Public service credit union factions differ on if court-ordered meeting held
While Chairperson of the
Guyana Public Service Cooperative Credit Union Limited (GPSCCUL)
Karen VanslutymanCorbin maintains that a court-ordered Special General Meeting (SGM) was convened yesterday at the Critchlow Labour College, Trevor Benn, a member of the committee of management said that this was “disingenuous”.
As the contretemps between the two factions of the credit union continues, Benn told this newspaper yesterday that when he showed up at the location yesterday, the nine-member committee led by Vanslutyman-Corbin was non-compliant with the High Court order by Justice Navindra Singh which stipulated that a meeting be held yesterday.
But VanslutymanCorbin told Stabroek News that a meeting was indeed held yesterday which sought the participation of Benn. However, Benn made it clear that what he attended was not a “special general meeting” but a gathering with several members of the credit union who were dissatisfied with its current management.
“I don’t know why it is being said that the meeting was not held, it was held yesterday and Mr Benn was there so I don’t know why he is trying to mislead the public”, the Credit Union’s chair stated.
She further contended that in compliance with the High Court’s order, the union under her stewardship
did convene the meeting which can be proven by photographic evidence.
The Chairperson noted that several members of the credit union were also present at the meeting.
Jermain Hermanstyne, a member of the committee of management said that Benn was trying to blow things out of proportion by stating that a meeting was not held.
According to the notice published by this newspaper on the SGM, the Information Technology Company used by the committee of members in 2021 for its Annual General Meeting was to be hired to provide support for the virtual component of the meeting and voting purposes.
The notice stated that locations are to be set up in all ten administrative regions for the hosting of the meeting; and
Committee members, Patrick Mentore, Rajdai Jagarnauth and Trevor Benn were to administer all arrangements for the SGM.
However, Benn told this newspaper that none of the orders in the above notice were followed by the Chairperson of the GPSCCUL.
Several motions were listed with the first seeking the recall of the current management of the GPSCCUL.
The second sought the nomination of a new Committee of Management Members. The third sought to move that the following nine members not be reelected to serve on the committee of management, namely, Vanslutyman-Corbin, Gillian Pollard, Ruth Howard, O Saskia Eastman-Onwuzirike, Charles Ogle, Hermanstyne, Leslyn Noble, Michelle David and Arthur Gibbs.
Benn said that the current management of the credit union deliberately did not facilitate the meeting in all ten administrative regions, because if they did the result would have been the election of a new committee,
Benn said it is impossible for a general meeting to be held without its full quorum.
According to him, there are thousands of persons who are members of the GPSCCUL, which was why the hiring of an IT company was critical so that online mechanisms could be in place for persons to participate virtually at the anticipated general meeting.
Asked what would be the recourse mow, Benn said that he and members Mentore and Jagarnauth would consult with their attorneys on this new development and decide what actions would be taken.
The notice said that Vice Chairman of the Committee of Management, Mentore would preside over the meeting.
On January 26th of this year, Stabroek News reported that an application for a Stay of Execution of the Order directing the holding of a Special General Meeting of the GPSCCUL had been dismissed by the Full Court.
Attorney Roysdale Forde SC had reported that Justices Naresh Harnanan and Damone Younge sitting in the Full Court refused and dismissed Notices of Application filed by the GPSCCUL and Leslyn Noble, Ruth Howard and Karen Vansluytman-Corbin seeking Stays of Execution against the Order granted by Justice Navindra Singh on the 15th day of December, 2023.
Justice Singh had on the 15th day of December 2023, ordered that the Special General Meeting of the Credit Union be held on the 5th day of February 2024.
According to Forde, the Full Court ruled that the Appellants had failed to establish any special circumstances and or any irreparable prejudice they would suffer if the stays sought were not granted.
The Full Court fixed the hearings of the Appeals for the 18th day of April 2024 and awarded costs against the Appellants for $150,000.00 each, to be paid to the Respondents by the 4th day of March 2024.
The Appellants were represented by Neil Boston, SC, and Adrian Smith.
The Respondents were represented by Forde and Christopher Thompson.
This newspaper also on March 31st, 2023 reported that Members of the GPSCCUL had filed contempt proceedings against the union’s management committee which they say ought to be jailed for flouting a Court order concerning holding a special general meeting.
Credit union members Mehalai McAlmont, Keith Marks and Natasha Durant-Clements argued that while the management committee did comply with the order of the court to hold the special general meeting by the time stipulated, it failed to do so under the specific guidelines which had been set by the Court.
In their contempt application; McAlmont, Marks and Durant-Clements had accused the management committee of attempting to “frustrate” the process; and have “in all of their doing showed a clear intent not to comply” with the Court Order.
On November 30th, 2022 High Court Judge Navindra Singh declared that members of the GPSCCUL were entitled to demand a special general meeting and refuted arguments of the union’s management committee that that request constituted a dispute.
McAlmont, Marks and DurantClements said that while the Committee of Management did hold the October 24th, 2022 meeting as stipulated by the Court, they adhered to none of the processes and procedures that went into the April 2021 general meeting which they needed to, even though they were fully aware of them having participated in it.
The GPSCCUL is in charge of large amounts of members’ savings and has for years been at the centre of a raging dispute over the management of these monies and who should be in charge.