Equity Bank Chief Clarifies why Bank Staff were sacked
Equity Group Holdings Plc's managing director and chief executive officer James Mwangi addressing ICPAK Members at annual Conference in Mombasa. (Photo By Harrison Kivisu)
By Harrison Kivisu
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Equity Group Holdings Plc’s group managing director and group chief executive officer James Mwangi has explained why some 13,000 bank employees were audited and a number of them sacked.
Mwangi, while addressing delegates at the ongoing 42 Institute of certified public accountants of Kenya (ICPAK) conference, said the purge targeted to instill institutional culture, build trust to customers as well as ensure full adherence to company’s code of conduct.
“We have audited everybody in the bank – 13,000 employees in line with our code of conduct. We asked them: can you be able to explain yourself? The issue is to protect the organization culture and hold people to account to the values we have committed ourselves to as a bank,” he said.
The Bank has fired quite a number of employees whose number is yet to be established across its branch network countrywide for what the management says is breach of code of conduct and conflict of interest.
According to the CEO those that did not meet the code of conduct after scrutiny were asked to explain themselves and those that will not be able to do so will be fired.
The equity boss, however, maintained that was a normal procedure in any institution that wants to build on its trust and credibility.
“The gist of the matter is we are dealing with values of the organisation. Our currency of trade is trust. So, how do you guarantee and continue to enjoy trust? There are codes of conduct that guarantee a brand and a reputation,” he said.
The internal auditing uncovered a sophisticated payroll and M-Pesa scam that led to the loss of millions of shillings. The internal audit targeted those who could not explain sources of cash in their salary accounts.
“I agree with you its bold, but if you want to build an organisation culture, it is the most important. Some strategies stay, but culture must be respected. So, if your strategy is to be eaten, then you have to protect the culture by taking some actions and that what you have seen us take.”
