Thousands of Afya Sacco members may have lost up to Ksh2 billion in alleged misappropriation.
The members, who are now demanding answers from the Sacco management, have given Afya Sacco seven days to respond or they will take to the streets.
The threats follow mounting frustration from the members, who allege that repeated attempts to seek clarity on Sacco’s financial state have been met with evasion and silence from top officials.
The members have accused the top management, including the chairperson, top managers, and chief accountants, of looting, diverting, and embezzling members' funds, which has skyrocketed to unbelievable heights.
They have also accused the Cooperatives Ministry, led by CS Wycliffe Oparanya, of ignoring their plea when they requested the ministry's intervention.
''Several attempts have been made to the Ministry of Cooperatives and the Sacco Society Regulatory Authority to address these vices, but no concrete action has been taken to stop the vice or restore sanity, and that is why we have resolved to this route,'' the members say.
According to the members, the Sacco leadership has been frustrating them with reports of chronically ill patients unable to access their savings.
Some individuals attempting to withdraw funds for personal reasons claim to have faced unexplained delays and obstruction, despite the cooperative’s 60-day withdrawal policy.
''Some of our members are suffering from chronic illnesses and have tried to access this money with no success. Numerous members seeking to withdraw from the Sacco on personal grounds have faced delays and obstruction contrary to the 60-working-day policy," the members continued.
Afya Sacco members have accused the leadership of stopping deductions from their salaries in the form of shares despite clear constitutional rights to do so, denying them their constitutional right to withdraw from the cooperative.
According to them, many retired and ailing members, despite having millions in savings, are unable to access necessities or medical care, while dividends for 2024 remain unpaid, violating both the Cooperatives Act and Sacco regulations.
Afya Sacco, which serves professionals in the health sector, has been under scrutiny for alleged financial mismanagement, with members pointing to questionable transactions, stalled audits, and governance failures.
The concerns continue to cast doubt on Saccos, coming months after Kenya Union of Savings & Credit Co-operatives Ltd (KUSCCO) was embroiled in the same situation. KUSCCO made headlines after a major financial scandal exposed mismanagement, fraudulent transactions, and missing funds totalling over Ksh13.3 billion.
