Despite criticisms that the newly appointed Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) Board of Directors lack the skills to manage the sugar industry efficiently given the crisis facing the industry, Minister within the Finance Ministry, Jaipaul Sharma has defended the competence of the individuals who have been handpicked by the Government as he believes they bring a wide cross-section of skills and new ideas.
The new GuySuCo Board members are Colvin Heath-London (Chairman); Fritz McLean, Komal Singh, Verna Adrian, Vishnu Panday, Annette Arjoon-Martins, Arianne McLean, Roshan Khan, and George Jervis.
Sharma said the Board of Directors at GuySuCo is a policy direction body that could help to change the industry’s performance and bring some order to the manner in which the Corporation operates. “Once you have the skillset to manage, I don’t see any problem with that,” the Minister asserted.
According to Sharma, the previous GuySuCo Chairman, Professor Clive Thomas, had no experience in sugar either but that was not a problem. Importantly, however, is the fact that a representative from the General Agriculture and General Workers Union (GAWU) sits on the Board. That person would have extensive experience in the sugar industry and an intimate understanding of the role of GuySuCo.
“If you told me that the management doesn’t have experience in sugar then that would have been a different story but a board is a set people with different skills set that could add to and contribute to the industry and the company’s improved performance,” Sharma contended.
Asked to offer his view on criticisms that the number of Board members remains the same even though they will be left with the responsibility of three sugar estates when the remaining four are closed, the Minister told Guyana Times International on Wednesday that the number is suitable for any of the scenarios.
“You want a wide skillset when you are making decisions so the Board will have sub-committees and if you have a board of three or four people, who will head these sub-committees? Then you have meetings where people don’t attend and we are assured with those numbers that you will have a quorum,” he added.
Sharma also noted that the new Board is made up of young people, something that people were demanding. He said with the inclusion of these people, it will add a new dynamic to the Board and it will allow these young professionals to serve in a leadership capacity who can bring new ideas.
Further, Sharma noted that the criticisms about GuySuCo being placed directly under the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) which has direct responsibility for the Corporation is not a matter of micromanaging but the intention is to bring some coherence to how the industry is ran.
He said, “The issue was always in relation to cooperation. The (Special Purpose Unit) SPU never had the cooperation of the last Board and they did what they wanted to do and they had several objections. There was also confusion between the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Agriculture.”
“So we will now have greater cooperation. The persons from SPU are sitting on the Board itself so there is no confusion of the right hand doing this and the left hand doing this. I am really happy with the new Board structure and I will wait and see how successful they will get,” Sharma said.
