‘Hidden debts’: Three central bank directors named – AIM report

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‘Hidden debts’: Three central bank directors named – AIM report

6:46 CAT | 11 Nov 2020

File photo: Folha de Maputo

The three former officials of the Bank of Mozambique whom the Attorney-General’s Office (PGR) has charged with abuse of their office in connection with the scandal of the “hidden debts” are the former chairperson of the central bank, Ernesto Gove, and two former members of the Board of Directors, Joana Matlombe and Waldemar de Sousa, according to a report in Wednesday’s issue of the independent newssheet, “Carta de Mocambique”.

On Monday, the PGR announced that it was charging former Finance Minister Manuel Chang and three former central bank officials, whom it did not name. The scandal concerns the over two billion US dollars in loans obtained by three fraudulent, security related companies, Proindicus, Ematum (Mozambique Tuna Company) and MAM (Mozambique Asset Management), from the banks Credit Suisse and VTB of Russia in 2013 and 2014.

The loans were granted because the government of the time, under the then President Armando Guebuza, guaranteed the loans. Chang signed most of the loan guarantees, in violation of the country’s constitution and of the budget law. The Bank of Mozambique also authorised the loans.

Now that all three companies are effectively bankrupt, the Mozambican state becomes liable for repaying the loans. The PGR is fighting a case in the London courts to have the loans and their guarantees declared illegal.

“Carta de Mocambique” sources say that the three central bank officials took orders “almost under coercion” from Antonio do Rosario, the Director of Economic Intelligence of the Security and Intelligence Service (SISE), which was the driving force behind setting up the three fraudulent companies. Rosario went on to become chairperson of the Board of all three companies. He is currently under preventive detention.

Gove and the other two directors are accused of signing documents “of an administrative character” in the process of contracting the illicit loans. They did so after Chang had signed the loan guarantees.

During the investigations, prosecutors looked into the assets owned by Gove, Matlombe and Sousa, but could find nothing illicit. The properties they had purchased were not out of line with their salaries as central bank directors.

There was thus no sign that they had been bribed by Credit Suisse or by Privinvest, the Abu Dhabi-based group that became the sole contractor for Proindicus, Ematum and MAM. Three former Credit Suisse bankers, Andrew Pearse, Detelvina Subeva and Surghan Singh, last year testified to a vast scheme of kickbacks and bribes organised by Privinvest, but there is no evidence that Gove. Matlombe and Sousa benefited from this.

Source: AIM