8 former eTeck directors get leave to petition Privy Council

Appellate court judges, Justices Peter Jamadar, Alice Yorke-Soo Hon and Prakash Moosai granted final leave to the eight to take their case to the London court.

In August of last year, Justices of Appeal Nolan Bereaux and Maureen Rajnauth-Lee ruled against former directors — Kenneth Julien, Ulric McNicols, Brian Copeland, Rene Monteil, Eugene Tiah, Sonia Noel, Wendy Fitzwilliam and John Soo Ping Chow.

The court rejected a call by the eight to create a special exemption from the Limitation Act for State companies and unsuccessfully, to argue that it was now too late to sue them as any wrongdoing in eTeck would have been known about all along by the then Finance Minister.

Legal action was initiated against former eTeck chairman Ken Julien, and directors Dr Rene Monteil, Brian Copeland, Ulric Mc Nicols, Eugene Tiah, Sonia Noel, Wendy Fitzwilliam and John Soo Ping Chow, in a bid to recover US$5 million arising out of an investment in a China-based company, Bamboo Networks Limited (BNL), in 2005, to develop eTeck’s information technology business venture, as part of the former PNM regime’s diversification of the country’s downstream industries.

The legal claim against the former eTeck directors alleged their failure to ascertain whether the investment with BNL was prudent and in the interest of the company, or the country.

According to the claim, Bamboo Networks failed to perform any of its obligations under the agreement arrived at by the then Julien-led board, and failed to return the invested sum despite several requests by eTeck.

According to the statement of case filed in the High Court, notwithstanding advice by the Finance Ministry not to invest in BNL because of the poor financial state of the company, on January 18, 2005, the Julien-led eTeck board resolved to proceed with the investment in BNL.

It is the contention of the special purpose company that the failure by Julien and his then board to exercise due diligence placed the investment at considerable risk. The directors have also been accused of failing to act prudently, and of having breached their duties as directors and board members, resulting in the company suffering losses and damages.

The eight former directors were represented yesterday by attorney Stuart Young while Gerald Ramdeen and Varun Debideen appeared for eTeck.