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Joined: Oct 1999
Posts: 84,397
Marty Offline OP
OP Offline
This Wednesday evening, we are listening to Hon. Finnegan's
Lik Road Talk Show 8-10PM.

Mr. Godfrey is really likking road in defense of his
position re: ssb, dfc, and gob guarantees.

He says Musa sabotaged Intelco to favor Mr Ashcroft in
blocking interconnection. Musa is putting Mr Godfrey out to
hang to dry.

The arguments are absolutely riveting.

Joined: Oct 1999
Posts: 84,397
Marty Offline OP
OP Offline
from a friend...

I was very disturbed by Mr. Hulse's statement in the Belize media that Mr.
Godfrey did not owe a duty of disclosure to the DFC Board regarding the
loans made to Mr. Godfrey's companies.

According to the common law duties of a director of a company, a director
has strict duties of good faith, care and skill, to safeguard the interests
of the company and the members, in this case, duties owed to DFC, and NOT to
Mr. Godfrey's own companies.

According to the common law, directors owe strict duties not to permit any
conflict of interest or conflict with their duty to act in the best
interests of the company (DFC). The rule is so strictly enforced that, even
where the conflict of interest or conflict of duty is purely hypothetical,
the directors can be forced to disgorge all personal gains arising from it.
In Aberdeen Ry v Blaikie (1854) 1 Macq HL 461 it was expressed by Lord
Cranworth thus:

"A corporate body can only act by agents, and it is, of course, the duty of
those agents so to act as best to promote the interests of the corporation
whose affairs they are conducting. Such agents have duties to discharge of a
fiduciary nature towards their principal. And it is a rule of universal
application that no one, having such duties to discharge, shall be allowed
to enter into engagements in which he has, or can have, a personal interest
conflicting or which possibly may conflict, with the interests of those whom
he is bound to protect... So strictly is this principle adhered to that no
question is allowed to be raised as to the fairness or unfairness of the
contract entered into..."

However, in many jurisdictions the members of the company are permitted to
ratify transactions which would otherwise fall foul of this principle. It is
also largely accepted in some jurisdictions that this principle should be
capable of being abrogated in the company's constitution.

I cannot find any evidence in the on-line laws of Belize that Belize allows
the directors of a company to put their own financial interests ahead of the
country.

However, I would like to know whether this the case in Belize. Are the
directors of our public companies allowed to act other than in the best
interests of Belize? Are the directors of our public companies such as DFC
and Social Security (which are supposed to work for the good our country)
allowed to to enter into contracts in which a director (such as Mr. Godfrey)
has a personal interest that conflicts with the best interests of our
country, and can decide that the director's business is more important than
the best interests of Belize?

How can this be? If it is, who allowed this to happen? Think about it.
Did you expect people you entrusted to run a public company that is supposed
to benefit Belize to be able to put their own self interests above the rest
of the country -- above your own need to support your kids, give them a good
education, and make your family's life better?

The DFC was presumably formed to advance the public interests by funding
businesses and projects that would econmically benefit Belize - that means
your interests and my interests - not the interests of one or two persons
who happen to be directors of a public company such as DFC.

(And who made them directors, anyway?)

How is the public interest served by allowing the director of a company like
DFC to decide that his interests are more important than yours?

If this is the law in Belize, shouldn't we demand that it be changed? A
person who is given the duty of running a corporation like DFC, which is
supposed to be there for ALL the people of Belize, should NOT be able to
decide that he (or she) is more important than all the other people of
Belize.

Can you demand that this be changed? Of course, you can. The government is
supposed to work for you, not the other way around.

How do you demand change? By paying attention. By voting without the
inducement of a blue note. By not giving up the country's heritage. By
demanding truth.

If the truth be known.

Joined: Oct 1999
Posts: 84,397
Marty Offline OP
OP Offline
The $41 million Trail to Godfrey Companies

$41 million, where did all that money go? We refer, of
course, to the money from various securitization programs
guaranteed by Social Security and siphoned into the foreign
accounts of Glen (Glenn) Godfrey companies. But even though
we hear so much talk of it, what really is this thing
called securitization? Basically all it means is selling
future cash flows from mortgages or loans, or, differently
put, getting money now, for what would normally be paid
over maybe 20 years.
In the heady early days of the first Musa administration,
securitization was seen as the engine of economic growth, a
surefire way to bring vast sums of fresh capital into the
county by selling collateral backed mortgage loans on the
international market. The idea was that new hard currency
would come into the system to fuel an economic boom. But,
in the main, that never happened and securitization
proceeds were diverted for non-development purposes.
Tonight we study the trail of $41 million of the
securitization proceeds that went into the Godfrey
companies.

Rt. Hon. Said Musa, Prime Minister
[June 17th, 2005] ""The truth of the matter is that we have
to go this route, or we're proposing to go this route,
because they have the money. You have to follow the money,
it's as simply as that. It might sound callous, but that's
the truth of the matter. "

Following that sage advice, leads us here, 35 Barrack Road,
home to the Godfrey group of companies, including two very
special companies: MH Financial and St. James. MH
Financials local office is registered here at the
headquarters for the Godfrey group of companies. According
to the report of special auditor Mark Hulse, "MH Financial
Investment Ltd. is an Antigua based IBC which is not
registered to do business in Belize."

