Moses Eyumu, the Chairperson of the Emyoga SACCO for Soroti City East Division Saloon Operators, is in police custody for alleged misappropriation of SACCO funds and forging documents to access money without the knowledge of other leaders. Eyumu, who had reportedly been evading arrest, was found at his home in Moru Apesur Ward, Soroti City, by disgruntled SACCO members who later alerted police from Soroti Central Police Station.
Members accuse Eyumu of ignoring several summons from security officials and the office of the Soroti City Resident Commissioner over the management of funds meant to benefit more than 40 SACCO members. One of the affected members, Evelyn, said Eyumu encouraged her and others to join the SACCO by paying registration fees and depositing share capital to qualify for loans.
“I paid the registration fee of 20,000 to enrol as a member and was then told to deposit share capital to process my loan. I deposited one million shillings and heard nothing from Eyumu for over four months,” she said. Evelyn said she later discovered that some of the members recruited by Eyumu were allegedly ghost members who did not exist in the SACCO records.
She said she personally accompanied Eyumu to the bank when depositing her money and received a receipt showing the funds had been deposited into the SACCO account under her name. Upon discovering the alleged irregularities, Evelyn said she requested a refund of her money as provided for in the SACCO bylaws, but Eyumu declined.
Following the concerns, members held a meeting in April 2025 to review and audit the SACCO records. They allege that they found the SACCO account empty and discovered that signatures had been forged to allocate loans to people who had not received any money.
“I discovered he signed my name, indicating I took three million shillings as a loan, yet I never signed for any money, and the signature was forged,” Evelyn alleged. Regean Ocen, the SACCO loans chairperson, said Eyumu was later summoned to the Soroti Commercial Office, where he reportedly agreed to refund more than Sh17 million in share capital owed to members.
However, Ocen says Eyumu has since failed to honour the commitment and avoided paying the money. Police have confirmed that Eyumu is in custody and that investigations into the allegations are ongoing-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
