…disgruntled shareholders stage protest against old committee

THE Interim Management Committee (IMC) which took control of the Guyana Public Service Co-operative Credit Union (GPSCCU) upon the instruction of the government has down tools in keeping with a High Court Order; however, it is seeking a reversal.

On Monday, the GPSCCU IMC Chairman Trevor Benn told the Guyana Chronicle that the interim committee, which was installed by the Ministry of Social Protection in May, ceased operations in keeping with a High Court order that was handed down by Justice Gino Persaud on Thursday June 21, 2018.

Justice Persaud ordered an interim stay until July 3, 2018 in response to an application filed by GPSCCU Secretary Trevor Benn for an injunction to restrain and or prohibit the Chief Co-op Development Officer (CCDO) Perlina Gifth, and her appointed agents including the IMC from assuming control of the affairs of the credit union.

July 6, 2018 has been set for the hearing of the Fixed Date Application but the GPSCCU IMC Chairman and team have moved to the High Court to have a reversal of the injunction, secured by the Secretary that operated under the embattled Management Committee led by Patricia Went.

The IMC Chairman told the Guyana Chronicle that the reversal is necessary to allow the Government-appointed committee to resume operations which include the issuing of loans to members of the credit union.

Shortly after Justice Persaud issued the order, the Secretary, which operated under the stewardship of Went, wrote to the Managing Director of Scotia Bank, Georgetown, asking that the credit unions’ two accounts be restored. The CCDO had called for a freeze on the accounts after taking control of the credit union.

According to the IMC Chairman, embattled members of the old Management Committee on Monday wrote a cheque to the tune of $2.5M but it was turned down at the bank. Chairman of the GPSCCU Management Committee Patricia Went, however, told the Guyana Chronicle that while the Secretary wrote to Scotiabank asking that the accounts be restored, none of the members on the ousted committee wrote any cheque or attempted to access monies from the accounts.

In a separate application, Went asked the High Court to declare that the decision by the Chief Co-operative Development to assume control of the affairs of the Guyana Public Service Co-operative Credit Union pursuant to Regulation 56 of the Cooperative Societies Act Cap. 88:01 is unlawful and of no legal effect. Went, through her attorneys-at-law Roysdale Forde and Olayne Joseph, is arguing that the decision of the CCDO is in breach of the Co-operative Societies Act Cap. 88:01 and a denial of the principles of Natural Justice.
On May 25, 2018, the Chief Co-op Development Officer had terminated the service of the GPSCCU Management Team, headed by Patricia Went, over allegations of poor performance. Days later, Justice (Ret’d) Prem Persaud was appointed Officer in Charge of the Credit Union, and an IMC set up.

As a result, the ousted Chairman is also asking the High Court to declare that the appointments of Justice Prem Persaud and members of the IMC – Patsy Russel, Trevor Benn, Rajdai Jagarnauth, Gillian Pollard, Oneidge Walrond- Allicock, Patrick Mentore and George Vaughn – by the CCDO to manage the affairs of the credit union is unlawful.
Went is of the belief that the decision to terminate the services the old management committee was rooted in the demand by the Department of Co-operatives for an undue payment of the Audit and Supervision Fund for the years 2002-2013 of an alleged balance of $449.6M.

She is contending that Department of Cooperatives’ claim to outstanding payments towards the Audit and Supervision Fund, could not be justified given that the already audited accounts of the Credit Union for the years 2002 to 2010 reflected no such balance.
But some members of the ousted Credit Union Management Committee and shareholders have said that they are pleased with government’s decision to take control of the credit union, contending that for years millions of dollars were doled out Patrick Yarde and his allies under the watch of Went.

On Monday, Jermain Hermanstyne – a member of the ousted management committee, and Karen Vansluytman-Corbin – a shareholder were among a group consisting of 12 members of the credit union who picketed the Hadfield Street head office, calling for the embattled management team to stand down and respect the government’s decision to install an IMC. On the picketing line, Vansluytman-Corbin said for too long the credit union has suffered at the hands of Yarde.

“We have decided to come out here today because for too long, the credit union has been hijacked by a management committee who seems to think that the funds of this credit union belong to them and them alone, but this is a shareholders credit union,” she told reporters while bearing a placard.

The shareholder contended that through the Credit Union Management Committee which was headed by Went, it was controlled by Yarde who along with a few others abused the financial resources of the facility.

“We are saying it is time that it is stopped, that the credit union be returned to the membership and not to Patrick Yarde,” Vansluytman-Corbin said.

She added: “The government took control of the credit union to protect the interest of the shareholders because they are interested in what has been happening, they are seeing the abuse that has been taking place, they are seeing the mismanagement that has been taking place, millions of dollars being unaccounted for…Last Friday we understand that the ousted management committee decided that they are going to come back here, and take control and we are saying no, we are going to stand up to them as shareholders, and we support the government’s move to take control to protect our interest.”

Though Vansluytman-Corbin was unable to furnish reporters with evidence to support the claims made against members who sat on the embattled management team, she said that the evidence will be provided to the appropriate authorities when the time is right.
Yarde and his colleagues have also been accused of spending some $32M on a single overseas trip; however, this claim has since been refuted by the ousted committee on the grounds that it is malicious.

Hermanstyne told reporters that though he sat on the committee under the stewardship of Went, he was not in support of many of the decisions made.
While endorsing government’s initial decision to seize control of the credit union, made it clear that he never gave approval for Went to move to the High Court to challenge the government, more so the decision of the CCDO.

In her application, Went told the court that the members of the Committee of Management; Vera Naughton, Uhlan Leaner, Thomas Nestor, Patrick Yarde, Maurice Veecock, Dawn Gardener, Jermain Hermanstyne, Reginald Brotherson, Kenneth Watson, Grace Mc Kend, and Ivelaw Henry, authorised her to make the application.
But Hermanstyne told reporters that he along with two of the members that sat on the committee have filed affidavit to clear their names.

“I want to make it very clear that I am disassociating myself from that. I was never contacted by any of the former managers, I was never told of any court action, I learnt from this in the press. This is another attempt tarnish my integrity and I want to make it very clear. I have stood against Patrick Yarde and his people because they want to spend the credit union money recklessly,” he said.

While a few members and shareholders have spoken out against Went, Yarde and team, the embattled leaders have refuted the claims made against them.