Minister’s daughter to invest US$15M as business partner – says Canadian investor Mohamed Osman

Nov 15, 2013 News

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Govt. inks US$30M MoU with ‘Ghost Company’ for recycling plant…

 

– Company only registered three months ago, not six years as claim

– Media scaring away foreign investors – Govt.

Natural Globe Incorporated, the company, with which Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), to set up a US$30 Million recycling plant here, was only registered in Guyana three months ago.

This is a clear contradiction to what the CEO of the Company, Mohamed Osman, told this newspaper on Wednesday. He had previously claimed that the company is six years old but public records have since revealed this as not being factual and that Osman only registered the company, Natural Globe Inc., three months ago, on August 13, 2013.
He had said too that the proposal for the recycling plant was submitted 14 months ago.
Osman yesterday told Kaieteur News that the company, registered locally, has as its directors himself, his son and another female, whom he refused to name. But in a surprising twist of events, the public records disclosed that the other director and shareholder is in fact Adrianna Webster, the daughter of the Human Services Minister, Jennifer Webster.
The names on the business registration were Mohammed Osman, Adrianna Webster and Imzamam Osman.
Adrianna Webster also resides in Canada. Osman told this publication that it is he and this female investor that would be putting US$15M each. He said that they are not looking for other investors and that they had all of the required cash and are just waiting on the ‘go-ahead.’
Asked about the source of his finances to back such an ambitious project, Osman claimed that he is the Vice President of a Canadian Company, Mogford Enterprises, and that he owns half of this company along with a man he identified as John Mogford.
As he made this claim, a Kaieteur News reporter commenced an online search, to no avail, as no website for this company could be found and Osman was at a loss to give an explanation.
Pressed further on the source of his share of the financing, he said that Mogford Enterprise is the parent company for a subsidiary called the Tadger Group International.
While there was no website found for the parent company, one was located for what he claimed is the subsidiary.
When questioned further about this company; details such as contact information, among other things, Osman said he could not recall at the time and would text Kaieteur News the information.

Efforts yesterday to contact the Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Ganga Persaud proved futile. A woman identifying herself as the Minister’s Secretary repeatedly claimed that Persaud was in a meeting.
The Minister however released a public missive yesterday evening which in itself exposed Osman and again contradicted his claims.
According to the Minister’s statement, “Osman is also an active member of the Tadger’s Fuel Economy Solutions, which is also a key player for environmental management in Ontario, Canada…Mr. Osman serves in the capacity of Technical Adviser to this agency.”
On Wednesday this newspaper had done a search throughout several Canadian business registration listings and nothing was found on Osman or his company.
Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon in announcing the MoU last week, had said that it was a Canadian Company. The Company was later identified as Natural Globe Inc., registered in Guyana, with Osman as a shareholder.
Osman had told Kaieteur News that Natural Globe Inc., has a Canadian parent company with several branches.  He was however unable to give this publication a name for this company, only to say that it operates in Ontario, Canada.
When asked about the fact that none of the companies he mentioned can be found on the internet, Osman then said that they do not do any “internet ads.’ He said that this was because his company “uses innovative techniques which persons could steal.”
Local Government Minister Ganga Persaud on Wednesday last had also said that he could not say for sure whether Dr Luncheon made a mistake by saying the company was Canadian.
According to the Minister, he does not know if the company is registered in Canada, but he knows that it has a Guyanese registration.
Questioned about whether any investigation was undertaken by the Ministry into the background and ability of the Company to undertake what it has promised, Persaud responded that government is “satisfied” with all the information which was submitted by the company.
“We just needed a recycling plant which is in keeping with the needs we outlined,” the Minister said.   He said that he does not know about the technical capabilities of the company, or about its business in Canada.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Local Government in its public missive deemed the articles written by both this newspaper and the Stabroek News as incorrect, mischievous and misleading and questioned the intention behind the articles.
The Ministry questioned if the articles were meant to scare investors from Guyana.

 

 

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