Asa shareholder pushes for EGM

THE majority shareholder in Asa Resources Group Plc, China International Mining Group Corporation, is set to call for an Extraordinary General Meeting to appoint new directors to replace those that were dismissed over allegations of financial mismanagement or impropriety.

This plan mirrors the requisition that was used to remove directors in the previous board by a small consortium of European and British investors led by Ian Dearing, which resulted in the ouster of founding director, Kalaa Mpinga.

CIMGC is the controlling shareholder in Asa with a 16,3 percent stake in the AIM listed group while former chief executive Yat Hoi Ning has 6,3 percent shareholding, making him the most powerful individual in the resources company.

Asa Resources recently dismissed chief executive Mr Ning, Finance Director Yim Kwan and non-executive director Yuan Hu Ching, who was an appointee of CIMGC on the Asa board, on allegations of fraud in Asa’s local operations.

Investigations revealed that Asa’s gold mining unit, Freda, was prejudiced of about $15 million through the obscure deals. CIMGC under its relationship agreement with Asa Resources is entitled to nominate two non-executive directors to the board.

Following the announcement of the dismissal of the CIMGC directors, our Harare Bureau has it on good authority that CIMGC wants an EGM although Mr Dearing said no proper request had been received from any shareholder of the group.

“No proper request for an EGM has been received from any shareholder in Asa Resource Group plc. The Chinese shareholders are free to do as they have been advised and it would be interesting if they came to Zimbabwe or London for the EGM.”

Asa has been involved in a number of controversies since the hostile take-over by CIMGC from former Mwana Africa, now Asa, shareholders.

Allegations of asset stripping, discontinuation of development projects and of corruption are the latest in a series of controversies associated with CIMGC.

CIMGC and the Dearing led requisitioners wrestled Mwana Africa from investors led by Mr Mpinga through a boardroom coup, triggering a series of contentious decisions, some designed to skirt local business systems and laws.

A restructuring of the existing management for the operations was instituted after the CIMGC directors were ousted. Mr Dearing, the group legal advisor was appointed executive director to enable continuity of restoration of proper corporate governance.

Mr Conrad Mukanganga was appointed as assistant company secretary of the group with responsibility for the secretarial functions of Bindura Nickel Corporation and Freda Rebecca Gold Mine and administration of the group’s other subsidiaries. Mr Toindepi Muganyi will retain responsibility for FRGM and Mr Batirai Manhando will retain BNC’s operations but both will also be undertaking additional roles in relation to wider group operations.

The financial structure of the group has been consolidated by confirmation of Jan Lampen as financial controller of both BNC and FRGM.