Mugoya Woes: NSSF zeroes in on Sh5 billion looters (March 2005)

Published on March 29, 2005, Standard

By Ayub Savula

The Government is closing in on people who looted Sh5 billion from the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), Labour minister Newton Kulundu has said.

Kulundu said the suspects had been identified and will be prosecuted and the money recovered.

"Those who will attempt to hide their assets are the ones we will deal with firmly and even arrest and prosecute them," he said.

He said NSSF lawyers and detectives had unearthed fresh evidence against the suspects.

Several other cases are pending in court where NSSF wants to recover Sh2.9 billion from individuals and companies.

The pension’s body has also taken Mugoya Construction Company to task over the failure to complete the Sh13.5b housing project in Embakassi.

Kulundu said the investigations were based on a report by former Auditor and Controller General, Mr D Njoroge. The report was released in the last phase of the previous regime.

"We are using the audit by Njoroge which exposed the looters and no one can challenge it," he told The Standard in Kisumu yesterday.

He said most of the money was stashed in foreign banks, while some had been used to acquire property abroad.

"The lawyers are still chasing other cases of looting before we take them to court" said the minister.

Kulundu said NSSF had been restructured to keep looters at bay and serve members better.

Forty-seven MPs at the weekend asked Kulundu to present the National Social Security Pension Trust Bill 2005 to the Cabinet for approval for debate.