Geregu bond crisis: Yari digs into pocket to protect investors

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Abdulaziz Yari

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By Luminous Jannamike

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The Chairman of the Board of Directors of Geregu Power Plc, Senator Abdul’aziz Abubakar Yari, has pledged to personally provide the funds required to settle the company’s immediate outstanding bond obligation, in a move aimed at shielding bondholders and preserving confidence in the power firm.

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According to the former governor of Zamfara, he is putting his own money forward so that an obligation dating back to the company’s previous ownership does not unsettle investors or interfere with Geregu Power’s operations, while efforts continue to resolve the matter with the former owners and management.

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In a statement personally signed by him, Yari said the bond was issued and the arrangements surrounding it were made under the former owners and management of Geregu Power, before the current ownership and Board assumed responsibility for the company.

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He said discussions were already ongoing with the former owners and management over the circumstances surrounding the obligation and its eventual resolution, adding that they had indicated their willingness to continue engaging towards a lasting and amicable settlement.

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“For that reason, and notwithstanding that the day-to-day management of this obligation is not mine to carry, I have decided, in my capacity as Chairman, to personally step in and provide the funds required to address the immediate outstanding bond obligation,” Yari said.

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The Chairman, however, made clear that his intervention should not be construed as an admission that the obligation was personally his or that the current Board or management created the problem.

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“This is not an admission that the obligation is personally mine, nor is it a judgement that the current Board or management created this problem. It is a decision made in the interest of the institution I am privileged to chair,” he explained.

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Yari said he had remained closely engaged with the Board, management, financial and legal advisers and other relevant parties since the matter came to light, as efforts continued to establish precisely how the obligation arose and the appropriate way to resolve it.

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The immediate intervention, he said, would address the concern facing bondholders but would not bring the underlying matter to a close, with the parties still working towards a final and mutually acceptable resolution.

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“Our objective, ultimately, is a final, mutually acceptable resolution: fair treatment or reimbursement of the funds I am advancing now to protect the company, and clear, dependable arrangements for the company’s future obligations to bondholders,” Yari said.

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He said his overriding concern was the confidence investors and partners had placed in Geregu Power, stressing that the dispute should not be allowed to spill over into the company’s wider affairs or affect shareholders.

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“Confidence, once shaken, is expensive to rebuild. I would rather act early than watch that happen,” he said.

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Yari consequently assured bondholders, shareholders, employees, partners and other stakeholders that the company would honour its obligations and continue to maintain sound corporate governance while the parties work towards a final resolution.

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“To our bondholders, our shareholders, and everyone who has built something lasting with Geregu Power: this company’s obligations will be honoured, its governance will remain sound, and its future is not in question,” he assured.

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He pledged to keep stakeholders informed as discussions with the relevant parties progress towards a final resolution.

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