Cape Town - Scores of investors, including widows and pensioners, have accused a Durban-based public property investment company of allegedly short-changing them.
Investors allege that Amaanat Investment Holdings (AIH), which was created to ensure financial security for members of the Muslim community, refused to buy back their shares after they wanted to severe ties.
They want out of the company because it allegedly short-changed them on their investment returns, allegedly breaching Sharia Law and invested their funds in companies they claim to be sloppy behind their backs and without their consent.
The investors claimed they were promised 17% monthly returns when they joined as minority shareholders but that dropped to six percent and now they are only getting two percent.
Their appeal to withdraw their investments has fallen on deaf ears, they claimed.
AIH's acting chief executive officer Junaid Limalia said the aggrieved investors were forcing the company to breach legally binding agreements or contracts they signed when they invested their funds.
“They signed the contract knowing full well that it is a property company that is subject to economic conditions of the property sector.”
Limalia said that in previous years, the company lost money through corruption acts of previous board members and the current board was trying to stabilise the company.
Limalia said returning the money to the investors was not simple because it was an investment on property through an equity-linked share, which depended on the performance of the investment.
Investors said that after receiving media queries, the board’s chairperson, Hassim Randeree, sent correspondence to the shareholders, stating that it wasn’t their policy “to ventilate company and shareholder matters in a public forum”.
He said an adverse narrative was shared with media outlets, including inaccuracies which tarnished the company’s reputation, and they required to provided responses.
“Amaanat’s policy is not to ventilate company and shareholder matters in a public forum, and we have therefore declined to comment,” was the company’s response.
Randeree said the actions of this grouping, “whilst disruptive and counterproductive to the company’s efforts, only strengthens the board’s resolve to uphold its fiduciary duties and to act in the best interest of the company and shareholders, as required by the Companies Act”.
“The Board is considering legal action in terms of the Cyber Crimes Act as well as provisions under the Protection of Personal Information Act to pursue individuals, and administrators of social media groups, who cast aspersions, spread false information.”
Limalia did not respond to a request for further comment after the letter was sent to shareholders.
The investors have since formed a group called Amaanat Minorities NPO (Non Profit Organisation), which is fighting for the return of their investments.
The NPO has secured the service of the law firm, Norton Rose Fulbright South Africa Inc.
While some investors wanted to completely end their relationship with the company, others wanted the company to return a portion of their investment, which they said was a loan to the company, and to continue with their investment.
The minority shareholders claimed that AIH had without their knowledge invested their money with several other companies, which they do not trust.
One of them was Durban-based Glen Rose Investments (Pty) Ltd, which was placed under business rescue in 2023.