Latest update January 20th, 2025 4:00 AM
GSL vs. NICIL court case …Yassin tells court of other investments overseas
Guyana Stores Limited (GSL) Chief Executive Officer, (CEO) Tony Yassin, was on Thursday further
Guyana Stores Limited, Tony Yassin
questioned about the purchase of a property he acquired under a sale agreement between the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) and Royal Investments Incorporated (RII).
The court battle between NICIL and RII (Yassin’s company) is ongoing at the High Court before Justice Roxanne George-Wiltshire.
NICIL claims that the company owes the State over US$2 million for the acquisition of GSL.
On Thursday, NICIL lawyer, Rafiq Khan, asked Yassin whether he was certain that the Transport (title) for the Agencies Building was part of the original sales agreement between NICIL and RII.
The attorney then referred a document relative to the Transport for the Agencies Building and showed the witness that the property is described in the Transport as the Agencies Building, which Yassin agreed.
The Attorney requested that the witness be shown a document titled NICIL #2, which spoke of properties at time of completion of the sale of shares.
“Properties that are surplus to the current operating requirements of GSL shall not form part of the assets of GSL at the time of completion of the proposed share sale. The only land and buildings that shall be part of the assets of GSL at the time of the share sale completion are Lot 22-23 Church Street (Universal Building) and Lot 19 Water Street, Georgetown…” the witness read aloud.
Khan questioned the witness as to whether he knew that the property was not part of a sale of agreement.
Mr. Yassin said that he did not know at the time that the building was withdrawn from the memorandum of understanding for the share sale and purchase agreement.
The Attorney then requested that the witness be shown a letter dated September 25, 2000, and asked that he read a paragraph aloud. The letter stated that GSL will have the option to purchase any of the properties owned by Property Holdings Inc. and utilized by GSL.
According to Khan, that document is showing that GSL had the option to purchase the Agencies Building to which the witness, agreed.
The witness told the court that he briefly occupied the building before he was pressured to remove from the Agencies building but he stayed.
“After you were pressured to remove from that building, did you initiate any legal proceedings against the Privatisation Unit in respect of that removal?” Mr. Khan asked.
Yassin replied, “No,” but noted that Reaz Khan his business partner, who was also a part of the transaction, wrote to Mr. Brassington objecting to the removal of the Agencies Building from the GSL Assets.
The lawyer further questioned the witness about the time he had filed at the registry for an official change of directors for RII.
According to suggestions made by the Attorney, Yassin agreed that he filed at the Registry for a change of directors on September, 12, 2009
As such a certified copy of the change of directors was tendered into evidence which Yassin agreed that he caused to be filed.
Yassin also agreed that the document accordingly notifies the Registrar that from the 7th July, 2000, Brian Tiwarie, Reaz Khan and Yasmin Shalilza Khan, ceased to be directors of Royal Investments Inc. and from 8th July, 2000, Mohamed Yassin and Khemraj Narine were appointed directors.
On the same date, the CEO confirmed that he had entered an agreement with Reaz Khan to purchase the shares in Royal Investments Inc. for US$600,000; he later paid the balance of US$300,000. The receipt was also tendered as part of the evidence.
The witness was also questioned about his investment of the United States business, Salmo Corporation in Royal Investments Inc. He responded that he and three other business partners split the cost equally to purchase the company for US$6 million.
Mr. Yassin explained that Salmo held agencies for some companies, including Lalah Curry Powder from India, Globe Corn Mutton, and Corn Beef from Australia.
The next hearing will continue February 5, 2015.
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