The following is the text of a letter sent to Gov. Jeb Bush by Florida Democratic Party Chair Bob Poe requesting the governor to allow for full public disclosure of all documents regarding the MWI Corp./Bush-El Nigerian water pump deal. Poe is requesting the Gov. Bush release all records detailing the governor's involvement in the deal that is the subject of a federal lawsuit.
Following the letter are two recent stories on the subject -- one from last week that appeared in the Miami Herald and another from March from the St. Petersburg Times.
____________________________________________________________________
July 29, 2002
The Honorable Jeb Bush
The governor of Florida
Room PL 05 - The Capitol
Tallahassee, Florida 32399
VIA FAX: (850) 487-0801
Dear Governor Bush:
A Broward County company headed by one of your former business partners last week asked a judge to seal records in a federal case in which the firm is accused of having bribed officials in Nigeria as part of a water-pump sale. According to a recent St. Petersburg Times story, the Justice Department lawsuit alleges MWI Corp. fraudulently helped Nigeria obtain U.S. taxpayer-backed loans during your father's administration. According to a story that appeared last week in the Miami Herald, the records that may be sealed could include any pretrial deposition given by you about your role in Bush-El Trading Corp., a company you once owned with J. David Eller, who now runs MWI Corp, the company facing the federal suit.
This latest twist in the water pump saga has many wondering what your former business partner is trying to hide and whom he's trying to protect. Is sealing these records an attempt to save you from embarrassment in an election year? If not, then you should immediately allow for the full public disclosure of these records.
There are many serious questions surrounding your involvement in the M&W Pump/Bush-El Nigerian water pump case that have yet to be fully answered including:
Ø If, as you say, you didn't get paid from ventures backed by the Export-Import Bank (like the Nigerian water pump deal), what exactly did you do to receive $648,000 in 1994 when you sold your interest in Bush-El after apparently investing no money in Bush-El?
Ø If you are "proud of your association with M&W" as you wrote in a letter to the editor in the October 16, 1998 Miami Herald, why won't you provide a full accounting of the work you did for Bush-El Trading Corp., -- a company that did business in Nigeria and other countries while your father was president? Why won't you fully answer questions about your involvement in the alleged water pump scheme to defraud the U.S. government of $74 million?
Ø How can say you had nothing to do with the Nigerian water pump deal when reportedly, you reportedly visited Nigeria twice as a water pump representative during your father's administration (including attending a 1,300 horse parade in your honor) and according to the October 23, 1992 Wall Street Journal, two months after your father, George H.W. Bush, was sworn in as the 41st president of the United States in 1989, you walked into the office of Nigeria's president and "established an immediate rapport" with the Nigerian president? According to the story, M&W Pump Corp. was the main item for discussion on the agenda of your meeting with the Nigerian president.
Ø Why won't you produce all documents, including tax returns for the years 1989 to the present, that would help answer questions regarding your business and financial dealings including showing actually how much you got paid and what you got paid for?
In response to questions from the Miami Herald in 1998 about the water pump deal, you said: "You either trust me or you don't." Yet, during the 1998 election, you filed a motion to suppress your deposition in a related case. It is within your power to clear the air on this issue. Or you can leave lingering doubts in the minds of the voters. I request that you release all records to the public regarding your involvement with this company. It's time for Floridians to get a full accounting of your involvement in this deal that cost American taxpayers millions of dollars.
Sincerely,
BOB POE
Chair, Florida Democratic Party