THE Rwandan Association for the Promotion of Family Welfare (ARBEF) says it has dropped a case it had filed against a local bank, Cogebanque, and its former board chairperson, Osée Sebatunzi.Following a recent crisis that rocked the association, ARBEF filed a case to Nyarugenge Intermediate Court, seeking for compensation over what they termed as ‘illegal’ freezing of its bank accounts at Cogebanque – which ARBEF termed as a conspiracy between the bank and Sebatunzi.Speaking to The New Times, the former head of the Islamic community, Sheikh Saleh Habimana, who chairs the interim board of directors of ARBEF, said he has commissioned a subcommittee tasked to establish whether ARBEF was interested in pursuing the case.“We are currently considering settling the case amicably; this is why we won’t proceed with the court case until we find genuine reasons of doing so.” However, by Friday last week, the company lawyer was yet to receive any communication over the new development.“I will concur with any decision made by the interim board but they will have to communicate to me through an official letter,” insisted ARBEF’s lawyer, Charles Gakumba Shema.Following previous controversies that rocked the association, the warring parties agree that the organisation’s lawyer was the only neutral party in the whole saga.Shema told The New Times that the genesis of the saga revolved around Sebatunzi’s suspension of the then Executive Director, Laurien Nyabienda and immediate order for reinstatement of two employees fired on grounds of embezzlement.“This causes a lot of misunderstanding which resulted to employees calling for a general assembly in which they ousted Sebatunzi and elected Emmanuel Shamakokera as the new Board Chairperson as well as Nyabienda was reinstated as the Executive Director,” said Shema, adding that the general assembly’s decision was approved by the public notary.Following the development, Sebatunzi rushed to block the bank accounts and employees spent two months without salaries.According to a suit filed by Shema, a copy of which The New Times has obtained, ARBEF is seeking compensation worth Rwf10 million from Sebatunzi and Cogebanque.Meanwhile, as Shema filed the court case, the Rwanda Governance Board which has an oversight role over all NGOs operating in the country instructed the bank to re-activate ARBEF’s accounts.The accounts are now active but ARBEF will be obliged to pay fines for the two months tax arrears.
