Sale of ex-Plantation Club Resort and liquidation of the Ailee Development Corporation Limited |17 September 2020
Members of the Commission during yesterday’s hearing session (Photo: Thomas Meriton)
Witnesses given ample time to come up with answers
The Commission of Inquiry set up recently to investigate the money trails in regard to the sale of the ex-Plantation Club Resort and liquidation of the Ailee Development Corporation Limited, held its second public hearing session yesterday morning.
This took place at the Auditor General’s conference room, Unity House.ous House
The Central Bank of Seychelles (CBS), represented by 1st deputy governor Christophe Edmond, the Ministry of Finance, Trade, Investment and Economic Planning (MFTIEP), represented by secretary of state for Finance Patrick Payet, the Nouvobanq, represented by deputy chief executive Michael Benstrong and the Bank of Baroda, represented by chief manager C-J-Ram Prasad, conducted certain financial transactions with regard to the sale and liquidation process and the commission wanted to understand their roles and details of the financial transactions carried out.
As most of the representatives did not have all the information outright, as they were not present at the time of winding up of the sale of the hotel, they were given other times to appear before the commission with the answers.
The ex-Plantation Club hotel, now Kempinski Seychelles Resort, was wound up in February 2008. Following court proceedings where abnormalities were discovered with regard to the sale and liquidation of the hotel, Chief Justice (CJ) Mathilda Twomey ruled in October 2019 that the commission is established to look into the matter.
The commission, made up of Chairman Justice Francis MacGregor (the former President of the Court of Appeal), Commissioner May De Silva (the chief executive of the Anti-Corruption Commission Seychelles) and Commissioner Gamini Herath (the Auditor General), is expected to meet every fortnight at 9am on Wednesdays.
With regard to questioning or cross examining witnesses by lawyers present, Justice MacGregor explained that the commission is not like a court to decide who is guilty or not but is there to conduct an enquiry and to report on the findings to the President of the Republic.
He noted that questioning and cross examinations of witnesses has to be done through the commission.
The commission will be holding a special hearing session tomorrow.
The commission has six months, from the time of inception in June 2020, to conduct and to present the report.
Patrick Joubert