The Deputy Managing Director, Sierra Leone Commercial Bank, Mr. Bockarie Kalokoh, has told the ongoing Justice Biobele Commission of Inquiry that former President Koroma had reneged on the prescribed set guidelines by the bank for accruing overdraft facility.
He continued that the established period for overdraft facility to politically exposed persons as per such set guidelines is between three (3) to six (6) months. The six months period elapsed and this, according to him, constitutes a breach of the set guidelines of the bank.
The loan taken by the former President, according to the witness, subsequently became a nonperforming loan and hence squarely falls within the category of politically exposed persons that are now indebted to the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank.
The defense counsel for the persons of interest asked the witness about the time former President Koroma’s account at the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank was frozen. He replied that he was not in office when such directives were given by the Bank of Sierra Leone and therefore could not tell.
The witness was also grilled on the considerations taken by the bank in awarding such a facility to the former President. He also replied that this question should be best referred to the former Managing Director, Mr. Idrissa Alooma Kamara, noting that he approved the facility.
The Deputy Managing Director also acknowledged the fact that, the account in question is not the former President’s salary account and that his end of service benefits have not yet been paid to the account of the former President based on the review made quite recently by the bank.
This, according to the witness, means that the loan facility was technically secured.
Former President Ernest Koroma is among a list of persons presented to the ongoing Commissions of Inquiry as having accrued huge overdraft facility from the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank, which amounted to billions of leones.
Former Managing Director of the Bank, Mr Idrissa Alooma Kamara, who served between September 2017 and 2018, under whose tenure most of these loans were issued, has told the Commission on Monday 25th February,2019 that the Bank has a right to give out loans to politically exposed persons and is guided by Section 35 (a) of the Banking Act, which states that such loans/facility must not exceed 10% of the per capital of the bank.
He also told the Commission that they have relied on the fact that, in issuing such loans, the end of service benefits of these persons are collaterals to such loans and that the bank makes several internal and external efforts to recoup such loans.