GUYANA | High Court orders Special Meeting of Guyana Public Service Cooperative Credit Union

GEORGETOWN,  Guyana, October 1, 2022 - Former Chairman of the Guyana Public Service Co-operative Credit Union Limited (GPSCCU) Trevor Benn having been unceremoniously removed from the Chairmanship of the Credit Union, may shortly be given another chance to lead the organization, following a court decision that a special members meeting of the Credit Union be held  by October 24, 2022. 

High Court Judge, Justice Navindra Singh, granted the orders that were sought by Mehalai Mc Almont, Keith Marks and Natasha Duran, all members of the Credit Union who have been pushing for the special meeting to once again elect Benn to head the credit union.

Following the no-confidence vote against Mr. Benn, Mc Almont, Marks and Clements approached the High Court for several declarations including an order to invalidate several meetings which were called following Benn’s removal.

The applicants who were represented by Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde, had submitted to the Court that after a no-confidence motion was passed against Benn at a Special Committee Meeting on April 21, he was removed as the GPSCCU’s Chairman, but not as a member of its Committee of Management.

Justice Navendra Singh in handing down the order, also included in his decision, that the credit union call the special general meeting, and  publish a notice for the holding of the meeting within ten days to elect new office bearers for the Committee of Management of the Credit Union.

The judge found that Regulation 16 of The Cooperative Society Act, permitted the applicants as members of the cooperative society to demand a special general meeting. He stated that the applicants had satisfied the requirement of Regulation 16 by presenting the demand by a number In excess of the requirement of 25 members.

The Court rejected the Respondents' argument that the issue of a special general meeting constituted a dispute and it was therefore caught by section 49 of the Cooperative Societies Act.

The Court also ruled that the Committee of Management must issue a new notice within 10 days of the date of the Order- 30th September, 2022- scheduling a Special General Meeting to be held no later than the 24th October, 2022.

The Court ordered GY$1 million dollars to be paid by Rajdai Jagnauth, Leslyn Noble, Ruth Howard and Karen Van Slutyman by the 22nd October, 2022.

Benn, an Afro-Guyanese,  was removed as Chair in April 2022 at a Management Committee meeting following a no-confidence vote without his knowledge or opportunity given to him for a hearing to defend himself.  He became aware of his removal after the fact.

Benn’s removal had given rise to growing concerns among members of the credit unions, trade unionists and others in society, that the PPP/C government was moving in to take control of the workers’ credit unions which is dominated by the small man, primarily African Guyanese. 

Persons saw this as the government wanting to take away members’ independence to manage their savings and other assets without political interference.

The matter was taken to the Supreme court and on July 19 acting Chief Justice Roxane George-Wiltshire granted the order of certiorari, quashing the decision of the CCDO to direct the Credit Union to dismiss Mr. Trevor Benn as its Chairman.  

The Chief Justice also granted an order of prohibition, prohibiting the CCDO from proceeding to require the Credit Union to dismiss Mr. Benn as its Chairman.

The court reasoned that the CCDO came to her decision in breach of the rule of natural justice and without conducting a full and proper investigation of the circumstances. 

The court also noted that reference to criminal charges Benn is currently facing tends to suggest that the CCDO concluded that the Chairman was a criminal and found the CCDO did not adhere to the principle of presumption of innocence.

When Bharrat Jagdeo was Leader of the Opposition and leader of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), he repeatedly threatened that when his party got back into government, a number of persons would be jailed.

Among the persons Jagdeo repeatedly named, was the then Commissioner of Lands and Survey in the APNU+AFC government, Trevor Benn. The PPP/C regime had followed through on their threat by announcing that they would be reviewing all transactions regarding the sale of State lands under the APNU+AFC administration from December 21, 2018.

The APNU+AFC administration had fallen to a no-confidence motion on December 21, 2018 and therefore, according to the PPP/C, should not have been involved in any such governance transactions. In fact, the PPP/C government is maintaining that the Coalition APNU+AFC administration should have been in caretaker mode, preparing for snap elections.

Having won the controversial 2020 elections, one of the first persons the new government hauled into court on misconduct charges was….you got it, Trevor Benn! 

Benn was removed from the post with effect from February 4, 2021 by the Ali/Jagdeo regime as promised. However, the court is yet to rule on the allegations levelled against him by the Ali/Jagdeo regime.

-30-