Imperial claims rights violation after CBK refuses to share fraud audit findings

The collapsed Imperial Bank has accused the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), which placed it under receivership, of violating its constitutional rights by refusing to share a forensic report regarding the extent of fraud at the institution.

The bank through its advocate, Paul Muite, Monday pleaded before the court that the CBK’s actions showed it does not intend to revive the collapsed lender.

Mr Muite said the bank supports ongoing investigations into alleged money laundering and is anxious to be know the outcome of a forensic report that may help it re-inject the money required to bring it out of liquidation.

“We had no clue of what the deceased MD (Abdulmalek Janmohamed) was engaged in and it is illogical that directors who are also major shareholders would turn a blind eye to the looting of the bank and take no action,” argued senior counsel Muite.

The CBK is expected to make its submissions when the case resumes on Wednesday.

Senior Imperial managers are said to have siphoned an estimated Sh34 billion of depositors’ cash prior to its collapse.

Mr Muite told Justice George Odunga on Monday that Imperial was entitled to a full disclosure regarding the findings of the forensic audit “ so that once we know the extent of the loss as owners of this investment we can have an opportunity to go back into our pockets to fill the hole or other strategic partners to resuscitate the bank."

He said the CBK has a duty to make “full disclosure.”

Mr Muite submitted that the decision to put the bank under receivership was reached while the CBK had no sitting board of directors in place who may have checked on the management’s excesses.