Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Fmr. Presidential Adviser Could Be Involved In Nextel's "Dirty Deeds"

From: Marcel <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 09 Apr 2003 02:34:48 -0400

Fmr. Presidential Adviser Could Be Involved In Nextel's "Dirty Deeds"
Is Climaco involved in the Nextel buyout?

By LENIE LECTURA
TODAY Reporter

Is former Presidential Adviser on Strategic Projects Gloria Tan Climaco involved
in the
controversy about the real ownership of Nextel Communications Philippines Inc.
(NCPI)?

Based in an affidavit executed by Nextel’s former president, Antonio Urera, Rep.
Prospero
Nograles said Monday that Urera gave hints that Climaco had been involved in
Nextel’s
alleged scheme to circumvent the law on foreign ownership.

Nograles and Rep. Harlin Abayon of Northern Samar are seeking an inquiry on NCPI

following reports that Filipino dummies have been used in order to get around
the
constitutional prohibition against foreign companies and individuals owning more
than
40 percent of any corporation or association organized under Philippine laws.

Urera has revealed in a sworn statement that Nextel International Inc. (NII), a
foreign firm,
has taken full control of NCPI despite the constitutional prohibition.

Urera said in his affidavit that NII used dummies to buy out Filipino holding
companies
that have interests on NCPI in order to take majority control of the telecom
firm. He said
the NII now has “almost full and absolute control of NCPI” with a staggering
87.7-percent
equity interest.

According to Nograles, what is startling about the testimony of Urera are hints
that
Climaco, who is in the thick of a controversy for her alleged role in the
government’s
decision to scrap its deal with the Philippine International Air Terminal Co.
(PIATCO),
may have a key role in the NII’s buyout of the Gotesco Group owned by Jose Go,
which
has a 20-percent equity interest in the old NCPI.

“It was not clear how Climaco figured in the NII scheme to take full control of
the NCPI,
but I suspect that she is directly involved in this mess,” Nograles claimed.

Nextel was launched in 1996 after Nextel International Inc., a US-based firm,
entered the
country’s telecommunications industry by purchasing a company called Top Mega, a

Hongkong-registered company holding 30-percent interest of Infocom Network Inc.
(infocom), a local telecommunications carrier.

Another foreign-registered company called Joyce Link owned 10 percent of
Nextel’s
equity while the remaining 60 percent belonged to the Gotesco Group owned by
Jose Go
( 20 percent), Jetcom Inc. owned by Bernard Asperin and Food Camp Industries
represented by Johnny Wong.

According to Urera, after securing 30-percent equity interest in infocom which
is supposed
to be Nextel’s carrier, NII worked its way to gain control of infocom by buying
out the
20-percent interest of Gotesco, using a company called Gamboa Holdings Inc.,
with
$9-million paid in three installments.

Using what Urera described as “sophisticated scheme of indirect purchases,” the
NII
managed to make it appear that a qualified, Filipino-owned third-party
purchaser,
Gamboa Holdings, would acquire Gotesco’s share in infocom.

Gamboa, which was incorporated by accra Investment Corp. (ACCRAIN), was put
together
days before the intended acquisition of Gotesco. Strangely, 40 percent of
Gamboa’s
common share belongs to Top Mega, a corporation wholly owned by NII.

According to Urera, after the Gotesco buyout, the NCPI ownership belonged to Top
Mega
Inc. (30 percent), Joyce Link Inc.( 10 percent), Jetcom Inc. (32.3 percent),
Gamboa
Holdings (20 percent) and Foodcamp Industry and Marketing Inc. (7.7 percent).

In July 28, 2002, the NII also acquired Joyce Link from the AIG Group while
ACCRAIN,
the majority stakeholder of Gamboa,

incorporated another company called Emerald Investments Inc. in partnership with

another company called Orient Holdings Ltd., another NII subsidiary.

Emerald Investments was used to acquire the shares of Foodcamp Inc., which holds

7.7-percent equity in NCPI. Emerald Investments went on to acquire the 30
percent of
32.3-percent share of Jetcom Inc. for $3.7 million.

“To date, NII, through it’s subsidiaries, has accumulated 40-percent ownership
of the
capital stock of NCPI through the purchase of Top Mega and Joyce Link and
roughly
19.08 percent indirect foreign ownership in the capital stock of NCPI through
the shares it
purchased in Emerald and Gamboa for a total of 59.08 percent in interest in the
capital
stock of NCPI,” Urera said.

“ Since the entire capital contribution of accracor in Gamboa and ACCRAIN in
Emerald
virtually came from NII, coursed through a financial institution which
facilitated the
transaction, it appears that the total equity interest of NII in NCPI is
practically a
staggering 87.7 percent -- thus giving NII, a foreign company, almost full and
absolute
control of NCPI,” Urera added in his testimony.

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/abs_news_body.asp?section=Business&oid=20185

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