Public Service Credit Union poised to elect new leadership committee, despite concerns about quorum

Last Updated on Saturday, 2 March 2024, 12:38 by Denis Chabrol

Despite strenuous objections Saturday morning over the legality of a Special General Members meeting of the Guyana Public Service Cooperative Credit Union (GPSCCU),  the meeting proceeded to lay the groundwork for the election of a new committee of management.

Ms Karen Van Sluytman-Corbin, who the Hifh Court has blocked from holding office on the Committee of Management, said no figure was given about the quorum.

Chairman of the meeting, Patrick Mentore did not say to the meeting how many members were present present in the meeting. He later told Demerara Waves Online News that that number had never been “released to us despite eight or nine requests” and “those who have a difficulty with a quorum not being announced in terms of numbers, I’m sure that they have an idea of the recourse that are available to them.” Told that a previous Special Members Meeting had floated a figure of about 25,000 members and tge quorum should be at least quarter, Mr Mentore said that figure had included “dead, delinquent and dormant members.”

Ms Van Sluytman-Corbin also vented her concerns with Returning Officer  Professor Leyland Lucas who told her that he was advised that there was a quorum.

She told the Returning Officer that Bose IT Services Limited had informed that there was a maximum of 300 persons present at the Critchlow Labour College auditorium for in-person participation in the meeting and Bose IT Services had advised that the Online platform could only accommodate up to 3,000 online persons. She also argued that after one hour of calling the meeting to order and there was no quorum, the proceedings is in violation of the law.  “Anything that happens after now is illegal,” she said.

She planned to challenge the process in court.

After Ms Corbin-Van Sluytman was returning to the rear of the auditorium, she was booed and chased by other members. A section of the membership also chanted “We want Benn, We want Benn” referring to Mr Trevor Benn who is among three persons the High Court ruled must be part of the process and given resources to hold the Special General Members meeting.

After Ms Corbin-Van Sluytman left, members voted solidly for the removal of the Committee of Management that was in office up to Saturday.

An official of Bose IT Services announced that of the 765 persons,  670 member voted “yes” to remove the Committee of Management, 26 “no”, 17 abstentions and 52 did not participate.

The membership also voted by a landslide for the barring of nine persons from occupying any post on the Committee of Management.

They are Karen Van Sluytman-Corbin, Gillian Pollard, Ruth Howard, O. Saskia Eastman, Charles Ogle, Jermain Hermanstyne,Leslyn Noble, Michelle David and Arthur Gibbs.

Voting for their removal were 699 “yes”, 32 “no” 33 abstained,60 did not participate. There were 824 voters.

A motion was also passed by 94 percent of members for a new Committee of Management be elected.

Those elections were due to get underway just before 1 PM Saturday.