Mason Graphite Director and Second Largest Shareholder Fahad Al-Tamimi Reacts to Engagement of Financial Advisor During Contested Meeting Process
- Reminds shareholders to vote their BLUE "universal" proxy in favour of a refreshed board comprised of six highly qualified, competent and committed nominees who will maximize value for all shareholders and to withhold on the election of the four management nominees.
- Shareholders representing more than 30% of outstanding Mason Graphite shares have already confirmed their support.
- For assistance voting, contact Kingsdale Advisors at 1-866-229-8651 or contactus@kingsdaleadvisors.com.
- To keep current on further developments and for information about how to vote your shares, visit www.ABetterMasonGraphite.com.
MONTREAL, Dec. 9, 2020 - Fahad Al-Tamimi ("Mr. Al-Tamimi" or the "Concerned Shareholder"), a director and the second largest shareholder of Mason Graphite Inc. (TSXV: LLG) (OTCQX: MGPHF) ("Mason Graphite" or the "Company") holding approximately 9.92% of the outstanding Mason Graphite shares, wishes to react to the press release issued by the Company on December 8, 2020.
Mr. Al-Tamimi vehemently disagrees with the Company's decision to needlessly spend shareholders' money to engage a financial advisor mere days before the inevitable change in the Company's leadership. In the context of a contested meeting, there is a fundamental principle that the incumbent directors should manage the business and affairs of the company in the ordinary course, with a view to protecting its interests and assets, and should not pursue drastic actions that can have significant implications for the company, its shareholders and the incoming directors. Mr. Al-Tamimi is profoundly disappointed that Mason Graphite would retain a financial advisor to conduct a strategic review process less than three weeks before the Company's shareholders decide who they want to manage the direction and affairs of the Company and to protect their interests. This is exacerbated by the fact that the Company did not run a proper competitive process in selecting a financial advisor. Clearly, such conduct is not in the best interests of the Company or its shareholders.
"It is regrettable that after having done virtually nothing over the last three years – during which time the Company's share price plummeted by more than 90% – the Board has suddenly rushed into engaging a financial advisor three weeks before the shareholders' meeting at great expense to the Company's shareholders," said Mr. Al-Tamimi. "This is a textbook example of incumbent directors wasting shareholders' money to further entrench themselves. It is time to move on and elect directors who truly have the best interests of the Company and its shareholders in mind."
As disclosed in a press release issued by the Concerned Shareholder on December 8, 2020, shareholders representing more than 30% of the outstanding common shares of Mason Graphite have already confirmed their support for the election of Messrs. Simon Marcotte, Tayfun Eldem, Nav Dhaliwal, Roy McDowall, Peter Damouni and Fahad Al-Tamimi (the "Concerned Shareholder Nominees") to the Company's Board and their intention to withhold their votes on the election of Messrs. Gilles Gingras, François Laurin, Guy Chamard and Gaston A. Morin (the "Management Nominees") to the Company's Board.
Vote for positive change by 5:00 p.m. (Montreal time) on Tuesday, December 22, 2020
The Concerned Shareholder also wishes to remind shareholders to vote for a refreshed board comprised of the Concerned Shareholder Nominees, each of whom is highly qualified and competent, for election at the Company's annual meeting of shareholders scheduled to be held at 10:00 a.m. (Montreal time) on Tuesday, December 29, 2020, and to withhold on the election of the Management Nominees. Shareholders are encouraged to review the proxy materials and vote the BLUE "universal" form of proxy or BLUE voting instruction form FOR the Concerned Shareholder Nominees and to WITHHOLD on the election of the Management Nominees.
If you have questions or need help voting, contact Kingsdale Advisors at 1-866-229-8651 or contactus@kingsdaleadvisors.com.
Shareholders can view the proxy material and accompanying letter filed under Mason Graphite's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com, or by visiting the Concerned Shareholder's website at www.ABetterMasonGraphite.com.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements. All statements contained in this filing that are not clearly historical in nature or that necessarily depend on future events are forward-looking, and the words "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "estimate", "plan" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations of the Concerned Shareholder and currently available information. They are not guarantees of future performance, involve certain risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict, and are based upon assumptions as to future events that may not prove to be accurate. The Concerned Shareholder does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release, except as required by applicable law.
SOURCE Mr. Fahad Al-Tamimi
Contact
Media Contact: Kingsdale Advisors: Ian Robertson, President, Canada, Direct: 416-867-2333, Cell: 647-621-2646, irobertson@kingsdaleadvisors.com; Hyunjoo Kim, Director of Communications, Marketing & Digital Strategy, Direct: 416-867-2357, Cell: 416-899-6463, hkim@kingsdaleadvisors.com