Kotido VSLA defaulter arrested over thirteen millon shillings loan

2 February 2023, 7:24 pm

By Jennifer Acheng

The police in Kotido are currently holding a VSLA group member for failure to pay back VSLA loan worth 13 million shillings.

The suspect identified as Joel Okulega a business man in Kotido town was reportedly smoked out of his hideout on Tuesday, weeks after going into hiding, for failure to pay the money he owed St Maria VSLA group in Panyangara.

Michel Odoki one of the group members told our reporter that Okulega was arrested by group members from a drinking joint and handed over to police after going into hiding

John Robert Longoli the St Maria VSLA group chairperson says Okulega believed to be about 25 years old, had been saving with the group for about three years but he tricked the group into lending him 13,258,000. He now wants VSLA groups to regulate the amount of loans given out to members to avoid such situations.

Much as a number of VSLA groups operating around Kotido have been successful, most of them have suffered setbacks with the same losses, as some members borrow money in huge sums and fail to pay back.

Francis Obita the Kotido district senior commercial officer attributes this to failure by groups to follow VSLA standard principles and methodologies. Obita says in order to avoid such issues groups should lend money based on one’s savings and if possible avoid issues of rolling. According to Obita iff handled well VSLA’s can advance to the level of a cooperative or a bank

The DPC Kotido CPS Juston Tugaineyo when contacted on the phone over the same said he was still in the meeting and promised he would get back to our reporter.