Written by Deo Walusimbi
Cairo bank boss Darwish Osama and lawyer Dusman Kabega before PAC Cairo International bank (CIB) last week admitted that its employees colluded with fraudsters to steal pensioners’ money, but insisted that as a company, its hands were clean.
However, former bank staff later turned up in parliament and accused CIB managers of coaching them on what to tell MPs. The admission was made to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) by Darwish Osama, CIB’s acting managing director.
PAC, chaired by Serere Woman MP Alice Alaso, is investigating the scam, in which about Shs 169bn in pension money was stolen. Osama appeared before the committee alongside Bank of Uganda (BOU) officials led by Louis Kasekende, the deputy governor, and leaders of pensioners.
In his testimony, he spoke about the bank’s role in paying out the money to people that turned out to be ‘ghost’ pensioners.
“Ghosts used our bank,” Osama told the MPs. “When Rahma [Nakigozi, head of cash in CIB at the time] was asked later how she got the [pensioners’] signatures, she said she had seen every pensioner, that it was not possible that they were ghosts. She claimed the pensioners signed [for the money] yet they were ghosts!” he added.
Osama’s admission, followed testimonies from some victims who told the committee that CIB used their photographs against ghost pensioners’ names and paid out the money.
“…In 2010, I submitted my claims [amounting] to Shs 75m to [the ministry of] public service and they were received, but when I went back to public service to check, I found that Mr [Kiwanuka] Kunsa had issued a directive that no pensioner should be paid because all had been paid,” Obulo Ogwal, the leader of the pensioners, said yesterday.
“A few days later, I found my picture against the names of Wandira Joseph Paul who was paid Shs 74m.”
Ogwal added: “I have reservations about Cairo bank on how they operate…I closed my account, but managers… kept my account open.”
The revelations angered MPs who asked Osama whether the bank was part of the racket.
Osama said he was sympathetic to the pensioners. He said the bank was completely ignorant of the conspiracy between “some public service officers and some individuals from Cairo International bank.”
“As a financial institution, we have not stolen that money and in any case, the bank has been audited by international firms…so, it’s not true that the bank stole the pension funds, but individuals from Cairo International bank conspired with some officials in public service,” Osama said.
However, two days later, Ishaq Ssentongo, a former assistant manager for operations, and former teller Rahma Nakigozi told MPs that they were coached by Mr Darwish Osama and his lawyers on what to tell MPs. Ssentongo said although he signed to endorse opening of the ghost accounts, the accounts already existed in the system.
Earlier, Dr Kasekende had rejected the MPs’ accusation that the central bank failed to supervise CIB. He said CIB did not do due diligence on people opening accounts, leading to suspicious transactions.
walusimbideo@gmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment