Cooperatives and MSMEs Cabinet Secretary Simon Chelugui last night asserted that no funds have been lost from the Hustler Fund, countering concerns raised by Auditor General Dr. Nancy Gathungu.
On Citizen TV’s ‘The Explainer’ show, Chelugui addressed the inconsistencies and perceived lack of transparency flagged by the Auditor General, emphasizing that the fund remains secure and all issues have been resolved.
Chelugui clarified that the initial concerns in the June 2023 letter from the Auditor General have been thoroughly addressed.
“As we speak, the fund is safe and sound and secure and we can account for every shilling. No funds have been lost and whatever management issues raised by the Auditor General have since then been addressed corrected and aligned,” he stated.
He explained that the delays in the report submission were due to understaffing but assured that all management issues have since been corrected.
“The Auditor General gave us a management letter raising a number of issues. That was in June 2023; we went through those questions, we clarified those issues. The only challenge that we faced was delay in submission of that report because we were very low on staff but since then we have addressed all those issues and we are waiting for the Auditor General to come back and verify the system,” Chelugui added.
Highlighting the impact of the Hustler Fund, Chelugui noted its role in rehabilitating 8 million Kenyans previously listed with Credit Reference Bureaus (CRBs). He explained that the fund was created to address market failures, particularly the high rates charged by digital lending organizations.
“As I speak today; we have done very wonderful. We have been able to rehabilitate 8 million Kenyans who are listed with CRBs and to date we have onboarded over 23 million Kenyans, where 18 million have borrowed,” he said.
