JAPAN’S gambling magnate Kazuo Okada on Thursday said his fight to regain control of his company is not yet over, saying the Tokyo decision regarding the agreement between his two children that kicked him out of his own company is not yet final.
“Until the decision becomes final, the fight is not yet over, and Kazuo Okada remains in control of Universal Entertainment Corp. [UEC] as 99-percent owner of Okada Holdings Ltd. [OHL],” Okada’s lawyers from Blanco and Esguerra Law Office said in a statement. Lawyer Reody Anthony Balisi said Okada’s daughter Hiromi plans to appeal the Tokyo decision in the complaint filed against her by brother Tomohiro.
In its January 25 decision, the Tokyo District Court confirmed the validity of the 30-year trust agreement that led to the ouster of Okada from control of OHL, which owns 67.9 percent of UEC.
UEC owns Tiger Resort Asia Ltd., which controls Tiger Resort, Leisure and Entertainment Inc., the operator of Okada Manila, the $1.5-billion resort and casino in Entertainment City. Okada’s children Tomohiro and Hiromi signed a trust agreement on separate occasions in March and May 2017 that effectively booted out their father as director and chairman from the company he founded.
Hiromi reconciled with her father in August 2017, and the two filed civil and criminal proceedings in Hong Kong to regain control of Okada Holdings and also secure criminal convictions for fraud and financial crimes against those responsible for his ouster.
In the Tokyo case, Hiromi testified that Tomohiro took advantage of her weak emotional state to trick her into signing two share-trust agreements dated March 2 and May 23, 2017, that led to the illegal ouster of their father from OHL. In her testimony, Hiromi claimed Tomohiro did not explain to her the contents of the documents she signed, contrary to the claim of his brother.
“On March 2, 2017, I was going overseas again the following day, so I was really tired. There was no explanation. In a few minutes, I signed the documents, and it was over,” Hiromi said in her testimony.
Okada’s lawyers, meanwhile, hit Tiger Resort’s plan to change the name of Okada Manila, saying the company needs their client’s consent before it could happen.
“As the rightful owner of Okada Holdings, how can they not consult him on matters regarding his company and his property?” the lawyers said, adding the magnate is also opposed to the backdoor listing of Tiger Resort using Asiabest Group International Inc.
“He was not consulted at all in that transaction, and he will file cases against those responsible for the backdoor listing,” the lawyers said.
Early this week, Tiger Resort said it was successful in its backdoor listing bid at the Philippine Stock Exchange after it concluded the share-purchase agreement of certain shareholders of Asiabest Group.
Tiger now owns 200 million shares or 66.67 percent of Asiabest. The deal, which still has to be approved by the Philippine Stock Exchange, is worth P646.5 million.