NAIROBI, Kenya, July 14 – Stima Deposit Taking Sacco has dismissed claims that external forces can access members’ savings held by savings and credit cooperatives, insisting that SACCOs are independent institutions controlled by their members.
Speaking on Citizen TV, Stima DT Sacco Chief Executive Officer Dr. Gamaliel Hassan said SACCOs operate autonomously and are not subject to directives from the government or other external parties.
“There’s no way an external party can come and direct and say you in the SACCO sector give this out or give that out,” Hassan said.
His remarks come amid speculation that the government intends to tap into more than Sh1 trillion held by SACCOs to finance the National Infrastructure Fund (NIF).
The National Assembly has since dismissed the claims, saying the proposed Sacco Societies (Amendment) Bill, 2025, does not give the government powers to access members’ deposits.
The Bill, which is currently before Parliament, seeks to strengthen regulation of the cooperative sector through the Sacco Societies Regulatory Authority (SASRA).
It also proposes the establishment of a secondary SACCO made up of at least 30 primary SACCOs to provide liquidity support, offer shared payment infrastructure and invest in government securities.
