Credit Union faces criticism over financial management

Mar 12, 2018 News

Amidst protest over non- payment of dividends by its members, the Guyana Public Service Cooperative Credit Union, (GPSCCU) is facing criticism over its financial management.
Speaking with Kaieteur News on the matter, members of the Credit Union noted that money invested by the Union for the conferences far exceeds the amount required for the payment of dividends.
Members emphasised that the amount due to the Ministry of Labour ‘s Audit and Supervision Fund is approximately $24M for the years 2011, 2012 and 2013. They said recently uncovered information revealed that the Union’s Management has approved the spending of over $50 million for conferences held overseas.
Pointing to information emanating from an internal audit last year, Credit member Kirwyn Mars told Kaieteur News that “For the years 2015 and 2016 alone, the Union expended more than $63M for staff training and conferences.”
“All we are asking for is that the money to be paid over to the Audit and Supervision Fund to make way for the holding of the Annual General Meeting, (AGM).”

Secretary of the GPSCCU: Trevor Benn

The AGM, he explained, is of utmost importance, since it will eventually lead to an election for new Board of Directors and among other things, the payment of dividends. It will also allow members of the Credit Union to be privy to fiscal information, yearly profits and entitlements.
“The rules of the Credit Union as well as the Cooperative Act, states there should be a General Meeting annually. We have issues of conflict of interest, concerns about the management of funds at the level of administrative level. We need the AGM to weed out all the undesirable elements.”
But added to the absence of the AGM, another member Duane St. John have revealed that “the Credit Union is supposed undergo audits… it has not been audited for more than five years.”
Kaieteur News understands that the audits are conducted by inspectors selected by the Ministry of Labour. Last month, the GPSCCU faced protest action over the non-payment of dividends to some 6000 stakeholders.
Those on the picket line noted that at present, the GPSCCU is managed by a board of 12 Directors, to whom they have lodged their complaints.
“The Management is very aware of our frustration. We have (also) complained bitterly to the Minister of Labour (Keith Scott) about the issue, but the GPSCCU Board has laid the blame squarely at the feet of the Ministry.
The GPSCCU is headed by a Board of Managers including Patrick Yarde. Yarde is also President of the GPSU.
The Management Committee of the GPSCCU had outlined that under the last administration an agreement was signed that stipulates that the Credit Union will no longer pay monies for dividends to the Government‘s Audit and Supervision Fund, but the monies will instead be used to fund education and training programmes.
However, members are contending that the said agreement was not signed by then Minister of Labour, Nanda Gopaul, but his acting Chief Cooperative Development Officer.
The law stipulates that only the Minister can waive any payment to Government in such a manner.
The former Minister did not sign to the document which essentially makes it illegitimate, and should not result in a hold up of the AGM,” another picketer Duane St. John stated.
“We are therefore calling for the immediate intervention of the Minister towards the holding of the AGM,” he added.
The protestors estimated that dividends owed to members are roughly around $24 million – for the years 2011, 2012, 2013.
However, Secretary of the GPSCCU Trevor Benn told Kaieteur News that contrary that the allegation, the Union is awaiting the word from the Ministry’s Cooperative Society as it relates to the audit.
“It’s a sequence of events it has nothing to do with what they are talking about. We can’t move forward unless the audits are completed and verified. There are discussions ongoing between the Credit Union and the Department of Labour as it relates to the audited statements for 2011, 2012 and 2013.
Benn said that after the audits are finalised and verified, the long overdue AGM will be held.

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