CONCERNS ABOUT HOW BUSINESS APPEARS TO BE DONE IN THE BAHAMAS
...there is all this unfavorable chatter among investors about doing business in The Bahamas
"Is this how we hoodwink our investors? In other words, the Letter of Intent was the go-ahead to do the studies, making the investors believe that it guaranteed that the contract would be accepted in the end? Was this company duped into spending this money to save the Bahamas government further expenditure? No wonder there is all this unfavorable chatter among investors about doing business in the Bahamas — they all seem to know that they have to tip-toe in, but at all times watch their back." - THE STELLAR ENERGY GRIEVANCE MUST NOW BE FINALLY ADDRESSED TO SHOW THAT THE GOVERNMENT CAN WIN BACK THE CONFIDENCE OF OVERSEAS INVESTORS....
1. ANSWERS ARE NOW VERY MUCH DUE AND THEY SHOULD BE GIVEN BY DR MINNIS IN PARTICULAR EXPLAINING TO BAHAMIANS WHY HE HAS ACCEPTED HON WELLS IN HIS CABINET AFTER HAVING LAMBASTED HIM IN PUBLIC - DOES DR MINNIS THINK THAT BAHAMIANS HAVE FORGOTTEN THE PAST OR THAT THEY ARE DENSE? WHAT IS THE "POWER" THAT HON WELLS HAS OVER ALL PARTIES AS MANY PEOPLE SEEM TO THINK? DR DUANE SANDS SEEMED TO HAVE INDICATED THEY ARE AFRAID OF SOMETHING HE KNOWS? IF SO IT WOULD BE DISGRACEFUL AND A SMEAR ON THE REPUTATION OF THE BAHAMAS AND THE INTEGRITY OF THE NATION.
2. WOULD THIS HAVE HAPPENED IF A FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT AND A REGISTER OF PRIVATE INTERESTS BY PUBLIC OFFICIALS HAD BEEN IN PLACE?
3. DOES ANYONE REALLY BELIEVE THAT DR MINNIS WOULD HAVE ACCEPTED HON RENWARD WELLS INTO HIS PARTY AND IN CABINET WITHOUT KNOWING ALL THIS AND THE REAL REASONS WHY THE LOI WAS ISSUED? DOES HE REALLY BELIEVE THAT THERE WAS NO CABINET "APPROVAL" AND HENCE A VALID ENFORCEABLE "CONTRACT" IN PLACE AT THE TIME? IS HON WELLS DIRECTLY IMPLICATED IN THE "PLOTTING AND SCHEMING" OF THE FORMER PM AGENTS, MESSERS ALLEN AND AND FORBES AS IS INCREASINGLY LOOKS?
4. WHAT CAUSED DR MINNIS' SUDDEN COMPLETE CHANGE OF POSITION AFTER RENWARD WELLS STEPPED TO THE OTHER SIDE? POLITICAL EXPEDIENCE, BLATANT HYPOCRISY OR WORSE?
5. CAN DR MINNIS JUSTIFY SUPPORTING MR WELLS WHO IS PART OF A SERIOUS LEGAL CLAIM WITH CONNOTATIONS OF BLATANT ABUSE OF PROCESS WHICH IS FINALLY PROCEEDING IN THE SUPREME COURT - AND WHERE ULTIMATELY HE AND ALL OTHER PUBLIC OFFICIALS INVOLVED, PAST AND PRESENT, WILL BE SUMMONED FOR CROSS-EXAMINATION?
6. WHY HAS THE LOCAL PRESS, SO EAGER AT THE TIME TO COVER THE LOI SCANDAL STOPPED REPORTING ON THIS VERY PUBLIC CASE WHICH SERIOUSLY QUESTIONS THE STANDING OF THE BAHAMAS AS A CREDIBLE AND TRANSPARENT INVESTMENT DESTINATION AND DRAMATICALLY UNDERLINES THE NEED OF PROPER POLITICAL GOVERNANCE RULES? IS IT BECAUSE HON WELLS IS NOW "PROTECTED" BY DR. MINNIS?
ALL THE ANSWERS TO THE LOI SAGA WILL BE REVEALED AT THE MUCH DELAYED COURT HEARING, NEVERTHELESS, STELLAR ENERGY HAS ASKED AND WILL OBTAIN JUDICIAL DISCOVERY OF ALL DECISIONAL PROCEEDINGS IN ORDER TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THE FULL BACKGROUND OF THE LOI ISSUANCE ONCE AND FOR ALL, IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE EVENTUAL ESTABLISHMENT OF THE TRUTH: JUSTICE DELAYED IS JUSTICE DENIED.
LISTEN TO THIS VOICE RECORDING OF THE ARTICLE AND MAKE UP YOUR OWN MIND.
