Namibia's President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has sacked the country's Agriculture Minister Mac-Albert Hengari of his duties as Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform.

The former minister was arrested on Saturday over multiple charges including rape, gender-based violence and kidnapping according to local media reports. It is alleged that Hengari had raped a 21-year-old woman and later tried to bribe her to withdraw the case she had filed last year.

Hengari was appointed Minister of Agriculture in March after President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah included him among her top eight parliamentary candidates. Investigations are still ongoing into the case.