By Gemma Handy
Caribbean Union Bank was forced to defend itself against claims of insolvency last night as the bitter spat between St Peter MP Asot Michael and the ruling Labour Party intensified days before the general election.
An expletive-laden video widely circulated on social media shows Michael storming into the bank’s Friars Hill Road branch demanding access to his money.
He claims the bank – in which the government is the majority shareholder – has been refusing to honour his cheques on orders from Prime Minister Gaston Browne in a bid to stymie his lavish election campaign.
Michael told local resident George Wehner in a filmed interview outside the bank that he had been a customer for 14 years since the institution’s inception.
“Yet I can’t even get EC$50,000. What kind of bank can’t give EC$50,000?” he said, adding that he believed the bank was “insolvent”.
The MP claimed he had wired almost US$400,000 to the bank five days previously but was still unable to access it.
He said he now wanted to close his accounts and withdraw the entirety of his money in order to pay his staff, settle bills owed overseas and continue his election campaign.
The government invested almost EC$30 million into the bank in 2016, making it its largest shareholder. At the time, Browne said the cash injection – widely referred to as a bailout – was in a bid to maintain stability in the local financial services sector.
Last night, in a statement sent to Observer, Caribbean Union Bank (CUB) said it “unequivocally denies” the suggestion that it had restricted access to any customer’s account.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the bank places on record the following incontrovertible facts: Caribbean Union Bank is a local commercial bank which is licensed by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank. As a licensed financial institution, the bank must fulfil all regulatory requirements. The bank remains sound and safe, and maintains the ability to meet all depositors’ requests,” the statement said.
“CUB is committed to delivering the highest standards of service while maintaining compliance with regulatory requirements in line with the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank and international standards,” it added.
Michael is one of the country’s longest-serving MPs, having held the St Peter seat since 2004, previously as a member of the Labour Party. But claims in 2017 that he had tried to bribe a British investor – which saw him briefly detained at Heathrow Airport – precipitated a stormy fallout with his party and saw him ousted as Tourism Minister.
He has recently been embroiled in legal battles with the party which he claims contravened its own constitution by naming a replacement candidate for the St Peter seat. The Labour Party has denied impropriety.
As the January 18 poll looms, PM Browne has frequently taken to social media to lambaste his former colleague. Michael has maintained his innocence.