The GLENCORE Affair: Was The Sacked GM Of TRADEX, Simon PALEY, Involved In The 7 Billion FCFA Bribe- Scandal?

Towards the end of the first week of this month, the picture of the then General Manager of TRADEX, Simon PALEY, appeared on the social media, with  a caption indicating that he was  the first Cameroonian allegedly handed over by GLENCORE. This meant that Paley was the first persons whose name had allegedly been exposed by former Executives of the Swiss oil company, GLENCORE, as one of the Cameroonians that allegedly received the colossal sum of money totaling 7 billion FCFA, as bribe to allow the company get a discount of as high as 30%, in the commercialization of Cameroon oil. This was of course done at the detriment of the State and the Cameroonian people.

Curiously enough, TRADEX did not react to the allegation that went viral on the social media about the General Manager. On Monday, October 7, 2024 French language newspaper, METEO, had as its lead story that also had a picture of Simon Paley on the front page, an allegation that the General Manager of TRADEX was being targeted as the sacrificial lamb in the GLENCORE Affair. A few other French language newspapers did same.

It should however be noted that Simon Paley held the strategic post of Commercial Director, or better still Director of Marketing, at the National Hydrocarbon Corporation, commonly known as SNH, during the years that the 7 billion FCFA corruption scandal deal secretly took place. Reliable sources close to SNH, says it is difficult or even impossible, for a deal like the GLECORE Affair, to take place without the knowledge or involvement of the Commercial Director of the corporation.

It should be noted that Simon Parley was later in his career appointed General Manager of TRADEX, and that by then the GLENCORE Affair was not yet known. Worthy of note that the State owned National Hydrocarbon Corporation, is the majority shareholder of TRADEX, which is a public liability company, that is, TRADEX PLC or TRADEX Ltd.

Extraordinary Board Meeting Of TRADEX

Meanwhile on Thursday, October 10, 2024, an Extraordinary Board Meeting of TRADEX held in Yaounde, and Simon Paley was sacked from the post of General Manager of the company. On Friday, October 11, 2024, the TRADEX Company issued a lengthy communiqué, in which the former General Manager, Simon Paley, was mentioned only once, which was in the first paragraph. It was also announced in that first paragraph that Emmanuel Patrick MVONDO, who before the October 10 Board Meeting was the Deputy General Manager of TRADEX, was at the Board Meeting designated Interim General Manager of the company.

An approximate translation of the first paragraph of the TRADEX communiqué read: “A Board Meeting of the company, TRADEX Plc, met in an extraordinary session on 10 October 2024 in Yaounde, and put an end to the function of Mr Simon PALEY at the head of the company. He is replaced by Mr Emmanuel Patrick MVONDO, appointed Interim General Manager”.

Nothing was mentioned about Simon Paley or related to him, in the rest of the communiqué which focused on the newly appointed Interim General Manager of TRADEX, Emmanuel Patrick Mvondo, a jurist, who studied at the Ngaoundere and Douala Universities. Emmanuel Patrick Mvondo who first worked elsewhere, joined TRADEX in 2008 as Chief of Judicial Unit, and became Chief of Service one year later.  Six years later, Mvondo was appointed the first Director of Judicial Affairs at TRADEX.  Then on July 25, 2024, that is less than three months ago, Emmanuel Patrick Mvondo was appointed Deputy General Manager of TRADEX, and  then on October 10, 2024, Mvondo was designated the Interim General Manager of TRADEX.

Minority Shareholder Opposed To Paley’s Dismissal

Meanwhile dependable sources close to TRADEX, told The Mentor that a French Consortium which is the minority shareholder of the company, was opposed to the   idea to dismiss Simon Paley as General Manager. The minority shareholder argued that Paley was performing well as General Manager of TRADEX, as the company under his management had been recording a sizeable amount of profits annually.

As regard the GLENCORE Affair, the French Consortium argued that whereas it can be logical to say that Simon Paley is a suspect in the corruption scandal, considering that he was the Commercial Director of SNH during the period that the deal took place, the GLENCORE men who gave the bribes have not yet disclosed the name of any person who received the bribe on the Cameroon side.  To the French Consortium, Paley for now is only a suspect, and can only be accused to have been involved in the GLENCORE Affair, if those who gave the bribe call his name.

SNH No Longer Has Confidence In Simon Paley

The Mentor also leant that on the other hand, SNH which as majority shareholder of TRADEX chaired the Board Meeting, said it was a matter of loss of confidence in somebody who occupies the top post in the company. That is, the General Manager of TRADEX. The SNH argued that somebody does not only have to be considered as a good General Manager  because the company makes profit, and that morality or ethics also matters much, especially as regard the  image of the company. The SNH said even though Simon Paley for now was just a suspect and not an accused person in the GLENCORE Affair, the fact of the matter was that the corporation (SNH) no longer has confidence in him, and so he could not continue to occupy the post of General Manager of TRADEX.

It should be noted that it was the management of the National Hydrocarbon Corporation that proposed Simon Paley who was a senior management personnel of the corporation, to be appointed General Manager of TRADEX. He replaced Perrial Jean Nyodog, who served as General Manager of TRADEX for many years.

No Answer Yet To The Question  

So for now the question as to whether the sacked General Manager of TRADEX, Simon Paley, was involved in the GLENCORE Affair, or better still, whether he was one of those involved in the 7 billion FCFA bribe –scandal, cannot at this stage have a Yes Or No answer. For now he just a suspect, and in law when somebody is a suspect, there is presumption of innocence. That is how the French Consortium that is a shareholder of TRADEX also does think.  But as SNH also argues, when somebody is a suspect in a serious crime, it sparks doubt about his credibility, and so it becomes difficult to trust him. That is also a fact in life.

 The Creation Of TRADEX

Worthy of note that TRADEX is a public liability company that was created by the State owned National Hydrocarbon Corporation commonly known as SNH, in 1999. The National Hydrocarbon Corporation that has the former Minister of Justice, Adolph Moudiki, as Administrator – General Manager, is the majority shareholder with 54 % of the shares, while a French consortium, a minority shareholder, holds 36 % of the shares. The remaining 10 % is held by some stakeholders (companies) in the sector.

TRADEX which has its headquarters in Cameroon’s economic capital, Douala, is one of the major actors in the petroleum sector in Central Africa. TRADEX deals principally in the distribution of petroleum products, and has a network of hundreds of filling stations in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad and Equatorial Guinea. The company has over 1,600 employees in the Central Africa Sub –region.

Tomorrow (Tuesday, October 15, 2024) The Mentor News Will Look At The Challenges That Lie Ahead For The Special Criminal Court In Yaounde, Which Is Under Intense Pressure At This Stage In The GLENCORE Affair.