Meles Appoints His Wife CEO to the largest business in Ethiopia
- Monday, April 6, 2009, 12:30
- Business, General News
- 4,407 views
- 12 comments
Azeb Mesfin, the wife of anti-Ethiopian tyrant Meles Zenawi, is poised to taking over the largest business conglomerate that controls 60 percent of the Ethiopian economy, a source reported on Monday.
The online Ethiopia Zare said Azeb Mesfin was appointed Deputy CEO of Endowment Fund for Rehabilitation of Tigray (EFFORT), a conglomerate consisting of over 60 companies.
The huge businesses are but to mention a few: Mesfin Industrial Engineering, Sur Construction, Addis Pharmaceutical Factory (APF), Almeda Textiles Factory, Express Transit Service P.L.C. (EXTRAN), Ethiopian Experience Travel (EET), Ezana Mining Development (EMD), Guna Trading House, Hiwot Agricultural Mechanization, Saba Dimensional Stones (SDS), Sheba Tannery Factory, and Trans Ethiopia.
The source didn’t elaborate whether Azeb would replace Abadi Zemu, the current CEO and a Zenawi confidante who a few years ago replaced Sebhat Nega, the 72-year-old TPLF veteran largely credited as the architect for the rise of Meles Zenawi as TPLF leader long before the rebel group toppled the Derg military regime in 1991.
In spite of owning the largest businesses, EFFORT has never been audited since its launch in the mid-90s, and observers say revenue from the multi-billion-dollar business chain is secretly controlled either by Meles Zenawi, or his God father, Sebhat Nega.
“It is a secret, Mafia-type business oligarchy that has gobbled up much of the country’s businesses,” one oberver who asked anonymity told Ethiomedia. “Now the appointment of the prime minister’s wife virtually as CEO signifies how Mr. Zenawi is determined to keep the political, military and business oligarchy firmly in his hand.” He said the number of business establishments under EFFORT has recently reached at least 100.
Little is known about this huge business empire but the observer says it is not hard to understand EFFORT, which has decimated numerous private Ethiopian businesses, is capable of making Mr. Zenawi one of the richest tyrants in charge of the poorest country in the world.
Last week Meles Zenawi was at the G-20 Summit in London as NEPAD chairman. But at the summit of the world’s wealthiest and most powerful leaders, he was virtually ignored that the London-based Black Star News said Zenawi “cowered in the shadows.”
Zenawi never addressed the Summit, and BSN said he abruptly cancelled a news conference fearing he might face serious questions related to his dismal human rights records, other serious crimes as well as corruption charges.
“The warning by German Chancellor Angela Merkel might have scared Zenawi to leave London immediately,” the observer said.
Following the end of the G-20 Summit, BSN quoted German Chancellor Merkel as saying: “World leaders who have abused their country’s financial systems by robbing their central banks and banking the proceeds in private numbered Swiss accounts are in for a shock….The days of secret banking are now over.”
Before he retreated to Addis Ababa, Mr. Zenawi also witnessed hundreds of Ethiopian protesters condemning him as a ruthless tyrant who should stand before the International Criminal Court at The Hague and not at the G-20 Summit in London.
Genocide Watch has already taken the initiative of indicting Mr. Zenawi as perpetrator of crimes against humanity.
“One of the first leaders to defend [Sudan's leader] Omar al-Bashir and condemn the [arrest] warrant was Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia, whose government has also been implicated in a pattern of widespread perpetration of serious human rights atrocities in Ethiopia and in Somalia,” Genocide Watch said in a letter to the United Nations.
“He [Meles Zenawi] and those within his government may be keenly aware of their own vulnerability to similar actions by the ICC in the future that could upend a deeply entrenched system of government-supported impunity that has protected perpetrators from any accountability,” the group fighting to end genocide said.
Source: Ethiomedia
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EFFORT controls 60% of Ethiopian businesses? Are you kidding? It is one thing to exaggerate. But this seems out of this world. This type of reporting is what discredits the little credibility left among Ethiopian opposition voices.We would like to see honest reporting thrive because such reports will keep the ruling party and other wannabes on their toes. But don’t print ridiculous articles that sound like desperate water cooler chit chats. We are so sick of such pieces and hope for days when we can read decent, objective, and credible reports. There is a lot to investigate and report in Ethiopia. Such factually incorrect and shallow reports show laziness and/or inadequacy of the writer.
@Micahel; Don’t you think you need to be in a position to categorically discredit this allegedly false reporting with some empirical data before making accusations like this?
Your inability to fathom the possibility that this conglomerate can account for 60% of the country’s business can’t in and of itself serve as proof of anything…so really, your allegations are just as unsubstantiated.
How ridiculous is the writer? Let alone in Ethiopia effort companies don’t have 60% share in Tigray’s economy. Where did you get this info. Mr. writer? This is out of reallity. There are many other privately owned companies who are florished in the near past and are playing Lion share in Ethiopia’s economy . You are echoed an old allegation which is outdated now.
Regarding G-20 Many media witnessed that PM Meles participation was very succesfull. You only expose yourself that you are busy in smear campagn against PM Meles. And such act can not bring any change to the fact on the ground.
Good luck man. enjoy your fate by barking like toothless dog.
kkkkkk.. Iam not surprised if this is true Meles will do anything to keep the fortunes in his Family tree
Michael and Aba-mela, you seem out of touch or profiters from this giant multi-product family business where started as NGO and now I don’t know what status it is sheleted because doesn’t pay taxes. The remaining 40% most likely owned by Alamudi and few others. These tyrants are not only ruling the country but owned it. Ruling the country is not only give’em the privillage to own any property they desire because they are the makers, interpreters and executers of the law. I hope the G20 decision that banks are no longer shelter tax free status to keep privacy of individuals, such as SWISS bank, banks in Indonesia. Their savings are under other people’s account who either reside abroad or even under the name of ambassadors. I don’t know if you guys heard about the large amount of money the ambassador of Ethiopia some where (don’t need to say the country) deposited large amount of money under his name, where his wife unaware of it and was exposed on a divorce dispute. You can imagine how much money this tyrants save in different ways abroad. You may smart out people many time but will not all the time.
This Only feeds Hate toward one another which will never let us live a peaceful life. Imagine the energy you have spent justifying your opinion and injecting others to get hateful. You may justify and respond to my comment. Can we find something positive from our brothers and sisters? Can we focus on helping the well being of those who are inflicted with disease and promote well being? Please can we find ways of uniting and working with each other? Ethiopia needs us and we can be happy with our self and grow united. We can teach our next generation how to live together. Our society had formed a bad habit of finding all the faults out there and missing the reality of questioning our self what am I promoting here? .As long as we are not willing to take responsibility as individual and create a better world we will remain in a mess. The world is entering to a new realization and if we continue to bite on each other we may not have a place to exist. Through our own peace we will heal and it starts from ourself..
ethiopiawe, I know you meant it sincerely that showning the desire for peaceful transation you want things to work out for improving people’s life. But my friend the woyane government cannot understand the peaceful mission you are proposing. They think its pitty. They even have suggested if you don’t agree take the rebillion path and Meles explicity said “The jungle that covered us may cover you as well and try it”. Someone may find it fashinable when expressing his/her views on such regard but people only complained because they have issues and you got to listen as a leader if you want to get favorable openion of them. For example Meles himself talk about corruption. You have to lead by example to clean corruption from the country. There is no exceptions. I don’t really care for the so called EFFORT (the woyane financing organisation) beurocratic hirarchy but what I care is that when you say something regarding the country’s economic status, it has to reflect the truth. Words mean something, particularly when involved leaders. Otherwise, if you’re not truthful to yourself, there is no way you can be truthful to the people. Ethiopian people suffered too long. Too many people died for no reason and people desperately want to leave the country for survival, government is leading the country by means of bagging money from west, which they have been doing this bagging for money since they come on power (1991) and 20 years passed leading the country into hell. Can we learn something from countries once used to be the poorest nation on earth and now became successful enough to join the G20, such as china, India, Brazil…They have invested on their people. Country mean nothing without its people. Rather than expanding hateful tribal mentality could you be able to work on closing the gap on their differences? People have a common interest and regardless where you going in the country their desire is the same. To live better today than yesterday. Obviously, if you don’t have a plan leave the leadership to someone who does. Tanzenia president Julius Nyerere was a good example. Ujuama was developed and it was based on the principle to make Africa better place for its people. Western countries despised it and he run into a lot of sabotage by the big power, his African principle to fail. As predicted his Ujuama failed. He finally decided to leave the power for Tanzanians to elect their leader. When he left the office, he has nothing. Came out empty handed. The people collected money and build his houses and he lived better life after he left his power. There is no one single harmonious thing that this brutal dictators have done to the Ethiopian people except divide by tribal identity and creating termoile among them. The brutal dictator, Mengestu was careful when it comes tribal issue. He never had slightest interest to rule the country the way the woyanes did. This is absolutely a shame and what is really more harming the people is that such division under constitution of the country to drive us here in the US apart. The oromo’s abroad the country say – I’m Oromia rather than Ethiopian, the Ethiopia Somalians say I’m somalian, and so on…They divide us and we accepted it but who benifited from this? Ofcourse the Meles gov. If the country need to split, its not because the elits said so but because the people wanted a spearate government.
