From Guyana Chronicle

THE Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) Dr. Rajendra (Raj) Singh was yesterday dismissed with immediate effect, while all Members of the Board have been asked to tender their resignations, also with immediate effect.The Guyana Government made the official announcement yesterday and assured the more than 16,000 workers employed in the sugar industry, “that they will be paid and there will be no closing of the Sugar Corporation.”

The moves yesterday comes following another request for a bailout for the ailing sugar industry, this time to the tune of $16B, compounded by increasing losses suffered by GuySuCo over the years, with Dr. Singh at the helm.

The $16B bailout requested by the cash strapped Sugar Corporation also follows a $6B bailout which GuySuCo received last year.

News of the dismissal of Dr. Singh, from the helm of the sugar industry came by way of an official Government missive which said he was dismissed on “the directive of Cabinet.”

Agriculture Minister, Noel Holder issued the letter of dismissal to Dr. Singh which, “takes immediate effect,” according to the Government’s statement.

BOARD SACKED/ IMC INSTALLED

It was also announced yesterday too that the members of GuySuCo’s Board of Directors have all been instructed to send in ‘Letters of Resignation’ with immediate effect.

According to the newly installed Government, “Over the years GuySuCo has been sinking further into debt due to ineffective operations both at the financial and production levels.”

It said, “…to ensure that the Corporation continues to survive, the Government will be putting in place an Interim Management Committee (IMC) that will take effect from today and which will oversee the Corporation for at least six months.

Agriculture Minister, Holder, when contacted last evening for the names of the members of the IMC, assured that a team will be in place today, but the names were still being finalised up to late last evening.

The Minister also declined to name any of the persons shortlisted at the time.

COI

According to the Guyana Government, before the end of this month, it will establish a Commission of Inquiry (COI) to look in to the operations of GuySuCo and chart a way forward.

Efforts to contact Dr. Singh for a comment last evening, again, proved futile.

The GuySuCo CEO was sacked one week after meeting with the recently installed Agriculture Minister Holder, who at the time had requested of Dr. Singh to turn over a number of pertinent documentation on the industry.

That meeting had followed a warning by Dr. Singh that the corporation would be unable to pay its wages following the end of this month and that Estates across the country will have to be closed, a position dismissed as political gimmickry on the part of the now sacked CEO.

The Guyana Agricultural Workers Union (GAWU) Credit Union had also at the time halted deductions from the salaries of the employees under its ambit, since GuySuCo was unable to account for just about $154M of the workers savings.

Calls to sack GuySuCo CEO from the helm of the sugar industry went unanswered for a number of years even as the previous administration continued to transfer billions of dollars in subsidies, annually in recent years.

The coalesced A Partnership for National Unity, Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) Government, while in Opposition had called for a number of years for the GuySuCo Board to be sacked and a comprehensive and realistic turnaround plan implemented.

Those sent packing in addition to Dr. Singh include Board Members, Geeta Singh-Knight, the former CEO of the failed Insurance Company, Colonial Life Insurance Company (CLICO) Guyana; Chairman and Former Education Minister, Shaik Baksh – whose appointment was criticised from the inception; Badrie Persaud, who is also the Managing Director of the Guyana Oil Company (GUYOIL), Keith Burrowes and Dr. Dindyal Permaul.

ELECTIONS CAMPAIGN

Both Dr. Singh and Badrie Persaud, among others recently were roundly criticised, since as Heads of State Organisations, they had opted to be Formally Listed as party Candidates in the recently contested General and Regional Elections for the People’s Progressive Party/Civic and openly campaigned for the now Opposition party, instead of resigning in the first place, as is the practice and convention.

During a meeting at the now renamed Arthur Chung International Conference Centre with the Heads of State Entities and Permanent Secretaries, Head of State Brigadier (rtd) David Granger, had accepted the resignations of those who had at the time already tendered it and had indicated that others would be assessed on a case by case basis. (Gary Eleazar)

IMAGES:

Sacked GuySuCo CEO, Dr Rajendra Singh

Board Member, Keith Burrowes

Chairman, Shaik Baksh

Board Member, Geeta Singh-Knight

Board Member, Badrie Persaud

For more on this story go to: http://guyanachronicle.com/guysuco-ceo-sacked-board-members-forced-to-resign-with-immediate-effect-as-govt-assures-no-closing-of-sugar-corporation-workers-to-get-paid/