Dear Editor,

IN January 2009, I, the undersigned, and thirteen (13) others approached the then official of the abovenamed Co-op for five-acre plots of land to do a range of farming activities — chickens, pigs, fish, and cultivating crops that would grow. We chose to go as a group because our individual produce would collectively benefit us.

The official informed us that before we could be issued the five-acre plots, we must all apply for house lots, the cost of one being one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000). The house lot would be half of an acre, and on becoming members via this acquisition, we would then be eligible to acquire the farmlands.

The group agreed, made application, and in excess of one million, five hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000) was paid. The official issued each of us a temporary receipt, and told us that as soon as the committee of management meets, we would be given our lots along with our official letters of membership. We were also asked to submit our business proposals, which we did, so the committee could speed up its process.

The official told us to beware of two specific committee members because they were known to ‘dip their hands in the cookie jar’.

After six (6) months and we didn’t get a response from the official, we did some investigation and found out that, for as long as she was on the committee, this kind of transaction has been happening. I approached her, told her what we heard, and told her she would have to repay everyone. I asked most of her unsuspecting victims why they hadn’t highlighted what she was doing to warn others. Some of the women said it was because she was a woman, while others said they were afraid of being victimised.

I must say that this is a part of Guyanese culture that worries me. When things are to be done right, it’s either a cuss-out or silence.

Between June and July of 2010, the official repaid everyone, except me, their money. She refused to return my two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000). Her words to me were that she would teach me a lesson for highlighting what she did, and I could tell or do what I liked about it.

In November 2010, Committee Member One was approached on the matter. I told him of my plan to highlight in the dailies what was happening. He advised me to take another line of action: write to the management committee a complaint against the official on the matter, and also re-apply for membership. He said that the negative publicity would harm the Society.

To my detriment, I heeded his advice; and with his assistance I made a formal complaint against the official to the committee. In hindsight, Committee Member One was helpful, since his intention was to get rid of the official, since I now know they were all guilty of the same behaviour.

In December 2010, I was told by Committee Member One that the committee couldn’t take any action to assist me with a refund of my money, since the receipt issued by the official was not from the Society’s receipt book. He also indicated that I needed to redo my application, since the one submitted had some typographic errors.

I re-applied on Feb 26, 2011. I have copies of that application. In December 2011, Committee Member One contacted me and informed me that someone was willing to transfer their five acres because they no longer wanted it. I was shown a blue two- bedroom house with a verandah that the owner (named) had on a quarter of the five-acre plot of farmland. They were asking 3.8 million, since this named person wanted to recover the money spent to build the house. He is now dead. I was told that Committee Member One had all the receipts for the construction of the house, since he was either the contractor or sub-contractor, and he was willing to make them available to me.

The following day, I received a call from someone (named), who claimed he was the original owner of the plot, and it was sub-divided by Committee Member One, with the other named person getting 1/4, Committee Member Two 1/4 and he getting 1/2. Note that Committee Member Two also owns a five- acre plot. This individual indicated that if I was interested, he and Committee Member Two were also willing to throw in their portion for the giveaway price of 12M. This individual further instructed me that if I was willing to pay then, payment of $10M must be made to him, and $2M to another named individual.

This plot of land, according to Committee Member Two and this individual, was bought for their religious group. They had intended to build huts on the five-acre plot and use it for one week, then leave the huts to rot for one year, and do the same every year. They have been doing this for over nine (9) years.

This was strange to me, because to acquire five acres at that time would cost less than $50,000. One of my relatives who resides abroad was interested in a piece of land at the time, but on hearing what the price they were asking for the land, the relative decided against it, since he felt it was extortion.

Committee Member Two, one named individual and I were no longer friends, as a result of my not buying the land.

I stayed in the building for two reasons: (1) The hope that the committee of management would review its decision and issue me a five-acre plot for my business; and (2) To prevent Committee Member Two and this named individual, who wanted to dismantle the building so there would be no trace of their deal.

