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were also the principal shareholders of LITE. Subscribers to the
latter company were "1'Enterprise Forestiere & de Transport"
(50?), Andre Fayes Sayhoun (25?), David G. Peal (15?), Evelyn
Townsend (8?) and David E. Gaye (2?). Its General Manager was
Andre Sahyoun and the company was housed in the MACARS building
(on Broad Street, Monrovia).
The Yah River Logging Company was also housed in the MACARS
building. Andrew F, Sahyoun, David E. Gaye and Samul T, Voker
each held one third of the shares of this logging company which
had been granted a 50,000 acres timber concession near Ganta on
May 31, 1973. (A boundary dispute with the Lofa Lumber
Corporation was won by the Yah River Logging Corporation). On
November 4, 1974 63,750 acres of forest land were added to the
company's concession area with an Addendum to the 1973 agreement.
The management contract between Yah River Logging Company and
NIFCO had been concluded on July 23, 1973 (note: i.e. before
this management company had been officially created - see above)
but on October 21, 1974 one of the shareholders, Samuel Voker,
signed a mangement agreement on behalf of the Yah River Company,
with the United Logging Corporation (see below), to manage the
63,750 acres which, however, at that time were not yet
officially added to Yah River's concession area. Meanwhile
Sahyoun had bought out the third partner, David Gaye, by
purchasing his 50 shares for $ 50,000. Being the majority
shareholder (holding 100 out of 150 shares) he disputed the
decision of Samuel Voker. The ensuing confrontation Sahyoun vs.
Voker degenerated almost into a regular fight for the logs when
at one time Voker went so far as to arm 30 Yah employees and 30
other workers of his private farm (64)"
A court case Sahyoun vs. Voker (NIFCO vs. U.L.C. ), during which
NIFCO was legally represented by Richard A. Henries, was won by
NIFCO. In 1975 new shareholders (also Liberian) joined the Yah
River Logging Company: Taylor E. Major and Fred M. Ryan.
Lucia Tolbert and Toye Bernard, also joined and were given 50
and 20 shares respectively "in consideration of valuable serv ices
rendered" as was the official explanation given.
The following year, in August 1976, Samuel Voker bought
Sahyoun's interest in the company ("Yah River") and subsequently
cancelled the management agreement with NIFCO. In May 1977 the
Minister of Justice cancelled the concession agreement with the
Yah River Logging Corppration (reasons not known) but this
decision was revoked in June of the same year (details not
known).
The United Logging Company was (75?) owned by Kassem Fawaz, a
Lebanese businessman. The (1974) concession agreement granted
140,500 acres of forest lands in Grand Cape Mount County, Fawaz
was also General Manager of the Liberia Timber Corporation.
Also in 1974, this company had obtained a timber concession
agreement for 52,400 acres in Grand Gedeh County and was managed
by the U.L.C, after the signing of an management agreement. In