Congo Hold-up: the president of the BGFI group defends himself in Kinshasa
Audio 01:15
Congo Hold-up, a survey of 19 media and five NGOs.
© RFI
Text by: Sonia Rolley Follow
3 min
While since November 19, the Congo Hold-up investigation has revealed the bottom line of the embezzlement of 138 million dollars at BGFI Bank DRC by former president Joseph Kabila and his relatives, the group's boss, Henri-Claude Oyima, chose Kinshasa to answer it and not just any journalist, Jean-Marie Kassamba, boss of a television station close to the former regime of Joseph Kabila, Tele 50. Henri-Claude Oyima assures him in any case: his group follow all the rules.
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Congolese journalist Jean-Marie Kassamba announces this in his introductory speech.
Henri-Claude Oyima came to Kinshasa to "
re-establish the truth about his bank
".
The CEO of BGFI Group ensures that all procedures are followed.
"
You know, we don't do 50 years by chance, we do 50 because we are serious, because we follow the regulations,
" he explains.
►
To read
: Congo Hold-up: BGFIBank, the bank of presidents
"
Our job is one that is subject to obligations, to scrupulous respect in terms of indications in terms of policy, in terms of strategy, in terms of organization, so for five years, we do that,
insists today from the boss of the BGFI.
Our group is now subject to more than 8 regulators.
He lists them, the French regulator in the lead, the Prudential Control and Resolution Authority (ACPR).
►
To read
: the investigation of Médiapart - Congo hold-up: the laundering went through Paris
Since November 19, 2021, the activities of BGFI and its subsidiary in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have been analyzed by a consortium of 19 international media including Radio France Internationale and five NGOs, on the basis of more than 3.5 million of bank documents and millions of transactions.
The conclusions of this investigation are devastating for the Congolese subsidiary of the BGFI group, which is said to have served to transfer at least $ 138 million of public money to the accounts of former President Joseph Kabila and his relatives.
Over the course of the interview with the boss of Télé 50, the CEO of the BGFI Group ends up acknowledging that there may have been some “
blameworthy
”
acts
but he leaves it to the courts to determine the responsibilities.
For Henri-Claude Oyima above all, it's a thing of the past. "
What happened is a very old story
", assures the boss of the BGFI group, assuring that he has taken measures. He denies that "
the institution
" BGFI was able to participate in the embezzlement denounced by the Congo Hold-Up investigation and points to the role of "
certain individuals for their own reasons
", adding "
often, we tend to mix it up. institution, that is to say the bank, the legal person, with the actions which can be reproached to individuals. Justice will determine the responsibilities when the day comes. The institution remains virtuous […] with a total balance sheet of 7 billion dollars.
"
Henri-Claude Oyima says he came to Kinshasa to reassure savers about the group's support for its subsidiary in the DRC.
He assures the Congolese: “
The institution remains virtuous.
"
Video: Congo Hold-up: the CEO of BGFI reframes the alleged investigation
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Congo Hold-up