Neg2byen
Joined: 04 May 2010
Posts: 2049
Location: Long Island NY
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 Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:47 pm Post subject: Men bon chanjman!!! |
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SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (defend.ht) – Dominican Investigative Journalist Nuria Piera has uncovered at least $2.5 million [U.S.] in kickbacks received by President Michel Martelly, from a Dominican construction firm owned by Dominican Senator Felix Bautista.
The report called “The Path of the Millions” aired on Dominican television on Saturday, March 31st in a research program called Nuria-Journalism, Channel 9, Color Vision at 9 PM and will re-air on Monday, April 2nd on CDN Channel 37 at 8PM.
In “The Path of Millions”, the journalists, Piera, investigates dozens of pages of bank statements, pay ratios, charts, transactions, schedules and a list of property and businesses owned by Dominican Senator Felix Bautista (PLD-San Juan) a close friend of Dominican President Leonel Fernandez.
Path of Million
Of the companies owned by Bautista, one company, HADOM Construction, is particular to Haiti in that it was awarded a $2.5 million [US] contract to do reconstruction work in Haiti.
The first of suspicious information given by Nuria Piera is that according to records of the Dominican Directorate General of Internal Taxes (DGII) this company began operating on April 4th 2011. This would have made the company ineligible to receive any contracts from the Haitian state following the earthquake of 2010, in that the law – including the emergency law – requires a company to have been in existence for 5 years.
But, HADOM would receive, by contracts signed by former Prime Minister and current Presidential Adviser, Jean-Max Bellerive, 75,466,638.08 HTG ($1.8 Million U.S.) on November 8, 2010 and another 5,000,000 HTG ($120,000 U.S.) on May 11, 2011.
In total, the Piera report found that President Michel Martelly was transferred $2,587,100.00 [U.S.] from companies owned by Senator Batista. On February 18, 2011 presidential candidate Mirlande Manigat received a $250,000.00 contribution from the bank accounts tied to Batista.
"HADOM is one of the companies that got Senator Baptist contracts by $ 350 million in Haiti. Now we realize why. And is that through the People's Bank account No. 766-215511, was paid $ 150,000, on November 5, 2011, nothing more and nothing less Martelly Michel, president of Haiti, who was already in office as president," explained Nuria Piera, a credited investigative journalist in D.R..
"On March 17, 2011, withdrew $ 500,000 over the counter that were given to Martelly, records show. This operation was performed through the dollar savings account 240-005129-7 the Banreservas. While the April 3, received two items: a transfer - by Richard James, of $ 300,000 and cash given to Martelly, another $ 300,000. But even that serious, and as president, the November 3, 2011 Michel Martelley receive $ 100,000 more, " she stressed.
Reported by Acento, another company of Felix Bautista, Construction Rofi issued a total of $ 837,000 to Michel Martelly through Account No. 0102-1012-000942393 in Unibank in Haiti.
Martelly was given $800,000 in cash, $400,000, $300,000 and $100,000, and paid, through Victor Reynoso, $37,000 dollars.
The documents held by Nuria Piera is recorded that President Michel Martelly has received at least 2 million 587 thousand 100 U.S. dollars . At a rate of 38, we are talking about nearly 100 million Dominican pesos.
He also gave money to the candidate Mirlande Manigat.
Nuria Piera stated that, in case, like Felix Bautista shelter, and also gave contributions to the Haitian presidential candidate Mirlande Manigat, the opposition party to Michel Martelly, which OJEC received by the sum of $ 250,000 the February 18, 2011 through BANRESERVA account 240-005129-7. This payment was withdrawn over the counter and handed over cash.
In total, the Dominican Senator had companies that collected about $385 million [U.S.] in contracts. For example, another company called SECOSA collected $2,389,832,942 HTG ($57,586,000 [U.S.]) in contracts in 2011 and 837,700,016 HTG ($20,185,542 [U.S.]) in 2010. SECOSA, like HADOM, failed to meet eligibility requirements for the contracts. A third company owned by Batista, ROFI, which gained 174,302,496.9 HTG ($4.2 million U.S.) in 2011 was successful in meeting the minimum requirements of eligibility for the contracts.
The money trail has not been completely investigated. Outgoing Prime Minister Garry Conille had established a commission that began auditing the contracts awarded during the emergency period and on its face, found $500 million [U.S.] that was awarded to companies that did not fit the criteria – HADOM and SECOSA were among them.
No reponse has come from the Haitian government regarding these revelations but in the past President Martelly has been outspoken against corruption, telling CNN’s Anderson Cooper that he “hopes to find a case of corruption,” to serve as an example of his fight against misdeeds.
The money paid for these contracts came from Haiti’s PetroCaribe account which amounts to a low-interest loan from Venezuela that will have to be repaid after 18 years.
In the past week, Venezuela stepped in to forgive $100 million in DR debt so far that it uses it for reconstruction projects in Haiti. Venezuela also managed to give Haiti $369 million back of money it had paid and has allocated for reconstruction projects.
These efforts by Venezuela to right a perceived wrong doesn't hide the suspicion that the $500 million is being used to bribe members of parliament, finance elections and pay for demagogic displays by the central government. The report by Piera seems to confirm those suspicions.
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"En ce moment historique de notre nation, notre mere haiti cherie doit retrouver sa dignite et sa fierte de peuple. Non a l'imoralite." Mirlande Manigat |
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