Chase Bank reveals how Youth Fund transactions were carried out

Chase Bank’s top officials now say that the bank’s transactions with the Youth Fund and a company that was irregularly paid Sh180 million was above board.

It has now emerged that invoices and contract that Chase Bank has differ with those presented to MPs by Quorandum Limited last week in the ongoing probe into the alleged theft of 180 million shillings at the Youth Enterprise Development Fund.

Chase Bank General Manager Parmain ole Narikae has told the Parliamentary Public Investments Committee that the bank received orders to pay Quorandum 115 million from the Youth Fund fixed deposit account on the 13th of February 2015.

Narikae also told the MPs that Chase Bank received a letter from then Youth Fund CEO Catherine Namuye and chair Bruce Odhiambo ordering the change of signatories to the fund accounts and later the CEO demanded the payments be made urgently.

The bank boss further told the PIC chaired by Adan Keynan that the bank wired 115 million to Quorandum account on 23rd February but later froze the firm’s account due to suspicions, prompting the Youth fund bosses to avail 6 invoices and contract to back reasons for the transfer.

Narikae pointed out that his suspicions over the dubious transactions led him to report the matter to the Financial Reporting Centre to investigate the Quorandum account which he says was opened in September 2014 and not in 2004 as claimed by the firm’s boss Mukuria Ngamau.

This comes just days after it emerged that the Youth Enterprise Development Fund did not seek approval from the Treasury before opening a fixed deposit account at Chase Bank as required by the law.

Appearing before the Public Investment Committee (PIC), acting Inspector General at the State Corporation Inspectorate, Titus Muriithi, said it took them time to investigate and bring to light the 180 million shillings scam at the Youth Fund as they are incapacitated.

Muriithi told PIC that the Fund Chair Bruce Odhiambo was not eligible to a 12-million-shilling car purchased for him using the fund.

He says Bruce was only entitled to mileage allowance and PIC says he will be surcharged for the money used to buy the car.

PIC also wants former Devolution Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru and PS Eng. Peter Mangiti to appear before the commission within two weeks to shed more light on the scam.