The pains of too much success

It occurs to me now, albeit too belatedly, that I might have been totally wrong, in unwittingly accepting this stressful responsibility, of becoming the executor of my friend's last will and testament. To liquidate his multi-billion assets all over the globe and to distribute his wealth to his four wives and 17 children is turning out to be a huge headache to me now. But how can I say no to a very dear friend? And how can I withdraw at this point in time?

It is the last wish of Sheik Abdul bin Ibrahim Yuosuf Al-Sabah (name is disguised to protect his security) that I divide his wealth equally and fairly so that all his heirs shall continue to love him, respect him after his demise, and to remember him as the husband and father who had given his loved ones all the comforts of a cozy life. Sheik Abdul is a tremendously wealthy man, but prostate cancer, stage four is about to kill him, and not even all his assets could change that painful truth. His wives have started to bicker and their respective lawyers have sent official notices that all of them would contest the probate of Abdul's will, should it be shown that there is favoritism in the way the wealth shall be divided, in accordance with law.

When we talk of law, we mean a web of many interlocking statutes across many countries and jurisdictions. Abdul is an Arab with US citizenship, the first wife, Mariam is a Syrian with a British passport and residence; Farida, the second wife is a Filipina with Canadian citizenship but living in Las Vegas; Hamara, the third wife, a Pampanguena who is a Dubai resident; and Rebeka, the last wife from Carcar, Cebu, with US citizenship, is residing in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City. As if this not complicated enough, the properties include vast oil investments in Dubai, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait; banks in Saudi Arabia and Cairo, Amman, Jordan and malls in Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Kula Lumpur, Tower condo in New York and a vast resort complex in Orlando, Florida.

Abdul owns some hotels in Italy, Spain and Portugal and diamond factories in Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. Abdul owns casinos in Atlantic City, Las Vegas, Reno, Lake Tahoe and South Lake City. He also has investments in the airplane manufacturing businesses in Seattle, State of Washington. Abdul has vast business investments in the entertainment industry in Orlando, Florida, and in the movie and TV industries in Hollywood and in New York. 

He could not even memorize all his holdings because in every country, he has a trusted attorney-in-fact and a squad of corporate lawyers and accountants who manage all his assets. Now, that he is about to die, he just want me to compute the total value of his properties so that I could divide these among all his heirs.

Each hour I am on the international phone lines and in my lap top chatting with all his trustees and reviewing all reports. I am not an accountant and I hate numbers. But here I am having all the stress and the headache which should have been Abdul's.

But a friend is a friend; we do not even talk of compensation. But he covers all my travel expenses and instructed his finance boys to make available to me all the resources. I want my friend to leave the world at peace and happy, and relieved of all the troubles arising from too much wealth, too much success.

Sometimes, I wonder if pains are among the by-products of success, the unintended fruits of too much wealth. I wished I just remained as the barefoot mountain village boy, from Pusodsawa, Langin, Ronda, Cebu. I have complicated my life in search of happiness.

Now, I am saddened by the excessively complicated life of my friend, Abdul. Life is an irony. Sometime, to succeed is to fail, and to fail is to achieve victory. Makalibog gyod ning kinabuhi, oy.