Yesu Persaud: An icon of sterling performance

Jun 22, 2008 News

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Businessman makes cover of India’s magazine

His life story has the plot of a bestseller novel on the New York Times list.
At one time, his parents were unable, like many other poor families at that time, to afford to fund his studies.
Today, he is among the top five business personalities in Guyana and in the region.
He holds the Chairmanship of Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL), whose El Dorado rums have won many awards and are among the best in the world.

Last year, to pay homage to a man who has contributed his knowledge, time and money to the development of Guyana and the Caribbean, the ‘People of Indian Origin’ magazine featured Guyana’s business magnate Yesu Persaud on its cover under the caption : ‘An Icon of Sterling Performance’.
The magazine is published in India and is dedicated to honouring the contributions of individuals whose ancestry could be traced to India.
While many deferentially would address him as Mr Persaud, he is more affectionately known as “Yesu,” a household name associated with DDL.
“…Members of the diasporic community known for their landmark successes have mostly worked under the prevailing conditions in different countries. They struggled and rose to greater heights in different fields of life without disturbing the status quo of the countries of their settlement,” the magazine wrote in justifying their feature on the businessman in their last year September edition.
The magazine said that there have been few persons of Indian origin whose concerns for the plight of the native people forced them to stand against the prevailing tyrannical conditions and made a bold personal intervention to remedy the situation.
One of these rare souls is Yesu Persaud.
In Guyana’s history of politico-economic transformation, the name of Yesu Persaud will always be taken with due reverence.
Yesu who???
Born October 18, 1928 at the Diamond Sugar Plantation, Yesu, at the age of 16, set out to find a job as his parents were unable to find the money to finance his studies.
In 1955, with a little money from his wife, Premkowarie Singh, he left for England, where he became an associate member of the ACCA and where he also elevated himself as a senior auditor in a large professional accounting firm.
He also spent some time in Canada, where he did well in investments as a consultant.
However, yearnings to return to his homeland caused him to return to Guyana in 1966, when he joined the public service as an Inspector of Taxes.
A few months later, he joined the staff of Sandbach Parker and Company, the oldest British company in Guyana, where he was appointed Group Finance Director only after four years, a position which had so far been opened only to qualified expatriates.
When the Guyanese Government decided to nationalise the Demerara Sandbach Group in 1975, Yesu was one of the three negotiators.
At that time, he refused a tempting offer in the UK of two years’ tax free salary.
The Guyana Government offered Yesu the position of Executive Chairman of the Diamond Liquors Limited (DLL) as well as Managing Director of the Demerara Sugar Company, together with other companies in the former Sandbach Group.

Development
Yesu led DLL and developed it into the household of DDL, churning out the El Dorado rums and diversifying it into production of some of the world’s choicest soft drinks, like Pepsi, 7UP, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, fruit juices and water.
Other companies he spearheaded were the Demerara Shipping Company; CO2 Gas Company; Tropical Orchards; Demerara Contractors and Engineers Ltd; BEV Processors Inc, a shrimp procession plant; and Distribution Services Ltd, which represents Nestle, and Johnson and Johnson.
The company also has its subsidiaries in Holland, UK, USA, and St Kitts, and operates a joint venture in India, as well as distribution arrangement in Asia.
Yesu was also the brain behind the formation of the first indigenous private sector bank, Demerara Bank Limited, which started in 1994.
Yesu also holds numerous positions in other organizations. He is the Chairman of Trust Company (Guyana) Limited, and Guyana Unit Trust — a mutual fund — and was the man behind Diamond Fire and General Insurance Company.
Contributions
In 1988, Yesu gained further recognition as he lobbied to the then President, Desmond Hoyte, for approval to celebrate 150 years of East Indian Arrival in Guyana. . It was not an easy task, but he won over Hoyte.
He is also one of the founding members of the Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO), which was established in New York in 1989. In addition to being Vice President of GOPIO International, he is also Vice President of GOPIO’s Caribbean Chapter.
He has been serving as the Honorary Consul for the Republic of Chile for many years.
Against his list of achievements and the numerous positions he holds among the many companies and organizations, there can be no doubt that Yesu is a representative of the Caribbean people, the magazine said in its extensive article on the life and works of the businessman.
In 1981, he was awarded the Golden Arrow of Achievement, a national honour, for the expansion of the distilling industry in Guyana. In 1983 he received the Cacique Crown of Honour for developing many new industries.
He also bagged the Gandhi Organisation Plaque and other awards for his contribution to the Hindu Dharma, and the list goes on.
Of special mention, though, was the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas award presented by India’s President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to Yesu on January 9, 2006.

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