Hey guys,
I too am disheartened by the market conditions, our share price, the uncertain future of the project etc. I have been openly supportive of the GNH management and technical team in the past because they have always, to my knowledge, been forthcoming with me in terms of their plans for bringing this project to fruition. Noone in management has ever told me that this project is a sure thing- far from it. It was my belief in the deposit that brought me here and my faith in Frank and his team that kept me here. Is there greater risk investing in a young, unproven management team - absolutely. Is it difficult to watch exploration budgets dwindle-yes of course. I did have some difficulty, however, beleiving the recent rhetoric on this board that the GNH team has been sitting idly by collecting salaries as the market has deteriorated beneath our feet.
I called Frank yesterday to discuss the possibility of assays being released this week. I was told politely that they would be released when all of the data had been received and analyzed. That is an industry standard line, but I know that when we were at PDAC the results were still coming in so I have no reason to suspect anything otherwise.
I also asked Frank how he was handling the recent criticism on this board, because he has in the past openly stated the Agoracom hub was a key integration point for retail investors in GNH. Not surprisingly, Frank was agitated by some of the mudslinging here directed at management. He offered several rebuttal points to some of the criticisms outlined in recent posts and gave me permission to summarize them here.
Regarding Sasha Asgary's remuneration and relationship to Frank/the company:
Sasha has been with Golden Hope since January 2007. During this time his salary has fluctuated between $24,000 and $90,000 and he has only billed $90,000 for 15 of a 72 month period which was approved by the Board. Sasha and Frank are not school friends and never went to school together. They are almost 20 years apart in age.
During his time with the Company:
1) Helped raise over $9,000,000;
2) Introduced the Company to brokers and analysts across Canada;
3) Helped to get coverage of the Company by 3 newsletter writers;
4) Built the "GNH" brand on the TSX Venture;
5) Organized cross country road shows;
Duties include Corporate Secretary and Director of Investor Relations
- He saved the company an undetermined amount of money on legal fees with internalizing many tasks such as regards to private placement closings.
Lastly, he has never exercised a warrant or option.
Regarding the perceived waste of money for PDAC 2013:
GNH sub-rented their booth this year. They had to be present in Toronto at that time because they had several meetings arranged in advance and wanted to meet with many of the shareholders. Moreover, PDAC would take away our booth for future years if they were not present at the show. Therefore, Sasha and frank shared 1 room and sublet the booth to keep costs to a minimum. Hardly, the all-expense paid company junket model proposed.
Regarding Gold Bullion Management Living on Welfare for the benefit of shareholders:
The following information is actually contained in the Gold Bullion MDA and Financial statements but was somehow missed/or ommitted from the previous discussions.
(4) Frank J. Basa received compensation pursuant to a management agreement dated January 1, 2007, as amended December 1, 2010, between Grupo Moje Limited, a company owned by Frank J. Basa, and Gold Bullion. Refer to “Termination of Employment, Change in Responsibilities and Employment Contracts” for details.
(5) Thomas P. Devlin was appointed Chief Financial Officer of the Company July 3, 2009. He was also Chief Financial Officer of Castle Silver Mines Inc., the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, from March 10, 2011 to February 15, 2013.
(7) Thomas P. Devlin received compensation pursuant to a consulting agreement dated March 1, 2011, as amended February 1, 2012.
Refer to “Termination of Employment, Change in Responsibilities and Employment Contracts” for details
Fees:
1) Basa 20 oz gold per month despite no production
2) Devlin paid 9,500 per month plus part of administration fees totalling 167k payable to related parties for administrative expenses. He was also paid fees for the Castle Mtn work but they have now hired a separate CFO for the Castle Silver.
I realize that none of these facts brings any of us closer to the ultimate goal of proving up an economical deposit, but I would hope that the point-counterpoint here illustrates at least one important meassage: that GNH management has not completely abandoned us as has been repeatedly suggested. I suspect the coming months will provide further evidence of these facts as Frank has told me they are exploring a number of interesting options to keep this project moving forward in spite of the current market conditions. If you have questions or doubts- call them and talk to them yourself.
Best,
Scott
