CMC directors to face retired Judge Ringera

By James Anyanzwa

The directors of troubled motor firm Cooper Motors Corporation Holdings (CMC) will from Wednesday, have the chance to defend themselves before a Capital Markets Authority (CMA) appointed special committee.

This comes after the CMA appointed Justice (Rtd) Aaron Ringera to chair an ad hoc committee formed to probe financial mismanagement and abuse of corporate governance principles at the CMC.

The committee will hold the hearings behind closed doors.

In a statement on Monday, the authority said the committee would commence its hearing sessions on April 4, for a month, subject to extension as granted by the board of the authority.

sessions held in camera

"The appointment of the Ad hoc Committee underpins our commitment to protect all shareholders and the investing public as well as uphold market confidence," said Stella Kilonzo, the authority’s chief executive adding that the proceedings of the committee would be held in camera.

Several CMC directors were implicated in malpractices in the findings of the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) audit report and the forensic audit report by Webber Wentzel of South Africa.

The five-member committee is expected to grant an opportunity for the directors of the company who are adversely mentioned in the two reports to defend themselves.

It will also give chance to other directors poised to be subjected to the administrative enforcement action by the regulator, to be heard.

committee members

Other members of the committee include Jacqueline Kamau; chairperson of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators of Kenya’s Executive Committee, James Boyd McFie, an academic and research director at Strathmore University, Mahmood Manji director of the CMA and Chairman of the Audit, Corporate Governance and Risk Management sub-committee of the board and Rose Detho, the director of the Deposit Protection Fund Board at the Central Bank of Kenya.

The committee will also be expected to make recommendations to the CMA board on actions to be taken against the directors of the troubled motor dealer deemed to be guilty of corporate malpractice.

The Ringera led committee will be required to give recommendations based on lessons learnt on ways to improve and possible lessons learnt from hearing the CMC Holdings directors.

The committee shall be required to determine and regulate its own procedures and may take into consideration any evidence which it considers relevant to the subject notwithstanding that such evidence would not otherwise be admissible under the law relating to evidence.

"The Committee shall report and make recommendations to the Board on any area within its sphere of activity where action or improvement is needed." adds the statement

The Board shall notify the adversely mentioned persons in writing of the decision of the Committee.