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Call for Immediate Forensic Audit into the Operations of GEMS

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Rodney Wilkinson in handcuffs

The news that the bagman has been arrested on 67 counts of fraud is big news in Barbados. In BU’s opinion it ranks in the top three memorable moments since our Independence because of his high profile status given his connection to high profile politicians. Time will tell if our competent legal system will work to make at least 25% of the charges ‘stick’.

Those who wonder if the bagman would have had to suffer the same public ridicule as the former Prime Minister’s brother Richard Arthur had a different administration been in office, probably not. The scenario playing out gives hope to the optimists that the wheels of justice may yet turn on one of its own.

Rodney Wilkinson was the CEO of GEMS/HRL project that included at the time Savannah Hotel, Blue Horizon, Time Out, Eastry House and Silver Rock properties. The W in JAWS is for Wilkinson?

BU will be labelled as being foolishly optimistic by some to expect the justice system to wheel into motion to work like it is suppose to in the matter of Wilkinson versus Globe Finance and NASSCO.  The Auditor General has been unflattering in several reports regarding the management of Hotel Resorts Limited aka GEMS. In light of recent events BU is calling for a forensic audit into the operations of Hotel Resorts Limited in the period when Wilkinson was CEO.

It boggles the mind – now that we know – that Wilkinson was appointed deputy chairman of the Barbados Mortgage Finance by former prime minister Owen Arthur and he (Wilkinson) was fingered as the contact man in a construction company called Kitchener Construction and Investment listed to do work for Urban Development Commission.

It is only the politically partisan who continue to ignore how the political directorate (by both political parties) in Barbados continue to manipulate the system for personal gain.  Who can forget Clyde Mascoll’s 360 turn on the issue of JAWS after he crossed the floor. Barbadian taxpayers should be made to rest easy after an investigation into the operations of HRL Limited in the period Wilkinson was employed as Chief Executive Officer.

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71 responses to “Call for Immediate Forensic Audit into the Operations of GEMS”

  1. balance Avatar
    balance

    AFTER THE ABOVE, YOU ALL STILL WANT A GOVERNMENT BANK WITH CRONIES MAK8ING THE DECISIONS TO PLEASE THEIR PLITICAL MASTERS AND BAGMEN WAITING TO EAT SUMPTUOSLY FROM THE FATTED CALF.

  2. SITH Avatar
    SITH

    It is always intriguing to try and understand that if enough money was defrauded to buy numerous houses in Miami, how did that money get converted into US$ and out get out of the country. There has to be a pretty elaborate scheme that would allow this to happen. I doubt very much that an audit of day to day operations would turn this up. If anyone has the addresses of the houses in Miami, that would be a good place to start looking at how and where funds came from to make the purchases. Barbados could ask for the assistance of the FBI to establish this. They wont.

  3. David Avatar
    David

    Hotels & Resorts Ltd

    2.46

    The Government of Barbados by way of an agreement dated 22nd July

    2002 loaned Hotels & Resorts Limited $145,328,264. Under the terms of

    the loan the Company was to make semi-annual repayments at 30th June

    and 31st December, over twenty (20) years, at a rate of 7.25% per annum

    on the reducing balance. Repayment was originally scheduled to

    commence at 30th June 2005, but this was revised to 30th June 2006.

    Interest was due with effect from 30th June 2004, to be accrued until the

    first payment.

    2.47

    This loan was not being serviced and the Cabinet agreed to debt relief for

    Hotels & Resorts Ltd. This relief was by way of a write off of $116,181,730

    ($48 million in Interest and $67 million in Principal), leaving a balance of

    $85,392,579 in principal and $20,372,655 in interest outstanding.

    2.48 The notes to the financial statements however reflect an outstanding

    principal of $105,765,450 instead of $85,392,794. The interest of

    $20,372,655 was incorrectly included in the principal, and this error should

    be corrected.

    2010 Auditor General Report

  4. Simple Simon Avatar
    Simple Simon

    Sunshine Sunny Shine October 3, 2014 at 3:33 AM ” how you think Winston Hall got out of Barbados and lived in a neighbouring Caricom island for ump-teen years”

    Actually Winston Hall was a young hard outdoorsman, not afraid to traverse, gullies and rivers at night bare foot. Not afraid to traverse the Caribbean Sea in small boats.

    Wilkie is an elderly car using, air conditioned using soft terrace man who could not survive a week as a rough barefoot outdoorsman. He is no Winston Hall. LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    A small boat pelting across the Caribbean does not have air conditioning, nor first class seats, nor sea sickness medicine.

  5. Crusoe Avatar
    Crusoe

    ‘Call for Immediate Forensic Audit into the Operations of GEMS’

    You ARE joking, right?

    The Auditor General constantly reports and highlights serious issues and those are ignored.

    What do you want the forensic report for, just to give a large firm to do it, a HUGE sum of money from Government coffers?

    Nah. Don’t bother. A waste of time.

  6. L.J Avatar
    L.J

    HEARD THAT STUART SICK
    Hope he dont bring back EBOLA
    Should be be quarantined ???

  7. Simple Simon Avatar
    Simple Simon

    @balance October 3, 2014 at 8:29 AM ” BAGMEN WAITING TO EAT SUMPTUOSLY FROM THE FATTED CALF”

    In all fairness this particular bagman does not look like a sumptuous eater…he has more of a lean and hungry look.

  8. Well Well Avatar
    Well Well

    Have to share this fun-fabulous development with the BU folks.

