Andersen Statement, 2 February 2002
Statement of C. E. Andrews, global managing partner in response to Enron Special Committee Report February 2, 2002
Statement of C. E. Andrews, global managing partner in response to Enron Special Committee Report February 2, 2002
‘The report issued today by Enron’s special committee is troubling on many levels. Nothing more than a self-review, it does not reflect an independently credible assessment of the situation, but instead represents an attempt to insulate the company’s leadership and the Board of Directors from criticism by shifting blame to others. More importantly, the report overlooks the fundamental problem – the fact that poor business decisions on the part of Enron executives and its Board ultimately brought the company down. The conception, creation and decision to fund special-purpose entity partnerships with company stock rests solely with Enron officials.
While we are disappointed with the report’s contents, we are not surprised. This report fits Enron’s established pattern of the last several months of attempting to shift blame to others. Company leadership and others with a governance role have had little to say about these decisions, and have generally declined to speak publicly or to appear before independent investigative committees of the U.S. Congress.
Further, the committee’s assertion that Andersen declined to cooperate in the review is completely false. Andersen offered to make our people available, and it was the Enron special committee that was unwilling to cooperate with us.
Andersen has cooperated fully with investigatory authorities, including the SEC, the Congress, and the Justice Department. Our most senior officials, including our Chief Executive Officer, have been available to answer the questions of Congress and the public and will continue to do so. Nothing in this report contradicts any of that testimony. We have been clear from the outset that an error in judgment was made with respect to the consolidation of one of the special-purpose entities; however, critical information was withheld from us with regard to other partnerships – a fact this report fails to address.
The various governmental bodies and the courts will ultimately rule about the conduct of Enron and Andersen, and we are confident they will do so in an honest and balanced fashion. Those judgments are not the province of Enron or its special committee.
As we await the completion of the investigations, certain immutable facts stand out: