Since this Friday, two former listeners of Afriland First Bank CD, a subsidiary of a Cameroonian bank, testify on RFI and other media of the creation of a network which they qualify as mafia.

Afriland First Bank case in DRC: how are whistleblowers credible?

For the first time, the two whistleblowers of Afriland First Bank CD testify with their faces uncovered.

Text by: Sonia Rolley Follow

5 mins

Since this Friday, two former listeners of Afriland First Bank CD, a subsidiary of a Cameroonian bank, testify on RFI and other media of the creation of a network which they qualify as mafia.

Publicity

This network would have benefited in particular the Israeli businessman Dan Gertler, at the time under American sanctions.

The latter ensures through his spokesperson that he does not know anything about the money laundering network that is attributed to him, he denounces "

false statements

" and "

frankly ridiculous

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Why are Gradi Koko Lobanga and Navy Malela credible in this matter?

First of all, for their position within the company.

The two whistleblowers were members of the bank's internal audit department.

Gradi Koko Lobanga was even responsible for this service.

The two men were entitled and in a position to be able to investigate within the bank.

The other whistleblower, Navy Malela, who remained until February 2020, was not only an auditor, but joined Afriland First Bank as an IT specialist.

He was therefore able to access the bank's databases.

Moreover, Afriland does not dispute that the documents presented come from its registers, it just claims that they have been falsified.

Gradi Koko Lobanga and Navy Malela are reportedly convicted in their country, among other things, for theft, forgery and use of forgery and criminal association.

► Also read:

Afriland case in the DRC: "I do not manage any account", assures Patrick Kafindo

Then, for the many documents they took in their flight.

These are thousands of pages of bank documents, statements from various accounts.

RFI was able to verify part of the information, in particular thanks to reports from the audit firm PwC which audited the accounts of Afriland First Bank until 2019, company registers, testimonials also from clients and other internal sources. .

Basically, in banking circles, nothing surprises in the revelations of former employees of Afriland First Bank CD.

Several of the most prominent banks in Kinshasa are said to operate in the same way.

This is also a bit of an admission made by the deputy director of Afriland First Bank CD in

the interview granted to RFI and Actualité.cd

the central bank has not been monitoring or sanctioning banks for so long.

According to RFI information, it dates from the trial of the former chief of staff of Félix Tshisekedi Vital Kamerhe with the implication of the Central Bank and that of the Rawbank.

The example of Western Financial Services

One of the front companies assigned to Dan Gertler is Western Financial Services.

She has obtained several loans of tens of millions of euros, a way, according to whistleblowers, to launder her dollars in euros.

According to the Congo Trade Register, Western Financial Services is a company created on July 4, 2018, after the Israeli businessman and his companies were put under sanctions.

It is an investment company headed by Zenon Mukuku.

According to the 2014 Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative report, he also ran Orama Properties under US sanctions for his ties to Dan Gertler.

The Western Financial Services file was available on the website of the commercial register before the revelations of the two whistleblowers.

Since then, it has been mentioned as in liquidation.

Another concurring element: the report of the large audit firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) on the 2018 financial statements of Afriland First Bank CD.

The audit firm mentions this link with a company under sanctions without specifying which one ... while affirming that the bank's accounts complied with the accounting principles in force in the DRC.

Asked by RFI about this contradiction, PwC explains no longer working with Afriland and having "

raised any worrying question with the competent authorities

", including the Central Bank of Congo (BCC).

Was the BCC informed of the existence of this company - Western Financial Services - and its alleged links with an entity under sanctions?

No response from the BCC.

But according to one of the whistleblowers, a Central Bank control mission spent four to five months at Afriland First Bank CD in 2019.

Afriland First Bank case in DRC: how are whistleblowers credible?

Afriland First Bank case in DRC: how are whistleblowers credible?

The example of Western Financial Services

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