    Good word on the ground in Barbados is that the very few Neurologists who inhabit and work on the island are being WARNED that they will be skating on extremely razor thin ice if anyone of them allow greed and/or stupidity to cause them to get involved in a CERTAIN EMG/NCV/torture/pain/suffering issue, when approached by a company.

    Said few Neurologists in Barbados can rest assured that they can take this extremely valid piece of advice to the BANK in good old-fashion 1st Defendant, 2nd Defendant style….this advice is being given in good faith.

    Stay tuned for further developments…lol

    For those who are not familiar, an EMG/NCV procedure is one of the most painful, torturous and horrifying experience/medical procedure invented using needles and shock.

    In the severely injured, the residual side effects of pain and suffering can last for many months after the procedure is done, hence the reason specialists very rarely recommend the procedure to their patients since it’s not to be taken lightly and should NEVER be used as a DELAYING TACTIC.

    During the procedure, if one or all four limbs in the human body are involved for exploration, each limb is explored separately and for a period of approx 4-60 minutes each, each minute is guaranteed to be interlaced with intermittent screams of pain and bleeding.

    Naturally, the neurologist will have to explore all four limbs, if required, over a period of at least 2-3 days because of the pain, suffering and torture element involved so as to get an accurate reading of the injuries to the human body and to minimize the extent of pain and suffering to the patient, to a certain degree. That is the reason that specialists who are not greedy do not recommend the first EMG/NCV, unless absolutely needed, necessary and unavoidable, hence they would scarcely recommend a second or third for no good reason.

    This procedure is the most accurate known for determining and/or confirming certain injuries to the patient’s body.

  9. Well Well Avatar
    Well Well

    Correction:

    each limb is explored separately and for a period of approx 40-60 minutes each, each minute is guaranteed to be interlaced with intermittent screams of pain and bleeding.

  10. Bajan in NY Avatar
    Bajan in NY

    David BU,

    Any insider information regard the self-inflicted damage done to the BCA by contracting a fraudster as it CEO? Was it incompetence or willful negligence?

  11. ac Avatar
    ac

    LJ what a dic head.have u or any one u know never been sick u brain dead blp yardfowl.

  12. David Avatar
    David

    @Bajan in NY

    No inside knowledge but if you go by what is being said another case of knowing the right people and being catapulted to the top of the heap.

  13. David Avatar
    David

    Here is what Mascoll said about JAWS when he was at 180 degrees:

    OCTOBER 25, 2002 – Mascoll attacks Arthur on his connection with close friend, GEMS boss, Rodney Wilkinson, and accountant David Shorey.

    “How could you not know that your best friend [Rodney Wilkinson], who was in your ministry, who then turned around and got a job as chief executive officer of Gems that was under your portfolio, how could you not know of his elevation? . . . There is lots to be revealed. I am a researcher and I intend to research this to the bone.”

    “. . . This is the same Shorey of GEMS fame, chairman of Hotel and Resorts Limited. The same Shorey who was consultant to Cable & amp; Wireless at their failed rate hearing. The same Shorey that Government paid a quarter-million dollars for a cricket study for the BCA (Barbados Cricket Association)”

  14. Crusoe Avatar
    Crusoe

    @ Well Well? Are you insinuating that an insurance company is trying to get out of a payment?

    http://community.lawyers.com/forums/t/83088.aspx

  15. Colonel Buggy Avatar
    Colonel Buggy

    OCTOBER 25, 2002 – Mascoll attacks Arthur on his connection with close friend, GEMS boss, Rodney Wilkinson, and accountant David Shorey.
    ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
    Weren’t these same guys involved in purchasing a piece of land next door to Westmoreland,for a song , owned by a man who could not get permission to develope . Then these guys turn and sell it to Westmoreland Golf developers for $Millions?

  16. Smooth Chocolate Avatar
    Smooth Chocolate

    ‘…Clyde Mascoll’s 360 turn on the issue of JAWS after he crossed the floor.’

    and what about Hardwood Housing that he was involved in after he crossed the floor. what about that forensic report? every single political party in power, always has the majority of its members pilfering Barbadians’ money. we hear these allegations yet NOTHING is ever done. start somewhere, start with someone, even the story about Lowe putting money in his mother’s account, and people laughing at the fact that he now has to share it with his siblings, well the real issue is the fact that he stole that money from barbadians or he did some underhanded deal, anyhow, it should be investigated and the money returned. and the list goes on. if these men were prosecuted then chances are, it would stop and barbados would return to the land of prosperity

  17. Lincoln Carrington Harper Avatar
    Lincoln Carrington Harper

    David:

    I suspect that you find it hard to resist the desire to tilt whenever you see a windmill. Don’t you think that in the current economic “slimate” we need more bread and fewer circuses? I suspect that a COI into the “Gems” project would be simply another costly and useless distraction which would serve only to fill the coffers of a few legal sharks.

  18. David Avatar
    David

    @Lincoln

    Why the desire to give these criminals a pass?

    Are we scared of name dropping and fingerpointing?

    The political class so love to close ranks.

  19. David Avatar
    David

    It appears Rodney Wilkinson had a successful bail hearing, 1.5 million. His sureties are currently being interviewed.

    Who are the sureties?

  20. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    I am sure he will be owing somebody(indirectly)

  21. David Avatar
    David

    No jail time

    The two brothers and their brother-in-law, who all confessed to an insurance fraud that netted $4 million in a scam which used made-up identities and those of real people were given suspended sentences when they reappeared in the No 5 Supreme Court yesterday.

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