Two BICAL shareholders claim abuse by controllers
Two shareholders and directors of the Bank of Industry, Commerce & Agriculture Limited (BICAL) and 30 companies associated to BICAL yesterday filed a judicial protest in the Civil Court against the prime minister, the finance minister, the Attorney...
Two shareholders and directors of the Bank of Industry, Commerce & Agriculture Limited (BICAL) and 30 companies associated to BICAL yesterday filed a judicial protest in the Civil Court against the prime minister, the finance minister, the Attorney General and controller Emanuel A Bonello.
Brothers Cecil and Henry Pace claimed in their writ that with effect from November 25, 1972, the finance minister had appointed a controller to assume control of and to administer and liquidate the assets of BICAL and of its associate companies.
After over 30 years of mismanagement, exaggerated delays and abuses and illegalities on the part of the controllers, including the present controller Bonello (who had held this post for more than 20 years) this work had not been concluded, and no detailed statement of account had as yet been provided to the Pace brothers.
This was seriously detrimental and caused damages to the Pace brothers and the depositors and creditors of BICAL and its associated companies.
Cecil and Henry Pace declared that it clearly resulted from documents provided by the controller and auditors that the controller had for many years held cash, credits and other assets that vastly exceeded the capital owing to the depositors and other creditors of the bank.
The controller had not concluded the final distribution nor had he returned the remaining property and assets to the bank's shareholders.
All this, said the Pace brothers, amounted to deprivation of property in violation of their fundamental human rights as protected by the Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights.
They concluded their protest by calling on respondents to halt their illegal and abusive actions and finalise the distribution of payments to the depositors and creditors of the bank and to terminate the controller's appointment.
Respondents were also called upon to return to the Pace brothers any remaining property within one month and were held liable in damages.
Dr Malcolm Pace and Dr Tonio Azzopardi signed the protest.