He described the project as “unusual” and “highly complicated” as he held that the arrangements for the “Mbalit Project” did not favour the Council.
He testified that after reviewing the contract, he approached Mayor Talib Bensouda to inform him that the banks were taking advantage of the Council, and that there was a need to review the project to save money for the Council.
“The Mayor told me to back off,” the director of finance attested. “He asked me to leave it as it was.” The mode of servicing the loan for the project, the witness stated in his statement of 4 May 2023, was unusual.
“The agreement was highly complicated,” he reiterated. “It was a special agreement between AGIB and the Council. The guarantors were used as collateral. I wanted to save the Council some money and I wanted to ensure that they were not overcharged,” he stated, attesting that “everything was at their advantage”.
He also stated that “only some people have access to the documentation, maintaining the project was “complicated”. “It is not the normal loan I know of that banks give out. It was a special arrangement between the Council and Espace Motors. It is not normal,” he explained
He disclosed that monies were taken from the KMC main accounts plus the revenue generated from the Mbalit Project to pay the loan. He added the payment was made to AGIB Bank in the Mbalit Account.
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