Relief or depression for Golden Key depositors?
Finally there seems to be some kind of light at the end of the tunnel for all aggrieved depositors of Golden Key (GK), but the tunnel seems to be never ending!
Firstly a big thank you should go out to The Sunday (Business) Times for giving much publicity and also publicising weekly the Golden Key developments in which other newspapers or media failed to do. Maybe the simple reason is that they simply did not want to jeopardise the revenue they were still getting from (other sections of the) Ceylinco Group by way of advertisements.
It’s very encouraging to see the Central Bank finally intervening in the matter when it should have taken action in 2006 after its’ investigating unit found GK to be a failed entity. One could remember the pyramid scheme called GoldQuest which was also scrutinised and was put to a halt by that same unit in that same year. Surprisingly the Pyramid scheme was the mastermind of some hierarchy in the regulatory mechanism who is also involved in the present repayment scheme. Corruption? You tell me!
Amazingly the newly appointed Chief Justice has already finalized the GK case, endorsing the so called repayment plan submitted by the CB. One wonders why the case dragged on for so many years when it could have been sorted out in a couple of months? Does it mean that our legal system is corrupt? You tell me!
For example Lalith Kotelawela and his merry men of Ceylinco fame were released on bail under the condition that they come up with a repayment plan within a year or else that they go back to jail. It has been four years since then and when the case was taken up recently nothing was mentioned of the bail conditions!
Unfortunately for the poor depositors it’s another misleading repayment plan to fool them. According to the recent report submitted by the CB the security deposit amounts have come down from Rs. 26.1 billion to Rs.9.1 billion and also the number of depositors have come down from 9054 to 6254.
Surely there are enough assets to at least settle 70 per cent of the capital leaving out the interest? The CB appears to be hurrying up to clear the mess they created by offering a share per each Rs. 100 deposit. Who knows if one could sell a share at even at Rs.1? We all know how the stock market works. This also is only 38 per cent against the deposit after a meagre payment of Rs. 100,000. So what will be of the balance 59 per cent?
If the GK company is revived especially with funds from the CB and the help of the Monetary Board, who is going to benefit from the profits that it might earn? This clearly shows the work of some people who would ensure the matter drags on further for many, many years to come. I strongly believe the CB is taking the depositors for a joke. Amazingly the Committee of the GK Association seems to be okay with all of this or either they don’t know the mathematics behind it or else corruption has got the better of them! Your guess is good as mine!
One must feel sorry for scam artiste Sakvithi who is in jail separated from wife and children for cheating a much smaller amount of money compared to the amount the GK owners owe the public.
Kotelawela and his ‘men’ are living a luxury life including his wife, Sicille who is hiding abroad with an international warrant issued for her arrest while poor, retired, innocent people are dying in their death beds without money to buy medicine or food.
Well, they all may escape scott free but I guess their souls and their families would never rest in peace!
RNW
(Business Editor says: This letter was received in the mail from a depositor who, like many others who have written in the past expressing their concerns, wishes to remain anonymous fearing being victimised if a proper repayment plan is (eventually) formalised for the benefit of all.)
Follow @timesonlinelk
comments powered by Disqus