- Fraudulently received M2.4 million recovered from Akani
- Mahlatsi ‘removed’ as NUL Pension Fund Principal Officer
On Friday 30th August 2024, Public Accounts Committee (PAC) continued the grilling of National University of Lesotho (NUL) pension fund trustees. The proceedings laid bare the Lesotho pension fund industry’s deep – rooted rot, corruption, incompetence and lack of prudent regulation.
The PAC proceedings has also confirmed Lesotho Tribune’s investigative series about a syndicate, led by Mergence Lesotho, Akani Financial Services and Cadiant Partners, that has until recently corruptly consolidated itself in the Public Officers’ Defined Contribution Pension Fund (PODCPF). According to sources and confirmations before the PAC this “pack hyenas” has been bribing the PODCPF’s Investment subcommittee chairman and NUL pension fund Principal Officer, Mr. Monaheng Mahlatsi to corruptly appoint them as service providers to both pension funds.
How It Started
In 2017 Cadiant Lesotho shareholder and founder, Mr Semoli Mokhanoi, through what sources familiar with the matter and recent PAC proceedings said was undue influence, managed to get Cadiant, a relatively small and in-experienced investment consultant, appointed to the PODCPF.
Before being appointed as an investment consultant, Cadiant offered investment advise to collective investment scheme(s) in South Africa with combined assets of no more than M6 billiong maloti.
In 2018, through Cadiant and Mr. Mahlatsi’s recommendation, Mergence Lesotho, whose founder is…you guessed right!…Mr. Semoli Mokhanoi, was appointed without open competitive tender as an asset manager with an open private equity mandate worth M1.5 billion.
In 2019, through their business relationship in South Africa, Mergence brought in Akani Fund Administrators and corruption enabler, Mr. Monaheng Mahlatsi to try and get NBC Lesotho removed as a long-standing and highly experienced pension fund administrator.
This plot failed and on his admission before the PAC, Mr. Mahlatsi went to court to challenge appointment of NBC Lesotho citing the so called forensic audit findings, by Mergence related Bowmans (more on this in our next publication).
In 2023, NUL pension fund’s Principal Officer, Mr. Monaheng Mahlatsi appointed Cadiant, for a contract it is not licensed to perform by Central Bank of Lesotho. This appointment of Cadiant was made to prepare for appointment of Mergence, [un]fortunately, Lesotho Tribune’s investigation began, and the plan stopped.
According to sources, Mergence was set to be allocated over M300 million of NUL pension fund to manage.
In 2024 Cadiant and Mr. Mahlatsi appointed Akani Financial Services at the NUL pension fund, to administer the university’s pension affairs, removing another credible administrator, Metropolitan Lesotho.
PAC’s Recommendations
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) recommended that the entire NUL Pension Fund Board of Trustees decisions are null and void since it had been operating without the fit & proper clearances from the Central Bank of Lesotho.
PAC went further for “removal” of Mr. Monaheng Mahlatsi as the Principal Officer of NUL pension fund.
PAC declared all appointments and/or contracts made the current board as null and void, until a properly constituted board is established.
Proceeds of Corruption Recovered
In its Friday seating, after discovering that the NUL board of trustees has been serving illegally for close to a year, Public Accounts Committee (PAC) rescued over M2.4 million which was illegally paid to Akani Financial Services by Mr. Mahlatsi since March 2024.
The funds were transferred from Akani Financial Services account to Metropolitan Lesotho’s account.
See proof of payment below:
Audit Trustees
PAC is mulling a forensic audit of all NUL pension fund trustees, due to evidence that Mr. Mahlatsi is on Akani and/or Mergence’s payroll.
Drawing Parallels
Akani South Africa has been found guilty of bribing three trustees at Chemical Industries National Provident Fund (CINPF) in June 2022 (See SCA dismisses appeal against ruling that found bribery story).
The ruling by the South Gauteng High Court confirms that indeed Akani is capable of ‘pay for play..’
