[Community-Discuss] FUNDRAISING & DONATIONS - TO KEEP AFRINIC RUNNING

[Andrew Alston]

John

My problem with what you are saying is that it is predicated entirely on trust – trust that the board is doing everything they can – trust that the board is prudent – trust that the board is sticking to fiduciary duty.  I would argue that trust – may be a little hard to come by when it comes to handing over money – considering the situation the company now finds itself in under the leadership of this board – can considering past years.

Sorry – but as a community member – Questions like these aren’t about feeling good and trusting – they are pertinent – valid – questions – that may be uncomfortable to answer – but saying that we should just trust – without any firm answers – in light of the situation – well – I have to say that personally – I find that a little hard to swallow

Andrew


From: John Curran <jcurran at arin.net>
Date: Wednesday, 18 August 2021 at 20:26
To: Andrew Alston <Andrew.Alston at liquidtelecom.com>
Cc: General Discussions of AFRINIC <community-discuss at afrinic.net>
Subject: Re: [Community-Discuss] FUNDRAISING & DONATIONS - TO KEEP AFRINIC RUNNING
On 18 Aug 2021, at 12:43 PM, Andrew Alston <Andrew.Alston at liquidtelecom.com<mailto:Andrew.Alston at liquidtelecom.com>> wrote:
... any prudent person who is going to donate money – is going to want to know certain basic things


  1.  How will the money they are diverting from other projects be spent
  2.  Are the individuals in control of the entity requesting money behaving in a way that is both within the bounds of the law and doing everything reasonable to ensure that the amount of money being requested is kept to a minimum – I.E – that they aren’t taking actions that would increase the burden on members any more than it already is
  3.  Is the board complying with their fiduciary duties in all of their actions.

Andrew -

These are quite reasonable questions for anyone donating funds to any cause to ask.  Of course, given the nature of the litigation faced by AFRINIC that has brought about the situation, some of the answers may be rather obvious; to wit -
a) One would expect the money will be used to defray costs of AFRINIC operations per its budget – but now likely with the addition of expenses resulting from the litigation.
b) One would expect that AFRINIC is doing everything reasonable and prudent to avoid increasing the burden on the members (defending against a $1.8 billion USD claim certainly qualifies in that regard)
c) One would expect that the board is indeed complying with their fiduciary duties in all of their actions (being litigated generally results in increased legal expertise on-hand, and ample attention to such duties.)

I find it quite encouraging that so many organizations have already pondered these questions, and (in recognition of the key role AFRINIC plays in the development and growth of Internet in Africa) that have come together in a fund-raising exercise to help keep AFRINIC running – may they find many of similar mind and kindred spirit from around the globe.

Best wishes,
/John

John Curran
President and CEO
American Registry for Internet Numbers


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