Former CEO of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC), Sedinam Tamakloe and former Chief Operating Officer, Daniel Axim have been sentenced to jail terms for crimes including causing financial loss to the state, theft, money laundering and violation of public procurement law.
Tamakloe was sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labor, while Axim was sentenced to five years with hard labor. The offenses were committed between 2013 and 2016, and involved the appropriation of funds meant for MASLOC activities.
For instance, they withdrew GHC 500,000 as a loan for Obaatampa Savings and Loans Company but sought a refund of the amount when the financial institution refused to yield a 24% percentage on the matter. Although there was evidence of the said refund to the convicts, it was not reflected in the accounts and books of MASLOC.
They were also found guilty of appropriating over GHC 1.7 million meant for a sensitization exercise, and misappropriating funds meant for victims of an inferno at Kantamanso.
The case also involved the purchase of vehicles for MASLOC, where monies disbursed for the purchase were more than the market price of the vehicles at the time, and a similar situation with the purchase of Samsung phones.
Tamakloe was tried in absentia, as she absconded after obtaining the permission of the court to seek a medical checkup outside the country, while Axim testified in person but did not call any witnesses.
