Goldenberg architect Kamlesh Pattnii and Mr Philip Moi raked in millions of shillings from a ghost pangas, slashers and axes export deal in 1993, it was revealed yesterday.
Mr Pattni admitted yesterday before the Goldenberg inquiry that the ghost exports were used as a smokescreeen to enable their company — Panther Investment Limited take out the millions from the Central Bank of Kenya through a low-interest scheme called ore-export finance.
Mr Pattni admitted that the company received about Sh 125 million through a mere paper entry which went on to be certified by the Central Bank of Kenya for the ghost exports to Britain.
Mr Pattni said the false declaration was to enable the company receive the money on the pretext that they would use it to prepare for the exports. Panther Investment Limited then said it planned to export 455,000 16-inch pangas, 350,000 slashers and 250,000 axes to a company called Eringate in Britain. It’s address was given as 103-105 Churchfield Road, Acton,London according to documents tabled before he commission.
Although the money was eventually laid back, previous evidence shows that Goldenberg and associated companies diverted the money they had borrowed cheaply from CBK to lend it at much higher interest rates in the inter-bank market, thereby making huge profits.
It also emerged that the same documents used by Panther and another Goldenberg related Company ,China Trading Company were forged andre-used by Goldenberg International to attract similar funding, this time for the export of gold and diamond jewellery.
Mr Pattni who was being cross examined by Mr Cecil Miller for the Deposit Protection Fund on the commission’s 228th day of sitting at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre maintained that Mr Moi has always remained a director of the company whose records show has received billions of shillings from such transactions.
Mr Moi has insisted through his lawyers that he resigned from the company immediately after its incorporation in 1990. However, the letter on the purported resignation from the directorship of the company was received at the Registrar of Companies in 1995, long after the mother company, Goldenberg International Limited had had its financial operations with the Central Bank of Kenya and the Treasury.