To summarize, we have two options: 1) Come together without any ethnic division and fight this tyrants 2) Trapped by their divide and rule method and fight with each other with this pitt tribal sentement. Another thing which I have noticed I haven’t seen anyone who came from country side who ohnestly think Ethiopia in the global sense. Have you notice the elits who came from country side have this backward mentality of tribalism. Even living abroad they haven’t learn anything the Ethiopians who lived outside their tribal area and Meles use these kind of people for his divide and rule tactics. So I think the litmus in the future to be a leader in the country among the background best if he/she born and growup in Addis. That is my assessment. I have noticed this baggage of tribalism from those elits who growup country side and come to cities for further education.
Dear All, The acticle is quite right and the tyran Crime minister Meles will not stop steeling the money of poor Ethiopia until he is toped with the fingt of the true Ethipians fron the crest of the earth. The report is not exagerated it is realistic from the fall of the gergue regin the TPLF was busy steling the money of the country I myself knoe the amount of money stelen from the cash safe of the dergeu party (Ethiopian Workers Party) offices in the central and reginal and wordesa so many millions were stolen however no one raied this question and the nominal parlama is accepting and approving want ever is said the the meles junta, a single qustions will not be raised. This area is for Sudan OK, the killing id addins ababa in the election was justified OK, the invation of Somalia is victody dispite the killing of 3450 Ethiopian solderes OK, OK,OK, ……………………………..
Therefore the only solution is not defting TPLF by ballot but by gun with the TPLF understands. History will tell us athat one day want ever stolen from Ethiopia to the Tigray will berreturned including the interest.
the most discuraging thing is that the people in remotea re like jinka is simply accepting for the outrogious acitvity of the TPLF even in remote area like Jinka the Tigrian are working to exploite aour wealth to them and they are Tigrian are apointed to a higher positions irrispective of their capacity and education back ground.
I think you took the sixty percent from the market share of coffee in Ethiopian export, just kidding. People usually try to quantize something to make it credible while the fact is that they don’t have any publishable data. It is understandable that the author might have found it difficult to gather such data for the government has long standing problems publicizing such controversial issues for whatever the reason maybe.
meles and all eprdf officials couldnt even learn from former african leaders;congo’s mobuto sesceco,nigeria’s sani abacha,who looted billions of dollars from their people nd endup killed by swiss conspirators. they should bring back the treasur of their country nd appologize to the public so that the money used in a constructive way nd to fight hungur. if they can open their eyes soon,africans will never beg fo bread again.
I wonder, does Meles Zenawi pay the taxes (he charges other companies) himself ?. Since he virtually owns 60% of the countries economie, surely it would mean that less then half of the ‘possible tax’ income goes to the government. And to be honest, how much of that oppressed and meek 50% or less, actualy goes to the government and is then injected back into the country ? near enough none!. And yet he has the audacity to show up for a summit comprising of the 20 wealthiest rulers (G20), who don’t twist and turn legislations to suit their own personal and fiscal gain. This is why they deserve to be called rulers (although some do tend to make the wrong desiscions, but their still human after all). They dont ignore small businesses, cut the lights off every few nights while limit water usage per household (to prevent anti-government ideas being concieved) and severly punish (sometimes even kill) innocent protesters for trieng to speak out and end their oppression. How can a person even dare to represent their country, while at the same time having their country leashed, shackeled and chained down to prevent its growth ?. Call it being pareranoid or perhaps even being preventative, but one thing it deffinetly is, is selfish!. Its due to this lack of honour, dignity and comon sense, that he ended up being “cowered in the shadows” of the real G20 world leaders. I believe that this narrow minded ‘warlord wanabee’ is like a canserous cell which was hidden inside the centre (the heart) of Ethiopia, slowly growing into a tumour and killing the country off, limb to limb, from corner to corner, as time goes on. Its a shame it started in the heart of ethiopia, but a tumour cant spread forever right ?.Â