The Egyptian Automotive & Trading Co. (ETA) denied that the reason behind the dismissal of Karim El-Naggar, Chairman and Managing Director of ETA, is for financial and administrative violations against the company, as claimed by widespread media reports. The company clarified in a statement on Monday that the reports are only defamation rumours against El-Naggar, as an attempt by one of the foreign investors of Middle East Telecommunications Company (METCO), owned by Lebanese Nabil Kettaneh, to acquire ETA for personal and commercial benefit, against the company's interest. The Kettaneh family is the only Volkswagen agent in Lebanon, therefore it is motivated to attempt to acquire ETA in order to own the agencies in the Middle East and control them, instead of ETA, the company said. They are not taking into consideration the effects on the company, its commercial reputation and the income of 630 employees and their families. The ETA added it is fighting hard in order to protect the rest of its investors, as they are considered Egyptian investments that enrich the national economy. The board of directors is also keen on pumping new investments in the Egyptian market in the next period, it said. The company added that no financial offences were attributed to Karim El-Naggar, and the matter is a mere observation that came in the audit report on the work of the Board of Directors of the company, which was prepared by the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI). The report is a consultation report upon the complaint filed by the Lebanese shareholder related to the absence of a copy of the approval of the Board of Directors annual bonus prescribed for the Chairman and Managing Director. It noted that the Chairman has been receiving annual bonuses since 1987, and that they are included within the company's budget and approved by the general assembly of the company, until the date of the beginning of litigation, which makes it his legal right, according to Article 88 of law number 159 of the year 1981. The ETA added that it has filed a claim to the GAFI to suspend the decision of dismissing the chairman. The company announced to its employees that the Board of Directors is still working without any changes, and work in all the company's branches and maintenance centres is still taking place. The board held a meeting and appointed Miral El-Naggar as Chairman and Mariam Anis Hebeish as Vice-Chairman, until the dismissal of Karim El-Naggar is legally suspended.
