TORONTO, June 5 /PRNewswire/ - The following is a statement from Bruce
Brydon in response to Biovail's misleading letter to shareholders on June 5,
2008:
"In its most recent letter to shareholders, Biovail's management has been
disrespectful and dismissive of senior and successful executives who make up
the dissident nominees. 7 of the 10 nominees on the dissident slate are deemed
to be independent. Many of these individuals have not even spoken to Eugene
Melnyk in years and a number had never spoken to Mr. Melnyk prior to this
proxy contest.
As the largest shareholder, with the largest financial stake, Mr. Melnyk's
interests are completely and unequivocally aligned with those of all
shareholders. Doug Squires and William (Bill) Wells talk to shareholders in
the response letter about the "lost years" of 2001-2007, but Doug Squires has
'conveniently' forgotten his opinion of just a year ago when his own job was
not on the line. On May 17, 2007, Doug Squires said the following at the
annual general meeting where Mr. Melnyk announced his retirement: "Eugene's
contribution to the company is immeasurable." "Eugene was instrumental in
growing the company" and that "in 2006, for the first time in our history, our
annual revenues exceeded $1 Billion."
Far from lost, Mr. Melnyk retired at a point when the stock was over $25
per share and increasing in value - with an optimistic outlook for the
immediate horizon. Today the share price is around $12 - dropping by more than
50% and losing billions of dollars in shareholder value. Mr. Melnyk felt he
left the company in good hands at the time. Subsequently, failure upon failure
occurred under the incumbent management team.
Regardless, this is not about Mr. Melnyk. It's about the dismal failure of
the current management and board. It's about my track record and
pharmaceutical experience compared to Doug Squires' track record and William
(Bill) Wells' pharmaceutical experience - or lack thereof. It's about a solid
plan for a better Biovail. The company will not succeed in misleading
shareholders, respected institutional analysts and Biovail employees. A
response to their letter will follow shortly."
SOURCE Bruce Brydon
Canadian Media: Duncan Fulton, (416) 645-3655, Duncan.fulton@fleishman.ca; US
Media: Mike Sitrick, (310) 788-2850, Mike_sitrick@sitrick.com