Finally, in December 2012, Committee Member One showed me to a five-acre plot of land next to the village well. He told me that nobody wanted it, and it has been vacant for forty (40) years — a very long time — and I could occupy it and start my business. He also advised that I speak with an official of the Interim Management Committee for the paperwork. I said “Thank you Lord, in Jesus’ Name”, now that the committee of management was finally doing the right thing.

I immediately got workers to clear the front of the land. In the meantime, I received the number of the official of the Interim Management Committee from Committee Member One, and made contact with her, requesting the paperwork which would allow me to approach Lands and Surveys to finally start processing my lease. She invited me over on Old Year’s Day 2012 to a ‘villa’ she has set up in Kuru Kuru. She ordered some food from me, and told me that as long as I ‘come up to scratch’ with her orders for food, she had a proposal for me. I ‘came up to scratch’ and she came with her driver to get me and take me to her place.

She was entertaining friends from overseas. We chit-chatted, they ate and drank, and then I was told that the processing fee would be $118,000, and I should go to her place in Alberttown the following week to pay.

She then said to Committee Member One that she hoped he had not given me any of the plots she wanted for her people. I did go to her place, and to my surprise, she showed me some electrical stuff, torch light, tablets and herbal medicine which she wanted me to take to the ‘interior’ to sell for her, and in return she would do the paperwork for me. I simply told her she is in public office and that’s not one of the requirements. She became angry and very loud, and asked me to give her back the form that she had given me, and that she wouldn’t do anything for me.

Interestingly, the new chairman for the Society has since graded the same land, dumped some burnt cane waste on it, and planted coconut trees, cassava and a few other things.

I asked how come I applied in 2009, 2010, 2011, and I did not get the land; and I was told by a former member of the committee that Committee Member One did not give it to me because I didn’t pass anything (money). This leaves me to believe that the new chairman passed something. I still do not have any land to do my business.

I asked Committee Member One, sometime in the past, what had happened to all my applications. I was told that the Co-op village house had been vandalized and all documents had been stolen, and soon after the computer had crashed.

When our group approached the New Highway Producers Cooperative Society in 2009 through the treasurer, Committee Member One, Committee Member Two and official of the Interim Management Committee, it was because we always knew that a co-operative society promotes business and entrepreneurship, and felt the area was best, since there would be space for growth. No home, village, community, town or country in this world can exist on earth without some form of currency.

Even as I write this letter, Committee Member Two, a named individual and Committee Member One have found the money to repurchase the property from the named (deceased) individual’s brother. Committee Member Two and Committee Member One, along with the others on the Committee, can sign the papers in one day, but for seven years they could not find my application to sign off on it. I am being asked to first move off the property they wanted to dismantle so badly before the deal could be sealed, and I was given until December 10, 2016.

The present official said, “Big fishes on the Committee of Management eating up all the small fishes”, and even though he is aware of this, nothing was done to stop it. The official has two house lots, Committee Member Two has five acres, Committee Member One has five acres, the official of the Interim Management Committee has five acres plus, and now the new chairman has scrambled five acres, even though he has other land in the co-op.

Information gathered from past members of the co-op’s committee indicates that Committee Member Two is the chief mastermind, with solicited help from Committee Member One; and they put a named individual as the front man, and a just-formed religious group to hold on to the five acres that the house is on, so when the time is right they would sell it. They cannot deny that they have tried selling it off twice, once to the brother of the deceased individual, and then to me.

In all fairness, since they have not found a suitable lot for me, they should let me pay the official price for it and be given a chance to set up my business, which they have delayed for so long. The decisions of these persons have cost me so much. The younger generation eagerly needs positive leadership. I see this every day.

I write this letter on behalf of the hundreds of persons who have been cheated by these persons in this co-op. I had hoped for a resolution at the committee of management level, but to no avail.

Finally, I am asking the Minister of Cooperatives in Guyana to call a general meeting of the abovenamed Society, to help set things right

Respectfully,
ANDREW CHANCE