Dear Members of the BA Family
I am sure you are all aware of why it has been necessary for me to remain quiet while preparing our defense against the shocking attacks against us and the destruction of our life work. However, as we approach the end of 2015, I wanted to take a moment to send you and your families my best wishes for your health and happiness for the New Year.
We have all suffered from the unprecedented attacks against our BA Family, which includes all of you, our employees, customers and others, by a group seeking revenge for perceived past slights and for their personal gain. Their actions will go down in history as the most vile act of destruction in Mauritius ever aimed at a family, its people and its customers, who all believed in us. I take pride in the fifty years of work we have done. In that time, we have always paid everyone. All of our bank customers and insurance policy owners have always been paid and received their funds through the service of a dedicated team. We have always honored our responsibilities, as you know. Even if I am far away and have been required to be silent, I have British American in my blood, the BA Family and our customers in my heart and that is what has propelled me for all these decades to work hard.
As the Rawat Family, we were always very proud of, and close to, our employees. Neither we nor BA ever made a distinction on race, religion or colour. Together we built a real Mauritian company. It was democratic, and was the first to introduce equal opportunity employment in our policies and procedures. Based on this policy, many employees of the BA group of diverse backgrounds had their entire career with British American. Our democratic philosophy provided an environment and the means to buy a house, educate their children, build their status in life, and retire comfortably. A couple of years ago at the BAI end of the year party, I walked around and spoke to many of you. I was proud of the respect and friendship amongst all of us. I was pleasantly surprised to see the sea of young talent, full of life and hope, the BA Millenials. I saw these young people as an achievement for all of us who worked to create the BA Brand as we were also creating employment and careers for the future. Today, I remember family sport days, get togethers, end of the year parties, awards, and amazing trips and conventions so many of us enjoyed as a team. The excitement of Black Cat Fridays is a legacy carried on through decades.
We started with nothing and slowly built an amazing success story and that was what the “jealous” people did not like. If we had not been successful, but remained a small enterprise, we would have been left alone. What kind of message is that to Mauritians, young and old, who aspire to do better for themselves and their families? I suggest it is a terrible message that all good Mauritians must resist. I promise that I will do so. I will honor the courage you showed, your hard work, loyalty and dedication that paid off in a way that the group became the most exciting group in the country. All those who worked to build that awesome group can justifiably be very proud. From the insurance company to the bank to the hospital, you became leaders in the country by showing others what service to clients and hard work meant. Your kindness became legendary, as patients of the hospital would write after staying there for their health care.
At this time of the approaching New Year, I want to share my sorrow at what has happened to my family, and that means my immediate family and my BA family, all of you. I treasure the genuine warmth and respect you afforded me every time we met. It is heartbreaking to know that many of you have lost your jobs or suffered along with us where all of us did nothing wrong except be successful. Others, young leaders from every community, have been demoted and the top jobs given to favored persons to those in power. There has been a massive destruction of values and a horrible attack on our reputations all based on false claims about these great companies by those who lashed at us with such venom. We know who we are and we know we were the most watched and talked about company. Mauritians from every community worked together as the BA Family to create the proof that a democratic conglomerate could succeed in Mauritius. They have attacked what we built together, but they will never destroy the belief and the history of BAI. We will take on this challenge to bring out the truth. We were together every step of the way, and today I ask you all to stay together, in touch and supportive of each other. It is the BA way.
I am so grateful to all of you who have stayed loyal and faithful and we will not forget your kind hearts. You are a source of courage in this battle to clear our names, our BA brand and to validate our hard work together. I will stay more in touch as the battle to right these wrongs begins. All the best to each of you.
Dawood A. Rawat
