Uchumi investigating employees over theft
A customer walks into the Uchumi Supermarket outlet in Kabalagala, Kampala. The retailer has started investigations into theft by staff in all its branches across the region. Photo By Rachel Mabala
What you need to know:
Scope of investigation. Investigation to cover employees in all the three regional countries in which the retailer has operations.
Kampala. Uchumi Supermarkets has started an investigation among its staff in Uganda on allegations of theft.
The investigation, according to acting Uchumi chief executive Owino Ayondo, has started here (Uganda), and will be conducted by Hipora Business Solutions East Africa, a human resources agent for Tuskys and Nakumatt in Uganda and a loss control management and investigations firm.
Uchumi has been in a reorganisation drive less than two months after it sacked its former chief executive Jonathan Ciano alongside Chadwick Omondi Okumu, the chief finance officer, over “negligence and misconduct.”
In Uganda, Daily Monitor could not confirm the start of the investigation from Mr David Mugo, the Uchumi general manager, as he was reportedly out of the country for three weeks.
Mr Gerald Chege, the acting general manager, declined to comment on the matter saying Mr Mugo was the only person privy to such information.
Emails to Mr Mugo were yet to get a response by press time.
However, Mr Ayondo told Kenya-based Business Daily, a sister publication to Daily Monitor, that the investigations would target all the chain’s outlets in the region.
“This is a company-wide exercise that is not targeted at specific branches,” he said.
Uchumi has 39 branches spread across Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda; with a staff count of about 4,500. The investigations come at a time when Uchumi is struggling and relying on borrowing to stay afloat.
The investigations are meant to find out how members of staff were stealing from the company as well as plugging loopholes that have led to the supermarket losing revenue.
In Uganda, Uchumi closed one of its branches at Freedom City Mall in 2014 because of failure to agree with the landlord over tenancy terms. The landlord dragged Uchumi to the Commercial Court where it was revealed that the chain had defaulted on utility payments of about Shs400m and issued several bounced cheques.
Top staff sacked
Uchumi Supermarkets’ board, in June, sacked then chief executive Jonathan Ciano as it opened a forensic audit into the cash flow problems that are said to have left the retail chain with empty shelves.
The board said it had sent Mr Ciano and the chief finance officer, Chadwick Omondi Okumu, packing for “gross misconduct and gross negligence” that has left the listed retailer owing suppliers KSh1 billion (about Shs33 billion).
