AS POLICE investigators sifted through stacks of documents and computer files, the debate yesterday turned to whether an independent committee of inquiry should be set up to scrutinise the EAC’s dealings with stockbrokers Suphire.
The brokerage is under investigation for the suspected theft of shares linked to a missing £9 million from the EAC’s pension fund. The company’s CEO Yiannos Andronikou was arrested and charged last Sunday.
With Andronikou in police custody, investigators are now looking into the extent of the EAC’s responsibilities in entrusting its employees’ pensions to a company with a suspect track record. In particular, the pension fund’s management committee has come under scrutiny.
So far not a single cent has been returned to the EAC and, with Andronikou now temporarily behind bars, it’s unclear how the semi-government organisation can recoup the lost millions.
The Cabinet yesterday met to discuss, among other things, whether — and how — a committee of inquiry to probe the EAC’s accounts and financial dealings should be established. And during the day the EAC’s board of directors met with Auditor-general Chrystalla Yiorkadji to see how she could assist in a separate investigation.
But the involved parties seemed unsure about how to proceed. For one thing, certain quarters, such as EAC staff unions, are calling for an independent inquiry; they argue that, given the possibility that senior EAC personnel may be liable, an internal inquiry wouldn’t be reliable.
Second, the Cabinet was not certain that an inquiry should get under way while the police investigation is ongoing. Evidently, some feel that the criminal investigation might have some more surprises in store.
Meanwhile one of the unions representing EAC staff yesterday called on the board to resign. A spokesman for the union said also that they preferred an independent inquiry because, as he put it, “it would not be very ethical to appoint someone from inside the EAC”.
The union justified its low-key stance so far by claiming it did not wish to “complicate matters further” while efforts were being made to recover the missing money from the pension fund.
However, given that the scandal broke out more than 10 days ago, the spokesman said it now looked “increasingly unlikely” that employees would get their money back.
Citing its sources, Politis said that several millions of pounds were tied up in real estate owned by Andronikou, but that liquidating these assets was extremely complicated as certain land plots were either re-mortgaged or belonged to multiple investors.
As far as the criminal aspect of the case goes, reports said that Andronikou has been advised by his legal counsel to refrain from testifying until the precise charges against him are known.
Sources believe that examining the files and taking affidavits from witnesses will take police around two months to complete.
