-Robiati, the only Namibian in the Italian-owned company, is an influential government negotiator with connections to the powerful chairperson of the council management committee, Moses Shiikwa. The two serve on the Team Namibia Board.
Shiikwa heads the management committee that plays a very crucial role in deciding who gets municipal land.