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The Opposition, A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC), in a recent statement says they welcome the High Court’s decision “that foiled the People’s Progressive Party’s (PPP’s) attempts to hijack the Guyana Public Service Cooperative Credit Union Limited (GPSCCU) from its members and democratically elected leaders.”
Justice Navindra Singh, on September 30, ruled the GPSCCU must hold a Special General Meeting (SGM) by October 24, 2022. The Court rejected the respondents’ argument that holding such as Meeting constituted a dispute and caught by Section 49 of the Cooperative Societies Act and ruled the respondents cannot be allowed to subvert the Legislation.
In an invited comment on the ruling, Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde, who represented the applicants said the Rule of Law in Guyana has prevailed and it must continue to prevail. At the same time he took the opportunity to urge Guyanese and members of the credit union to be vigilant and remember every gain achieved requires greater vigilance to retain.
Members of the GPSCCU, via a Petition five months ago, demanded a SGM in keeping with Regulation 16 of the Cooperative Societies Act Chapter 88:01. Then acting Chairman, Patrick Mentore, had set June 25, 2022 for the Meeting but the Committee of Management refused to pay for the Notice to be advertised. Justice Singh ordered the Committee to have Notice of the Meeting published in the national dailies no later than 10 days from the court’s ruling.
According to the Opposition, who sees the hands of the Government interfering in the Credit Union, “justice has therefore prevailed [and] efforts at political domination by the PPP have been resisted.”
“The GPSCCU is one of the country’s largest and most prosperous coop societies, with several hundreds of millions of dollars in assets. It has long been a reliable and accessible source of credit for public servants. It is also apposite to note that it is a public-service based organisation on which Afro-Guyanese workers are the persons who mostly depend on and benefit from the services of this credit union,” stated the APNU+AFC
Reservation is however held by the opposition that it is “likely that the PPP will appeal and employ every other ploy to pursue its agenda of discrimination and domination.” Daring Prime Minister Mark Phillips to prove his statement that “as an Afro-Guyanese…, I am proud to be part of the PPP/C administration where all Guyanese, inclusive of Afro-Guyanese, have equal access to opportunities and where national policies and programmes are never influenced by race,” the APNU+AFC says the opportunity now presents itself.
“Let the prime minister get the PPP to respect the Laws of Guyana and the legitimate and democratic will of the members of the credit union. Let him show that he has the courage to do what’s right and that his voice is respected with the PPP.”
