Gov’t to Unveil Special Unit to Probe Fraud in Saccos

A special unit whose task would be to investigate fraud in Saccos will be in place next month, Co-operatives Principal Secretary Ali Noor Ismail has said.

Dubbed Sacco Societies Fraud Investigation Unit (SSFIU), its mandate will be to probe Sacco officials accused of looting members’ savings. 

“Plans to operationalize the SSFIU are at an advanced stage and the new unit will be fashioned on the lines of the Banking Fraud Investigation Unit (BFIU) to deal with fraudsters within the Co-operative sector,” Noor said on Monday.

Members of the special unit will be drawn from the Saccos Regulatory Authority (Sasra), the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC). 

The setting up of the unit follows a Presidential directive issued in July last year. It was originally set to be unveiled in March 2019 but it never happened.

A number of Saccos have in the recent past found themselves in trouble with government authorities over allegations of withdrawing members’ savings. They include Good Life Sacco, founded by Obadiah Maina, Bishop David ‘Gakuyo’ Ngare’s Ekeza Sacco and Nitunze Sacco among others.

Presently, there are more than 24,000 registered co-operatives in Kenya with an asset base of over Sh1 trillion.