RITA exposes Sh1 billion embezzlement involving Ijumaa Mosque in Mwanza

Mwanza. The Registration Insolvency and Trusteeship Agency (Rita) revealed at the weekend that at least Sh1 billion belonging to Ijumaa Mosque [Msikiti wa Ijumaa] here has been misappropriated.

The Rita Chief Executive Officer, Mr Frank Kanyusi, has promised to take legal action against those involved in the misappropriation of the funds.

The revelation follows the findings of a probe committee that Rita instituted in February this year to investigate allegations of misappropriation of funds at the famous mosque.

“We promise you that those involved in the misappropriation of Sh1 billion will face legal action,” Mr Kanyusi told the believers during the unveiling of the probe findings.

He said the probe team, tasked with doing a one-month thorough investigation of mosque properties, established that Sh1 billion fell into the wrong hands.

He warned that members of the board of trustees were not owners of the mosque’s properties, saying their duties were to oversee and protect them [the properties] for the benefit of members.

In the wake of the scandal and internal conflicts among members, the High Court of Tanzania, via its Dodoma Division Zone, has mandated the establishment of an interim committee for the Board of Trustees by June 20, 2024.

This interim board will manage the mosque's properties until the election of a new board.

“I now appeal to the interim committee members to exercise their highest levels of integrity as they take care of the property because it is theirs. They are only entrusted with the task of overseeing them,” Mr Kanyusi said, urging the members to remain calm.

Earlier, the legal officer at Rita, Ms Emmanuela Mwingira, said the agency has already worked out some of the changes in the Constitution and tasked the believers with conducting elections for members of the Board of Trustees.

“We had to work to review their constitution and improve it so as to avoid repeating the mistakes in the future,” Ms Mwingira explained.

Some believers said it was now encouraging that the government has taken the matter seriously to the point of exposing what happened and taking appropriate action.

“We are confident and optimistic that the government of President Dr Samia Suluhu Hassan will address the challenges and find solutions to problems when they arise,” said Mr Sherally Sherally.

The Board of Trustees of the Mosque was dissolved by the government in 2020, and later a transitional committee was formed, comprising 13 members.