here's the latest broadside from current management. I wish someone would go after SPM's management too for all their goofball shenanigans. And let's not enough talk about CMM.
Genco responds to Dissident Circular
Tue Jun 17, 1:10 PM
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Trading Symbol TSX: GGC
VANCOUVER, June 17 /CNW Telbec/ - Genco Resources Ltd. (TSX: GGC.TO) ("Genco" or the "Company") wishes to respond to certain misleading and erroneous statements contained in the circular issued by James Anderson (the "Dissident"). Genco reminds all shareholders to protect their investment and vote the WHITE proxy in favour of Genco's current management team, board of directors (the "Board"), strategy and growth plans.
Setting the Record Straight
The Company feels obligated to specifically respond to some of the numerous misleading and erroneous statements contained in the Dissident's circular, though the format of this communication does not allow for a full response. Regardless, the Company wishes to set the record straight as follows:
- For the years prior to 2006, Robert Gardner ("Gardner") and Gordon
Blankstein ("Blankstein") were significantly underpaid as the Company's
liquidity and cash flow could not support market compensation. Over the
last five years, Gardner and Blankstein have each received compensation
comprised of salary and bonus on average totalling approximately
$198,000 per annum.
- The Dissident alleges the consulting agreements with Gardner and
Blankstein were 'back-dated' despite the fact that it was always
intended the agreements be made effective as of Q4 of fiscal 2006 and
each draft of the agreements, a number of which were reviewed by, and
revised at the request of, the Dissident, were clearly marked as being
made and entered into effective as of October 1, 2006. These agreements
had been provided to and were reviewed by the Toronto Stock Exchange.
- The Dissident circular focuses on short-term production statistics.
However, as the Dissident is aware, Genco's focus is on the long-term
objective of defining a world-class silver deposit, based on aggressive
drilling and exploration, through expanding the size of the proven
deposit at La Guitarra. We have successfully increased the proven and
probable silver resource by 320% and the measured and indicated
resource by 400% from when we first acquired the mine.
- The Dissident misstates the net purchases and sales of shares by Brian
Smith ("Smith"), Blankstein and Gardner by only including market
transactions and excluding warrant and option exercises (which,
individually, helped finance Genco operations). The actual net
purchases (sales) for Smith, Blankstein and Gardner for the period
January 2006 to May 2008, the same period referred to in the Dissident
circular are 18,504, 10,950 and (22,456), respectively. These figures
differ greatly from the misleading numbers provided by the Dissident
and do not support the negative connotation that the Dissident was
asking shareholders to draw.
- In his attempt to discredit the Board, the Dissident personally attacks
Gardner and Blankstein. Gardner and Blankstein, not only brought La
Guitarra to Genco, but have worked tirelessly towards building the
project into a world-class mine.
- The Dissident's reference to related party transactions is not only
inaccurate but fails to mention that the Dissident both negotiated and
approved the Andover Ventures Inc. transaction while he was the
chairman of the Independent Committee of Genco's Board that was formed
to evaluate and execute the transaction.
- As disclosed in our Management Information Circular dated May 27, 2008,
each of the Audit, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committees of
the Board are comprised solely of independent directors. Consistent
with the pattern of misinformation contained in the Dissident circular,
the Dissident wrongly mischaracterizes the composition of these
committees.
Experienced Team
Genco's current management and board of directors have over 100 years of
combined mining experience, and significant track records as directors of
public companies.
The Dissident proposes to replace Smith, Blankstein and Gardner with
himself, and two hand-picked associates, Charles Schroeder and Lyle
Weismantel. The Dissident's nominees have no disclosed experience in running a
publicly traded mining company. Nor do their resumes reflect the skills
necessary to develop Genco's silver properties in Mexico. The Dissident and
his hand-picked nominees, all of whom reside in the United States, have no
disclosed experience as board members of Canadian publicly-traded companies,
nor with companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, except for the
Dissident's brief stint as a director of Genco. On the other hand, Smith,
Blankstein and Gardner have extensive backgrounds in the mineral and finance
sectors. Smith has served as Minister of Energy and Mines, Education Minister
and Attorney General for the Province of British Columbia, as well as Chairman
of BC Hydro and Chairman of Canadian National Railways. Blankstein is a
venture capitalist, who has raised well in excess of a billion dollars for
numerous companies, many of which he helped build into successful enterprises.
He has served as a director of approximately 15 public companies in Canada,
the United States and Europe. Gardner has served as a board member for
approximately 10 publicly traded companies in Canada and the United States and
was instrumental in the acquisition of Genco's La Guitarra mine.
Greg Liller ("Liller"), who has led the development of La Guitarra as
President of Genco, has expressed to the Board that he intends to resign if
the Dissident is successful. In earlier correspondence pre-dating the
Dissident's resignation from the Board, Liller lamented that "it would appear
that my attempts to explain the concept of proper mine development to
Mr. Anderson have fallen on deaf ears." There can be no assurances that the
rest of management will not follow suit if the Dissident is allowed to seize
control of Genco.
Recent Developments
Leslie D. Goodman has orally advised the Company of his resignation as a
director of Genco and that he will subsequently provide the requisite written
notice.
How to Cast your WHITE proxy
You can support Genco by voting the WHITE proxy form shareholders received
in the mail with a VOTE FOR the resolutions contained therein. If you have
already voted using the Dissident proxy you have every right to change your
vote by simply executing the WHITE proxy. It is only your latest dated proxy
that will be counted. Your WHITE proxy must be voted by any one of the methods
described on the form no later than 11:00 a.m. (Vancouver time) on Tuesday,
June 24, 2008. The time limit for the deposit of proxies may be waived by the
Board at its discretion without notice.
The Board recommends that you discard any materials received from the
Dissident.
If you have any questions about the information contained in the news
release or require assistance in completing your WHITE proxy, please contact
Genco's proxy solicitation agent at:
Kingsdale Shareholder Services Inc.
North American Toll Free Number: 1-866-581-1024
Facsimile No: 1-866-545-5580
Please visit our website for regular updates at www.genco.com
The Toronto Stock Exchange does not accept responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Contacts
Wayne Moorhouse
Vice-President
Finance and Corporate Secretary
(604) 682-2205
gencoinfo@telus.net
Renmark Financial Communications Inc.: Neil Murray-Lyon: nmurraylyon@renmarkfinancial.com
Dan Symons: dsymons@renmarkfinancial.com
(514) 939-3989
Fax: (514) 939-3717
www.renmarkfinancial.com |
