Eva Nyambura
Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) CEO Twalib Mbarak explained how he was once subjected to a HIV test with his wife in a bid to get a Ksh700, 000 loan.
Speaking in an event where the agency partnered with SACCOs, Mbarak revealed that he become HIV positive for a day in 1987.
He stated: “I took a loan of Ksh700, 000 and I had to be subjected to an HIV test with my wife and I can tell you I was HIV positive for one day…and it was bad.
“After the test, we went to fill the insurance form. That is why when I see people who are positive I support them and sympathise with them,” he stated.
He further narrated that four days after they took the loan, his wife was called and the bank agents informed them that the doctor wanted to see both of them.
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He went on to explain: “From the call, we were told it was urgent…we started asking ourselves why we were being called. When we reached home my wife was looking at me and I was looking at her.
“We never ate, it was bad. We went in the morning and we waited for the doctor. We were already panicking… when we saw the doctor I thought that my blood was found to be ‘dirty’,” he told the stakeholders present at the event held on Wednesday.
Emphasising on the weight of the issue, Mbarak noted that in those days there were no ARVs.
“We entered the office, and then we were told that the insurance form that we had filled was not the right one and that we had to go back and fill another one,” he told amid laughter.
He then explained how in those days, a small loan required people to undergo a vigorous process to be guaranteed.
“If saccos are mismanaged, the ripple effect is bad and we look forward to working with you people in the saccos,” he affirmed.
He them expressed his optimism in partnering with the SACCOs while warning them again nepotism, which he emphasized that it is illegal.
“Saccos are plagued by corruption and unethical practices. In the last five years, we have received 409 complaints touching on the cooperative sector… 16 are pending at various stages of investigation and others were taken up by relevant agencies,” he mentioned.
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