After a series of twitts published with a short break on the first day of the year, businesswoman Isabel dos Santos made a live video on Instagram where she appears to answer questions about the lawsuit she is facing and which led to the bank accounts and the withdrawal of holdings in nine companies. “We will continue to fight and we will redouble our commitment. These things make no sense. They are manufactured,” he said.
The businesswoman daughter of former president José Eduardo dos Santos considered that “It is important for justice to be fair and to give people an opportunity to defend themselves. Above all they can show documents, show facts. Nobody wants a society where there is no opportunity for people to defend themselves. Unfortunately for me, I was not given this opportunity, “he said in response to one of the questions put to him over a 30-minute direct on the Instagram social network (which has since been posted on Youtube).
The Luanda Provincial Court ruled Monday, December 30, the pre-emptive seizure of personal bank accounts of Isabel dos Santos, her husband, Sindika Dokolo and Mário da Silva, Efacec chairman, Nos administrator and his right arm, and the shareholdings they hold in nine companies in that country.
During the live, Isabel dos Santos assured that she had not been informed at any time that the process was going on, arguing that it would have been better to have been notified not only by yourself but also by employees of all the companies you manage. “For the attention of all the people who work in these companies, perhaps calling and asking for clarification would have been the best way and would not have created this level of anxiety. Can’t you imagine the number of people who called me crying and asking: engineer, will I go to work tomorrow or not? We close the company, can we afford it? And the only thing I could do was ask for calm“, he said.
Asked whether or not the bank data freeze would be easy to overcome, the Angolan businesswoman admitted not knowing: “We were taken by surprise. The end of the year has been very difficult. Instead of being a family moment, it has been a moment. from work “. But he says: “This will have a huge impact on companies and not being close to them and being able to keep up will be very difficult.”
It was more than 30 minutes of conversation with those who wanted to watch the live, with questions that ranged from the lawsuit, requests for book recommendations and even the hair of Isabel dos Santos. And to that end, the businesswoman purposely kept the conversation she had with her father – former President Jose Eduardo dos Santos – “worried” about the situation. “My father believes that in Angola he has to overcome the truth. What he said to me was: the fight goes on, a lot of courage.”
The end-of-year process
This whole process has been stirring Angola since on December 30 the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) issued the note that fell like a bomb: the National Asset Recovery Service had filed a precautionary injunction in the Luanda Provincial Court. , following deals celebrated by the three businessmen – Isabel dos Santos, Sindika Dokolo and Mário da Silva – with the Angolan state, through the companies Sodiam, a public diamond selling company, and with Sonangol, the state oil company, which were injured. nearly $ 1.2 billion.
Isabel dos Santos’ shares were seized in nine Angolan companies – Banco BIC, Unitel, Banco BFA, Finstar, ZAP Media, Cimangola II SA, Condis – Candando shopping centers, Mainland Angola and Sodiba, beverage distribution. But could also have consequences in Portugal, as the businesswoman has a strong position in the capital of national companies such as Nos, Efacec and Galp. In addition, in the arrested companies there is direct exposure to Portuguese companies.
On the first day of the year, Isabel dos Santos decided to use Twitter to counterattack. Writing in English, in addition to accusations to the current Angolan government led by President João Lourenço, the businesswoman also criticizes the negative impact that the situation can have on the country’s economy, stressing that “at a time when it is vital for the Angolan economy to attract foreign investment. “This” is a bad sign for the private sector. “
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