THE body of Mr. Ronald Daniel Webster, former Chairman of the Private Sector Commission (PSC), was yesterday interred at the Olivet Brethren Church-yard, Plaisance, East Coast Demerara, following a moving Thanksgiving Service for his life at the Bethel Gospel Hall, Camp Street Georgetown.

Mr. Webster, born November 29, 1941 succumbed to a terminal illness on April 27, 2014. He was 72. At the time of his death he was also Chief Executive Officer of Caribbean Container Inc. and Chairman of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
There were many glowing tributes which attested to the amazing nature and character of Mr. Webster, aptly described as a true patriot; always visionary, having a unique capacity to discern what no one else could; a perfect husband and father and one who could be depended upon for counselling.
Ron Webster was credited as having been a man of virtue, always calm, calculating and enduring; using his expertise in finance and engineering to craft strategies and find solutions that may seem abstract to others at the time. He was proudly remembered as one who lived a principled life and was never known to step back from challenges.
Among those offering tributes were: Minister of Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, who spoke on behalf of President Donald Ramotar and Prime Minister Samuel Hinds who were unavoidably absent; Mr. Ramesh Dookhoo, Director of the Guyana Manufacturing Services Association and Mr. Zulfikar Samadally, of Caribbean Continer Inc. A family tribute was also paid by Mrs. Bibi Webster, widow of the deceased, whilst the Eulogy was read by Ms. Patricia Bacchus.
Quoting the Prime Minister, Dr. Singh said: “It is with a sense of great sadness and loss that my wife and I extend sincerest condolences to the wife and children and other relatives of Ron Webster, and to his work-mates of the Caribbean Containers Inc. (CCI) family.”

The Prime Minister’s statement continued, “Unassuming in disposition though he might have been, Ron Webster’s service to our country was as diverse as it was distinguished. He will long be remembered for his many accomplishments and contributions in private sector, public sector, and civil society capacities.”

The Prime Minister’s statement also noted that while much is known and has been said about his accomplishments and service in and to the private sector, it is perhaps less known that Ron also served in many public sector capacities. He was the Chief Executive Officer of the Seals and Packaging Industries Limited when that company was still in the public sector. He worked with Government in salvaging the company’s operations and eventually privatising it. The company having subsequently been renamed Caribbean Containers Inc., Ron would again play an influential role in restructuring it to return its finances to viability and sustainability, and secure what can safely be described as one of Guyana’s privatisation successes.

Mr. Hinds noted that for a number of years Ron served as Chairman of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, and expended considerable effort on the matters of the day faced by the GGMC, particularly given the growing role and importance of the mining sector in our country.
Webster served as Chairman of the Bauxite Industry Development Company Limited, the national holding company for bauxite investments, for a number of years until its wind-up about a decade ago and was a key participant in the restructuring and privatisation of that company’s subsidiaries, the Linden and Berbice Mining Enterprises Limited and the Aroaima Mining Company.

He was also Chairman of Kwakwani Utilities Incorporated, the provider of electricity to the towns of Kwakwani and neighbouring areas, a position he held up to the time of his passing.

In a deluge of tributes, by others, Mr. Webster was eulogised as a man of many colours; a man of character, integrity and kindness. He was a friend to all. Moreover, he was a man of exemplary Board Room skills; a man of immense fortitude and strength. “He had a sense of purpose, a sense of what was right and what was wrong and a sense of where the Private Sector should be going,” Mr. Ramesh Dookhoo who spoke on behalf of the private sector said.
He recalled that Mr. Webster had been integrally involved with the Business Support Organisations, first as a representative of his company (Seals and Packaging Industries Ltd (SAPIL), later to become Caribbean Containers Inc.
Commenting on his amazing and unique ability to stabilise troublesome situations, Dookhoo alluded to the equanimity he employed as President of the GMA and the smooth calming influence he exerted as a leading member of the group that brokered the end to the 3-months turbulent trade union strike in 1999. During that time, he was Chairman and leader of the mediation committee which brought an and, within two weeks, to the three-month strike of Government Service employees, which virtually crippled the country.
His intense belief in the value of the private sector led him to engineer with former President Janet Jagan, for the Office of the President to sponsor the main GMSA annual award for Export promotion Achievement. Thus the ‘President’s Cup for Manufacturing Excellence’ was introduced and presented by Her Excellency President Janet Jagan in 1999.
Dookhoo proudly recalled, “He walked with leaders across the world. He exemplified what a private Sector leader should aspire to be. He took the job to enhance the position and the lot of the Private Sector and to win a popularity contest.”
Mr. Webster was also credited for stepping boldly into the socio-political milieu in recent years, and attempting to broker a rapprochement between the Government and Opposition over the passage of the Anti-Money Laundering Legislation, but did not live to finish this effort.
A Guyanese by birth and a product of Queen’s College, he was a Chemical Engineer by training. He began his working life in the Bauxite Industry, later joined the Booker Group of Companies, and became the youngest Director within the Booker Group of Companies worldwide. His formal management training included attachments at the prestigious Henley Staff College, England in General management and Public-private Sector partnerships.
Following nationalisation of the Booker Group Interest in Guyana, Ronald Webster was appointed Technical Director of the Guyana Liquor Corporation (GLC) and subsequently appointed Managing director, Seals & Packaging Industries Ltd, (now CCI) with the responsibility to privatize the then State-owned, which was successfully completed in 1992. In 2006, the successor to Sapil, Caribbean Container Inc. (CCI), faced closure due to its heavy debt burden. In December 2006, TIMI (a private company formed by Ron Webster) negotiated a settlement with the financial institutions and acquired the majority interest in CCI, Ronald Webster and his team have since restructured the company for growth, delivering profits to Shareholders in 2012 and 2013. Ron Webster was the Chairman and CEO of CCI. In concluding, Mr. Ramesh Dookoo said of Ron Webster, “His work at the CCI is regarded as legendary, and the young ones he left behind are challenged to carry on his legacy.”
At the time of his death, Mr. Webster was the Chairman of the Environmental Protection Agency Board, as well as the Private Sector Commission.
Ron Webster was the son of the late Albert and Winifred Webster of the UK. He leaves to mourn, his widow, Mrs. Bibi Webster; children, Gail Rayman and Paul Webster; grandchildren, Giselle, Julian, Liam and Aidan; son-in-law, Martin Rayman and daughter- in- law,Aysha Webster.
By Shirley Thomas