New twists in ODC N$100m money hunt

A RETIRED, ailing Botswana politician and a former South African water board Chief Executive Officer are listed among the directors of Great Triangle Investments, the company alleged to have fleeced the Offshore Development Company (ODC) of N$100 million.

Former Botswana People’s Party President Knight Maripe is reported to be among three directors of Great Triangle. The South African director, Philip A Fourie, whom the ODC named as the person they have been trying to trace, appears to be the same Fourie the Amatola Water Board suspended for being involved in an alleged scam bid involving public assets worth N$1,6 billion in 2000.The East London newspaper The Daily Dispatch reports that it made contact with Fourie yesterday.Although admitting that his name appeared on the letterhead of Great Triangle Investments, Fourie denied any involvement in the ODC transaction.He claimed that another director, a certain TT Theart from Stellenbosch, was responsible for the ODC deal.Fourie was reportedly in Tarkastad in the Eastern Cape when the The Daily Dispatch spoke to him, but would not provide his contact details.Theart does not appear to be listed on the company file in Botswana.Botswana sources told The Namibian that a third director, a certain LJ Fergus, is listed in the company file.The Botswana newspaper The Sunday Standard reported yesterday that Maripe might have been used as a front for the company and that it was unlikely that he benefited from the ODC deal.An investigation into ‘boiler-room’ operations in Botswana by Alexander von Paleske, the head of the Oncology Department of the Princess Marina Hospital in Botswana, named the Fourie of Great Triangle Investments as the former Amatola water board chief linked to an alleged major fraud attempt to cede property of the water board as security for personal transactions.A telephone number for Fourie provided to the media by ODC lawyers is the same now-defunct number Fourie had when he was the water board chief based in East London.He quit his job in 2001, the same day for which a disciplinary hearing had been set.Earlier, the company secretary for Great Triangle Investments PR Executive and Business Services said upon inquiry from The Namibian that the company’s Botswana director had died.The Namibian understands that Maripe is about 80 years of age, in frail health and is reported to be living in abject poverty in the rural surrounds of Maun.ODC’S SILENCE GROWS As reports intensify that the ODC may have called in South Africa’s specialised police unit, the Scorpions, to trace their money, ODC officials remain tight-lipped on any information regarding the investment and attempts to return it.This is despite a promise they made of a public announcement on the status of the situation more than a week ago.It now appears that the Namibia Development Corporation (NDC), which is preparing for shutdown at the end of the year, may have been a conduit in the ODC investment.As much as N$40 million could have been transferred from the NDC to the ODC for this investment.The Namibian has reliably learned that the NDC did not have the N$40 million in cash that its financial statements reflected last year, when it was mandated by Cabinet to transfer N$20 million as start-up capital for the Development Bank.The ODC has said that it did not invest all the money in one go, and that its dealings with Great Triangle Investments were over a period starting in 2003.The investments were supposed to yield returns of 20 per cent interest at different times.WHO GAVE THE GREEN LIGHT? There are still no answers as to who authorised the investments.The Namibian understands that the ODC board has not had a formal meeting this year.Approached by The Namibian yesterday, ODC Board Chairperson Gerdus Burmeister could not say exactly when the board had last met, but maintained that they did meet, even if not formally.He could also not provide any information on whether progress had been made in tracing the ODC millions, saying he did not want to “compromise actions that were taking place”.ODC lawyer Andrew Theunissen of Theunissen, Louw and Partners said on Friday that he had no information to provide on the investigation.NDC CEO Abdool Aboobakar, who also doubles as the head of the ODC, is said to be back in the country, but attempts to contact him have proved futile.His office said on Friday that he had returned to Namibia after having been on sick leave in his native country of Mauritius, but that he had not been to his office.Burmeister said he had not had recent contact with Aboobakar and could not provide The Namibian with a contact number for him.THE SCORPIONS Scorpions spokesperson Makhosini Nkosi could not confirm to The Namibian last week whether the unit was pursuing a case to help trace the ODC’s money.He said it was not the unit’s practice to discuss its investigations.Great Triangle Investments was registered as a company with the Botswana Ministry of Trade and Industry in 1997.Its business address provided in the company file is not operational.Fourie’s attempted fraud was deemed serious enough to be announced in the South African parliament by the former Water Affairs and Forestry Minister, Ronnie Kasrils, in 2000.The alleged scheme involved the alienation of state assets by means of promissory notes, but Fourie’s alleged scheme was intercepted before he could carry it out fully.What is a boiler room? IN the context of investing, the term ‘boiler-room operation’ refers to the use of high-pressure sales tactics to sell stocks to clients who are picked at random out of a phone directory.Boiler rooms are often set up in inexpensive office