The Board of Stellar Energy looks forward to the next Court Hearing which is still to be announced and is already over two months late - the new case judge, Rt Honorable Chief Justice promised in last interlocutory hearing back on 22 May to have it held between the 5 July and 21 July Court Hearing that the Attorney General has put off since January 2017 (!), for reasons that can only be fathomed - in all instances having failed to submit formal defenses and used technicalities and open and blatant - and fully documented breaches of Supreme Court Rules to kick the can down the road - the original draft defense, still not finalized after almost 4 (four) years (!), stating that Mr Wells acted "ultra vires", an inexplicable position considering that Mr Wells sits in the same present Cabinet of the Attorney General.
Stellar Energy's original Default Judgement filed in November 2016 is still extant and surprisingly unchallenged up to the present time. The Attorney General's Office has ignored and breached innumerable Rules of the Supreme Court over the last 4 years and Stellar Energy will finally put them to task in front of the new Honorable Judge to finally stop this abuse of process that does not reflect well at all on the international reputation of the Bahamas judiciary and of the Bahamas Government, especially in this time where the Bahamas need the support of supranational entities and credibility to apply for it. As reported in previous posts, disappointingly, also last Court Hearing 22 May, that we had optimistically named The Day of Reckoning has proved to be a mere interlocutory Hearing, very much along the lines of the previous one of 3 March.
The submissions made so far by the Office of the Attorney General still fail to present a formal defense and are in serious breach of several Rules of the Supreme Court, whilst Stellar Energy's attorney had diligently submitted a long while ago his own submissions and applications for Discovery and Re-pleading. As a result of the Crown's counsel conduct, no debate could take place at the time on the merits of the long-awaited applications by the Crown, inexplicably extant since November 2016, almost 4 years ago, indicating clearly either an uneasiness to proceed publicly, a lack of legal preparation or uncertainty of what to plead; an intent to procrastinate proceedings by kicking the can down the road, or a combination of these. Not exactly the position of a counterpart, the Attorney General, who is confident and credible in challenging Stellar Energy's very serious claims if they are unwilling or afraid for them to be openly debated and adjudicated in the Court Rooms according to the Law. At least proper serious attention has been given by appointing the most senior and respected judge of the Bahamas, The Honorable Chief Justice Brian Moree, internationally acknowledged as a fine jurist and a top judge, who is finally expected to ensure fair hearings and a fair ruling going forward and that no further abuse of the Court process or procrastinations are allowed or tolerated.
Sadly, the Bahamians have not yet had the opportunity to start to have the promised and much awaited answers to the disturbing questions still left open since the issuance, leak and breach of the LOI now 6 years ago. The events as unfurled at the time were commented on by the current Prime Minister, Dr Minnis in his then position of Leader of the Opposition, and confirm both this view and the full legitimacy of Stellar Energy legal claim and the serious reservations concerning Mr Wells' role in the LOI saga. READ the full Press Release by Dr Minnis on 6 August 2014 (https://www.stellar-energy-bahamas.com/fnm-leader-on-renward-wells-saga/), which makes exceptional reading.
Meanwhile Mr Wells has just been moved in Cabinet to Minister of Health to replace Dr Duane Sands: a sideways move at best - surely he hoped for a better promotion but he is unlikely to get it or even to stay in Cabinet for long - until the big cloud of his involvement in the LOI saga will be fully dissipated in the Courts and in public: there is much more than meets the eye and too many questions raised by Bahamian citizens have not been answered yet notwithstanding the solemn promises of their politicians from both sides - and with the local press basically ignoring their pleas and try to brush this scandal under the carpet. For the time being Renward Wells seems to be intent on maintaining the silence of leaders of both parties - Dr Minnis hinted at that in a previous broadcast that we posted on Thursday 6 August and it made uncomfortable viewing.
The Board of Stellar Energy has also instructed its new local Counsel, Ayse Rengin Dengizer Johnson & Co. to advance the present Appeal against the initial ruling pertaining to Mr Wells, who together with Mr Allen and Mr Forbes are alleged to be agents of the former Prime Minister, Perry Christie and to seek Orders of Discovery, and filed into the record affidavits which outline very serious allegations and fully documented allegations against the past PLP administration, which include Mr Wells in his former capacity and, by extension, the current FNM Administration.
The affidavit of facts and supporting evidence, filed on 29 April 2019 and not yet heard in Court, makes exceptional reading, detailing an elaborate conspiracy to defraud, extort and circumvent by issuing to Stellar Energy several letters, commitments and LOI's, some addressed to supranational entities which were aimed at obtaining equity and cash benefits to a local Bahamas Interest Group, which Stellar Energy maintains included senior members of the past and present administration, but had the ultimate effect to create a constructive contract that was subsequently breached.
Further evidence available shall be disclosed at trial. In any event and irrespective of the judiciary process in progress, ultimately the evidence available in possession of Stellar Energy will become public knowledge since it is in the public interest to assist with the establishment of good governance and transparency so much required by foreign investors to safely invest in the Bahamas.
Justice delayed is justice denied, and Stellar Energy simply will not allow this.
Read full press releases on our website: https://www.stellar-energy-bahamas.com/press-releases/
...and the original article here: http://www.tribune242.com/news/2015/jan/23/were-investors-duped-doing-assessment-win-contract/
