Activist Hanifa Safia popularly known as Honey Farsafi has released an audited report on the M-Changa donations for families of victims who were injured or lost their lives during the Anti-Finance Bill 2024 protests in June and July.
Hanifa, alongside other youth activists, have been collecting funds through the online crowdsourcing platform called M-Changa,
In a statement on September 4, Hanifa noted that Ksh31.66 million was collected as contributions in an M-changa account she created dubbed “care for the injured”.
The donations were intended to help the families of protest victims cover medical expenses and burial costs.
“Two months ago, Kenyans and people of goodwill contributed a total of Ksh31,663,580 in an M-Changa account dubbed ‘Care for the Injured’ which I had created. My initial target was 10 million, and I was in awe of the generosity and kindness from everyone,” Hanifa said.
The activist highlighted that following the fundraiser, Mobi-Changa Limited (M-Changa) requested a financial audit on August 1, 2024, to ensure transparency and accountability in the management of the funds raised.
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According to the audit, the total amount raised for the cause was Ksh31,663,580, contributed by 35,444 individual donors.
M-Changa Audit Report
Of this, Ksh30,296,574 was allocated to support 208 individuals and families affected by the protests. The distribution of funds was managed with careful consideration of the available resources and anticipated medical expenses, according to the activist.
The administrative costs of the fundraiser were also detailed in the audit. Mobi-Changa Limited applied a standard platform fee of 4.25% of the total funds raised, amounting to Ksh 1,345,702.
Additionally, there was a 2.5% fee for donations made via credit and debit cards, totaling Ksh21,304. The audit highlighted that these fees are lower than those charged by similar platforms regionally and globally.
The audit aimed to verify how the donations were utilized to support medical bills for the injured, assist the bereaved families, and provide aid to those with serious and permanent injuries.
Additionally, the audit team was tasked with examining the documentation for every payment made across these categories.
The audit findings indicate that the funds were handled with a high degree of accountability and integrity.
Audit Findings
The team confirmed that all payments were supported by adequate documentation, and where documentation was lacking, these shortcomings were noted.
Mobi-Changa Limited also verified the identities of the fundraiser’s organizers and treasurers, who were responsible for oversight and approval.
Also, the report highlights that the documentation examined during the audit included medical bills, burial permits, and post-mortem reports.
Medical bills for the seriously and permanently injured on the other hand were verified against hospital receipts.
The audit noted that many patients in these categories had received additional support from the Kenyatta National Hospital disaster fund, which accounted for their reduced medical expenses.
Financial support to bereaved families was validated through burial permits and post-mortem reports.
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For the seriously injured, the audit reviewed affidavits, hospital bills, and national IDs of recipients, while for the Permanently Injured, similar documentation was required to confirm the nature and extent of their injuries.
Hanifa Farsafi Thankful
Hanifa while revealing the report said that her initial target was Ksh10 million and that she was in awe of the generosity and kindness from everyone.
“I would like to begin this by showing my utmost gratitude to the Mchanga team. This would not have been possible without them. They had no obligation whatsoever to do what they did but they did it. I handled zero cash, all the money was with mchanga in their ecobank account which was used for all payments,” she disclosed.
Hanifa was one of the activists behind the Reject finance bill 2024 campaign who leveraged social media platform Twitter (X) to rally Kenyans against the proposed finance bill, asserting that it unfairly burdens the common Mwananchi with high taxes.
In her posts, she provided details on the time and location for the protests set for June 18, 2024, urging citizens to march to the parliament buildings to ensure that Members of Parliament do not pass the controversial bill.
In addition to mobilizing support, Farsafi called for peaceful demonstrations, stressing the importance of not disrupting local businesses or provoking law enforcement.
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