But it did do business, and lots of it, tens of millions of
dollars worth. MH Financial and St. James Building Society,
both Godfrey companies, received, in their foreign
accounts, $41 million in securitization proceeds guaranteed
by the Social Security Board with your money. It's a
securitization program that should have seen proceeds go
back into the Belizean economy for lending which would spur
new projects, but these reports show that in this case,
that never happened.

So what did happen? This table on page 90 of the special
auditor's report shows that in Tranche C, securitization
proceeds came into the country on 22nd March and 17th.
April, 2000.

* In the first case, on the 23rd. March, this was
funneled out to St James account here at the Hibernia
National Bank in New Orleans, US$5.3 million.
* And then on April 18th, another transfer, US$4.3
million, also at Hibernia National Bank.
* That's US$9.6 million sent to St.. James foreign
account in New Orleans, but that's just Tranche C.
* 5 months later in September of 2000, receipts of BZ$5
million from Tranche D was sent out on the 7th September
* Again sent out as US$2.5 million to St. James
Building Society's account at the Hibernia Bank.
* So that's Tranche D, another US$2.5 million added to
Tranche C, a total of US$12.1 million and that wasn't the
end of it.

Next was the North American bond issue. The auditors report
notes that on 24th. April 2002, Heran Contreras on behalf
of St. James wrote to the Social Security Board requesting
assistance in transferring the mortgage proceeds in U.S.
dollars to the International Bank of Miami for further
credit to MH Financial. That letter was copied to the
Central Bank, which willingly complied, and transferred,
according to this table US$2.9 million, US$1.6 million,
US$1.5 million, US$1.6 million, and US$850,000, all between
30th April 2002 and 3rd July 2002. That's another US$8.5
millions for the North American programme, bringing the
grand total between Tranches C and D, and the North
American to US$6 million, US$41.2 million transferred in
U.S. dollars to U.S. accounts for Godfrey companies by an
all too compliant Central Bank.

So we followed the money it went here to New Orleans and
here to Miami. But where did it all go after that?
Yesterday, the Leader of the Opposition said that the
government can use its existing laws to find out.

Hon. Dean Barrow,
"It is the government of Belize pressured by the opposition
and the people, as Sedi has said, that will b e obliged to
follow the money beyond Hibernia Bank. If the Prime
Minister, as he seems to be, is talking about lawyers
attempting to sue for the recovery of the money, that is
all nonsense. That is exactly what the report has
disclosed, that they gave money to people who had no
assets. All these companies have now become shell companies
so there is never going to be any chance of recovering the
money that way.

But just this morning I looked at the money laundering
prevention act, the financial intelligence unit act, and
the act that brought into force as a part of domestic law
the mutual legal assistance treaty between the country and
the United States. Under every single one of those
legislative instruments, the government can get the
authorities in the states to trace the money. The
government can get the authorities in the States to freeze
the money and the government can get the authorities in
this country to institute the sorts of prosecutions that
will the entitle the authorities abroad to forfeit the
money, to confiscate the money and to repatriate the money
to return it to the people of this country and that is what
we have to insist that the government of Belize does."

So there is power under the law to follow the money, but is
there the will from this man's high office who laid down
the mantra.

Glenn Godfrey is scheduled to be Michael Finnegan's guest
on Mek Wave and Lik Road tonight at 8 on Channel 7.

source: www.7newsbelize.com

Joined: Oct 1999
Posts: 84,397
Marty Offline OP
OP Offline
from another friend
===========================

Nothing like diverting attention from the real issues:

1. How could Musa "hang Godfrey out to dry" if Godfrey didn't participate in
the shenanigans?

2. WHY would anyone (particularly government officials) participate in the
shenanigans that led to Godfrey being left out to dry if they didn't think
they could "get away it?"

3. WHY did Godfrey think that he could get away "it" (e.g.,
diverting/stealing millions of dollars from the Belize treasury)? Was he
justified in doing what he did under Belize laws? Don't Belize laws impose
any kind of fiduciary duty on directors of a corporation, particularly
corporations supposed to be dedicated to the public interests such as DFC
and SSB? If not, why do Belize laws not prohibit this kind of behavior?

4. Why do WE allow it?

5. If we don't want to allow it, what do we do?

Joined: Oct 1999
Posts: 84,397
Marty Offline OP
OP Offline
response to the above
=======================
with the greatest respect for your highly revered sophist's
training in matters of common law legalese i have some
other questions/points, viz.:

1) if Glen runs, and has run, one of the most sophisticated
lavadoras in Belize even under the UDP rule 93-98, then,
why would he risk it all by going after a mere 20 million
of ssb funds? It doesnt add up. Then man was worth 100
million bz$ before the pup came to power in 1998.

2) If Glen has been able to amass all this wealth pre-1998,
pre-pup, then why would he expose himself personally to the
tricksters seeking political power. Glen is not interested
in political power, only money power.

3) Finally, i am yet to be convinced that the man set out
to defraud ssb, dfc, and the govt and people of Belize. He
was making millions with his offshore operations like so
many in Belize these days...red and blue. Take a look at
who is in the offshore business. Take a sneek peek.

4) I dont like Musa's foreign policy because of what i saw,
what is documented. I cant say the same for Glen Godfrey.
He is Mr offshore King but not for long as Mr Ashcroft and
his minions are making inroads into the industry he built.
Its call money laundering in law international enforcement
circles...not local.

Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 2,461
K
Offline
K
The hearings start tomorrow and will be broadcast live on Ch 5, Love FM and probably other radio stations.


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www.belize-trips.com
[email protected]

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