Mozambique: Chapo meets with head of DP World
Mozambique & Other Lusophone Countries vs. The Panama Papers
3:09 CAT | 05 Apr 2016
Angola, Mozambique and Cape Verde are cited as home to some of the investment companies linked to Mossak Fonseca, a specialist in creating front companies and the subject of an ongoing financial scandal.
The ‘Panama Papers’, revealed on Sunday 3 April by newspapers across the globe and looking likely to be one of the biggest corruption scandals ever seen, shows investors’ links to projects either planned or underway in African Portuguese-speaking countries.
Angola, Mozambique and Cape Verde all appear to be home to potential offshore shell company beneficiaries, but only the Angolan petroleum minister Botelho de Vasconcelos is quoted by name as being connected to the company at the centre of the scandal.
Research by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) does not reveal de Vasconcelos’ involvement in any illegal activities. Journalists only say that he was the owner of Medea Investments Limited and connected to Legal Studio Roca & Associates.
According to the leaked documents, in March 6 2002 de Vasconcelos put Medea Investments Limited, with a value of one million dollars, in his own name. In 2016, the company, initially established in Niue, a Pacific Ocean island nation, was wound up and transferred to Samoa.
In both cases, the company was converted into bearer shares in favour of de Vasconcelos, making them difficult to track.
However, the authors of the research reiterate throughout the text that it is not illegal to have an offshore company if its activities are properly accounted for and audited.
In a chart based on the ICIJ data, Angola is mention as being home to a Mossak Fonseca customer, believed to be the petroleum minister, as well as 10 companies related to offshore companies, 18 beneficiaries and 40 shareholders, who may or may not be Angolan nationals.
Mozambique is also cited as having three clients, but the documents revealed so far do not cite any names nor does the country appear in the investigation list.
Meanwhie, in the interactive graphics, Mozambique appears with three companies, 10 beneficiaries and 18 shareholders.
Cape Verde has 27 Mossak Fonseca shell company shareholders in the chart, with ICIJ believing these beneficiaries have interests in entities such as the Dubai-based Profile Group, which has for years supposedly had plans to build a resort called Cesaria Evora on the Cape Verdean island of Sao Vicente.
After Africa, Brazil is the most-cited country, with the previously known ‘Lava Jato’ operation being targeted by the research. Portugal has 244 companies, 23 clients, 35 beneficiaries and 255 shareholders with investments linked to the Panamanian company.
The ‘Panama Papers’ exposes offshore companies and provides details of the hidden financial transactions of 128 politicians from around the world, including 12 current and former world leaders. The reports details 1,399 shell companies linked to Mossak Fonseca, with 40 customers, 292 beneficiaries and 1,656 shareholders.
Source: Voa Portugues
Show comments
Also read
Leave a Reply
Be the First to Comment!
You must be logged in to post a comment.
You must be logged in to post a comment.