spaces where armies of telemarketers, often with no experience, make these calls.These “brokers” will claim to have offices in different countries to give the impression of importance or wealth.Source:The South African director, Philip A Fourie, whom the ODC named as the person they have been trying to trace, appears to be the same Fourie the Amatola Water Board suspended for being involved in an alleged scam bid involving public assets worth N$1,6 billion in 2000.The East London newspaper The Daily Dispatch reports that it made contact with Fourie yesterday.Although admitting that his name appeared on the letterhead of Great Triangle Investments, Fourie denied any involvement in the ODC transaction.He claimed that another director, a certain TT Theart from Stellenbosch, was responsible for the ODC deal.Fourie was reportedly in Tarkastad in the Eastern Cape when the The Daily Dispatch spoke to him, but would not provide his contact details.Theart does not appear to be listed on the company file in Botswana.Botswana sources told The Namibian that a third director, a certain LJ Fergus, is listed in the company file.The Botswana newspaper The Sunday Standard reported yesterday that Maripe might have been used as a front for the company and that it was unlikely that he benefited from the ODC deal.An investigation into ‘boiler-room’ operations in Botswana by Alexander von Paleske, the head of the Oncology Department of the Princess Marina Hospital in Botswana, named the Fourie of Great Triangle Investments as the former Amatola water board chief linked to an alleged major fraud attempt to cede property of the water board as security for personal transactions.A telephone number for Fourie provided to the media by ODC lawyers is the same now-defunct number Fourie had when he was the water board chief based in East London.He quit his job in 2001, the same day for which a disciplinary hearing had been set.Earlier, the company secretary for Great Triangle Investments PR Executive and Business Services said upon inquiry from The Namibian that the company’s Botswana director had died.The Namibian understands that Maripe is about 80 years of age, in frail health and is reported to be living in abject poverty in the rural surrounds of Maun.ODC’S SILENCE GROWS As reports intensify that the ODC may have called in South Africa’s specialised police unit, the Scorpions, to trace their money, ODC officials remain tight-lipped on any information regarding the investment and attempts to return it.This is despite a promise they made of a public announcement on the status of the situation more than a week ago.It now appears that the Namibia Development Corporation (NDC), which is preparing for shutdown at the end of the year, may have been a conduit in the ODC investment.As much as N$40 million could have been transferred from the NDC to the ODC for this investment.The Namibian has reliably learned that the NDC did not have the N$40 million in cash that its financial statements reflected last year, when it was mandated by Cabinet to transfer N$20 million as start-up capital for the Development Bank.The ODC has said that it did not invest all the money in one go, and that its dealings with Great Triangle Investments were over a period starting in 2003.The investments were supposed to yield returns of 20 per cent interest at different times.WHO GAVE THE GREEN LIGHT? There are still no answers as to who authorised the investments.The Namibian understands that the ODC board has not had a formal meeting this year.Approached by The Namibian yesterday, ODC Board Chairperson Gerdus Burmeister could not say exactly when the board had last met, but maintained that they did meet, even if not formally.He could also not provide any information on whether progress had been made in tracing the ODC millions, saying he did not want to “compromise actions that were taking place”.ODC lawyer Andrew Theunissen of Theunissen, Louw and Partners said on Friday that he had no information to provide on the investigation.NDC CEO Abdool Aboobakar, who also doubles as the head of the ODC, is said to be back in the country, but attempts to contact him have proved futile.His office said on Friday that he had returned to Namibia after having been on sick leave in his native country of Mauritius, but that he had not been to his office.Burmeister said he had not had recent contact with Aboobakar and could not provide The Namibian with a contact number for him.THE SCORPIONS Scorpions spokesperson Makhosini Nkosi could not confirm to The Namibian last week whether the unit was pursuing a case to help trace the ODC’s money.He said it was not the unit’s practice to discuss its investigations.Great Triangle Investments was registered as a company with the Botswana Ministry of Trade and Industry in 1997.Its business address provided in the company file is not operational.Fourie’s attempted fraud was deemed serious enough to be announced in the South African parliament by the former Water Affairs and Forestry Minister, Ronnie Kasrils, in 2000.The alleged scheme involved the alienation of state assets by means of promissory notes, but Fourie’s alleged scheme was intercepted before he could carry it out fully.What is a boiler room? IN the context of investing, the term ‘boiler-room operation’ refers to the use of high-pressure sales tactics to sell stocks to clients who are picked at random out of a phone directory.Boiler rooms are often set up in inexpensive office spaces where armies of telemarketers, often with no experience, make these calls.These “brokers” will claim to have offices in different countries to give the impression of importance or wealth.Source: