It is day four of the trial and Weleilakeba the former FHL CEO is the second FICAC witness. The first FICAC witness was Meli Bainimarama, Fiji's current Ambassador to Malaysia. Bainimarama was PS Fijian Affairs at the time, and Secretary to the Fijian Affairs Board. Because the events in question took place twenty years ago, Bainimarama could not recall many of the details of the events that took place, so his time in the witness box was very brief. Weleilakeba took the stand on the afternoon of Day 1 July 5, and this is his 4th day on the witness stand.
The fact that
these events took place twenty years ago is enough to nullify this trial.
PM Qarase cannot get a fair trial with crucial witnesses now deceased like Lyle
Cupit and the former President and the late Turaga na Tui Nayau, Ratu Sir
Kamisese Mara.
Ratu Sir
Kamisese Mara and his Cabinet in 1984 approved the establishment of the
FHL, under its affirmative action program. Cupit would be able to tell the
court the circumstances surrounding the sale of these shares which are the
subject of the nine charges filed by FICAC against PM Qarase.
Cupit speaks from beyond the grave - the FHL Annual Reports of 1993 and 1996
Upon request from PM Qarase's defence lawyer, Weleilakeba read out parts of the FHL Annual Report from 1993 and 1996 where Cupit, the then FHL Chairman, defends the practice and the policy adopted by the FHL Board with concurrence of the FAB and GCC. He told the court that he agreed with the late Mr. Cupit's views on the issue.
1993 FHL Annual Report - extract from Chairman's Report
“Misleading public statements
over the purchase of certain shares in Fijian Holdings by some individuals and
companies created much controversy.
I wish to once more stress that the policy
involved had been publicized and was implemented with the approval of the Great
Council of Chiefs and our major shareholder, the Fijian Affairs Board.
We
stated in last year’s annual report that we intended to cater specifically for
individual Fijian investors, Fijian owned companies and Tikina Councils. This
was done.
The provision for
Fiji Development Bank loans for equity purchase has been in place since 1976.
Details of the special
share issue of $2million announced in May were well publicized in the Fijian
language over three days on Radio Fiji’s Fijian programme. This has a wide listenership
among the Fijian people. The broadcast announcements helped ensure a wide cross
section of individual Fijians, Tikina and Provincial groups and Fijian
companies – including a number of investors from the outer islands participated
in the share issue.”
Chairman’s report,
page 9- 1996 FHL Annual Report.
“I wish to clarify,
hopefully once and for all, this matter of the $20million interest free loan
that Government provided to the Fijian Affairs Board in 1989 to enable that
Board to acquire 20million shares in Fijian Holdings Limited. It has been
exercising the minds of some people in the media and we would like to lay the
matter to rest by explaining the purpose of the loan and our company’s share
policy.
The $20million loan
was lent by Government to Fijian Affairs Board to accelerate and broaden Fijian
participation in the commercial and industrial sector. Fijian Affairs Board
used Fijian Holdings as the vehicle to achieve this purpose.
With the $20million,
Fijian Holdings Limited mounted a vigorous investment programme which has more
than matched government’s expectations.
As a result of this,
not only do we have a strong balance sheet, we have also had a consistent
record of profitability and good dividend payments to our ordinary
shareholders.
To reflect the
distinctive nature of the Fijian Affairs Board investment in Fijian Holdings
Limited, the company created a special “B” class shares.
A ten year moratorium
on repayment was agreed to between the Fijian Affairs Board and the Government.
This was to enable Fijian Holdings Limited to consolidate, expand and diversify
its investment portfolio before the Fijian Affairs Board is required to begin repayment
on September 30, 1999.
This Fijian Holdings Board
took a strategic decision in 1993 to start paying the Fijian Affairs Board from
that point $1million dividend every year. This was equivalent to a dividend of
five cents a share. By September 30, 1999, the Fijian Affairs Board should have
accumulated some $6million in dividends to enable it to start servicing the
original $20million debt to Government.
Fijian Holdings
Limited has shareholders from all sectors of the community and equity in the Group
is in excess of $48million.
For some time now the
company’s share policy has come under severe criticism and this cannot be
allowed to go unchallenged. I refer in particular to the unrelenting media
attention focused on executives acquiring shares in Fjian Holdings Limited.
When the company
decided to float shares in 1991, to Tikina Councils, village groups, individual
Fijian investors and family companies, it did so with the concurrence of our
major shareholders the Fijian Affairs Board, the Great Council of Chiefs.
This decision was
based on a legitimate premise. Among other things it was an attempt to reduce
the company’s dependence on Government for funding assistance and to allow as
many Fijians as possible to participate in the equity of the company.
Given this strategic
decision and the fact that there is no bar, legal or otherwise against
executives owning shares in the Fijian Holdings, to suggest that they had done
something reprehensible is to twist the facts and show a deliberate disregard
for the truth.
In this case, as in
all other share transactions, the Fijian Holdings had acted within the ambits
of the law and in conformity with the company articles of association and in
accordance with policy established by the Great Council of Chiefs and the
Fijian Affairs Board."
Page 9 – FHL Annual Report 1996, Report by
Chairman Lyle Cupit
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