OMUTHIYA -The Tsumeb municipality says it will soon embark on the process of recruiting a new Chief Executive officer (CEO), a procedure likely to take about three to four months.

Tsumeb mayor Matheus Hangula in an interview with New Era said by next week they will advertise the position so that suitable candidates can apply for possible recruitment. The decision to advertise the vacant position was taken during last week’s council meeting. 

The CEO position became vacant since the beginning of this month, following the resignation of former CEO Alfeus Archie Benjamin who has been on the helm of the institution for a number of years. Benjamin is now the CEO of Swakopmund Municipality. 

“We want to conclude this recruitment process within three months, thus we anticipate that by April or May next year, we should have appointed the best candidate to come stir the ship. There are certain procedures to be followed such as informing the line minister and get approval before advertising,” stressed Hangula.

Benjamin is hailed for managing to secure land for Kuvukiland from Weatherly mining after years of protracted negotiations. For many years, people have been illegally squatting on the portion of land, a scenario that deprived the residents of some basic needs, as council could not do any development since it was on private property. 

Other notable achievements include the installation of a multi-million dollar solar plant used for pumping and supplying water to the town, an initiative that saved council from an escalating electricity bill. A recent major development Benjamin concluded before heading off is the construction of the mega city project, which will include a university, hotels, shopping mall and thousands of residential apartments. The ground breaking ceremony will be held on Thursday.