Shedding a ray of hope among thousands of distraught depositors who continue to languish sans either their investment or interest during the past two years, the Supreme Court on Friday endorsed the alternate repayment plan presented in agreement with two Golden Key depositors associations and former directors of the company including ex Ceylinco Chief Lalith Kotelawala to settle the burning issue.
According to this repayment plan, all deposits at the rate of between 25% to 100% will be repaid within four years at 6% interest considering the amount and the period of deposits. Depositors who made deposits shortly before the collapse of the company will be given priority under the repayment plan.
The proposals include a list of possible means of funding for repayments. These include realisation of all assets of the Golden Key Group, the disposal of assets of the Ceylinco Group in accordance with orders of the Supreme Court, and the generation of funds by the public listing/forming of joint ventures by some Golden Key Group companies.
Former Golden Key directors floated the idea of setting up a holding company to run the two hospitals and other assets to derive revenue to inject into the fund to settle depositors. They had also pledged to raise liquid cash through the sale of other assets and properties to meet the financial commitment.
The 3-member bench headed by Justice Shirani Thilakawardane ordered to submit the names of the 10-member supervisory committee and the board of directors of the proposed holding company on the next hearing of the GKCC Fundamental Rights Case fixed for April 1.
Justice Thilakawardane also ordered President of GK Depositors Society Anusha Emmert to tender an apology in open court to Prof. Lakshman Watawala, head of the 3-member Chartered Accountants committee appointed by the Supreme Court for creating pain of mind by conducting protest demonstrations near his residence, which amounts to contempt of court.
The repayment of relatively small-time deposits of up to about 2.5 million rupees in full was looked at actively earlier by officials as this would mean easing the liability to a considerable extent, but it is not known whether the proposed repayment plan would encompass this crucial factor, they said.
The majority of the 7,200 depositors are small-time investors who had deposited their life-long savings or retirement and compensatory benefits to earn a little more interest to eke out a living, the officials said.
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