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Goliath GoB attacks “David” Canul…

GeneralGoliath GoB attacks “David” Canul…
Make no mistake about it: Vicente Canul is a national hero. 27 years ago he and a group of sixteen started out with only $2,000 worth of assets they had borrowed from the Catholic Church in Corozal. Today they have grown to 20,000 strong with assets worth over $41 million. Today the St. Francis Xavier Credit Union is a success story among so many “circus weh brok up da” Belize. Vicente Canul stands tall, having walked the straight and narrow with the people’s money, and seen triumph. So, why does the GoB want to clip his wings?
 
Amandala met up with Mr. Canul at a protest rally (credit union members) in Corozal Town on Tuesday, November 20. Mr. Canul told us that the general membership of the St. Francis Xavier Credit Union (SFXCU) felt there were “wrong decisions and misdeeds” by the board of directors, that these errors were “tantamount to abuse”, thus they decided on a vote of no confidence for the board.
 
Mr. Canul says his committee has “documentation” to back up the charges, citing in one instance that the board had gone far over its budget for stipends and allowances. He told us that that specific matter, and other issues of that kind, were with their attorney, so he didn’t want to elaborate in that vein further.
 
Mr. Canul told us that he and the 6 or 7 hundred other members present were “protesting the (surprise) action of the government” for passing a hurried law that “violated our rights” …gave “more power to the Registrar…to call special meetings in some cases”…”other unlimited powers”… and “gives the Registrar power to appoint an administrator.” Mr. Canul expressed serious dissatisfaction that GoB had not allowed them any opportunity to voice their views and concerns with the new piece of legislation.
 
“We are not in bankruptcy,” he told Amandala, “so we don’t see the need for an administrator at this time.”
 
We noted that the riot squad was about, but Mr. Canul said he was not fazed by their presence. In fact, he thought they looked “impressive”, and told us that he had told Police Officer Mr. Crispin Jeffries so in a cordial conversation. Mr. Canul did not expect the demonstration to turn violent. It is a “peaceful protest,” he told us, and he believes it should be so, peaceful and democratic as members decide what is best for their credit union. But, he cautioned: “members have stated categorically that they will not allow any administrator to come in and run their affairs.”
 
Mr. Vicente Canul, the man in the middle of the impasse, says he is grateful to “all Belizeans who express support for their position” and, finally, “we believe that the powers should listen to our plea and give us the recognition as guaranteed under the constitution.”
 
What happened at St. Francis Xavier Credit Union? Amandala spoke with the Head Office Manager at SFXCU, Mr. Rafael Dominguez, to get that side of the story. According to Mr. Dominguez, the Supervisory Committee had for some time been trying to get the “attention” of the board of directors about certain irregularities, but they were being ignored.
 
The Supervisory Committee prepared an agenda for a Special Meeting, and invited the Registrar of Cooperatives and the members of the credit union. The meeting was held on September 16, 2007, at the Andres Campos Civic Center in Corozal Town. The Registrar did not make the meeting, but he sent a representative, Mr. Braulio Contreras, in his stead.
 
After Mr. Contreras certified a quorum (10% of the voting membership – 1,213 persons attended) the meeting got under way. The Supervisory Committee informed the meeting of their concerns about the board. After deliberation the meeting declared a vote of no confidence in the board, and then proceeded to elect a pro-tem board to carry on the business of the credit union until the next election of officers.
 
With the participation of a representative of the Registrar, the credit union thought the “governor was on board.”
 
What’s the Central Bank’s beef with Mr. Canul? It is felt that Mr. Canul is dictatorial, and acts “proprietary.” It is said that Mr. Canul has engineered the removal of 3 boards previously, and that this last one would have been the fourth. The argument continues that it is “difficult to impossible” to provide the necessary oversight mandated, when the situation is so unstable at the credit union.
 
In a press release dated November 5, the Registrar of Credit Unions, Mr. Sydney Campbell, wrote of the Supervisory Committee at St. Francis Xavier Credit Union (SFXCU) charging that they have “once again purported to suspend the President and certain members of the duly-elected Board…” The Registrar stated that the Supervisory Committee’s actions were “wholly unlawful”, accused them of ignoring his directives, and described their behavior as bordering on “anarchy.” He further appealed to the members of the credit union to exercise “restraint” and reminded them that the term of office of the present board “will expire in a few months’ time,” so they should continue with the old board until the next Annual General Meeting.
 
Mr. Canul responded on November 13, expressing in certain terms what he was going to do to protect the credit union over which he had “presided as nurturer and caretaker.” He wrote: “We…shall shortly be seeking Constitutional Redress…We have no doubt that our petition will succeed.” He continued: “…any further interference in the operations of our credit union will be met with law suits against yourself (Registrar) and any outgoing board members who continue to interfere in the daily operation of our Credit Union.” 
 
In the House of Representatives last Friday, the Prime Minister alluded to the fall of the Mount Carmel Credit Union (MCCU), using that as impetus to strengthen the legislation. A reliable source enlightened us about the case with the MCCU. The MCCU suffered the embezzlement of hundreds of thousands of dollars several years ago (2000), and is still on its knees. Investigations later revealed that the Mount Carmel fund had been breached, not by an elaborate scam by top personnel, but because of over-confidence. A trusted employee did the credit union wrong. 
 
In 2005 the government passed a law mandating that the Governor of the Central Bank act as Registrar of Cooperatives. At that same time all financial institutions, except for the insurance companies, were brought under one umbrella – the Central Bank.
 
Banks are breached from time to time. These matters are usually settled “in house,” because it is terrible news for a bank if people feel they are not secure with their money. Still, scandal after scandal has spilled forth of late as crooks get more and more greedy, and banks have gone under across the globe because of the strain.
 
No accusations of wrongdoing have been brought to Mr. Canul’s door. Mr. Vicente Canul, according to all reports, has proved himself to be a man of impeccable character in respect to the people’s money. The SFXCU, it appears, has almost complete faith in him. To our knowledge the sticking point is “procedural,” and maybe “personal.”
 
It is interesting to us, the point of the Registrar of Cooperatives, Mr. Sydney Campbell, when he suggests to SFXCU to wait out the board because it “will expire in a few month’s time.” If the constitution contains such a safety mechanism, allows for the removal of the board, why wait if they are not satisfying the members/owners of the credit union?
 
Is the SFXCU entirely correct when it describes itself as a private business? A commercial bank is properly described as a private entity. Because of the public’s interest the profits of credit unions are not taxed, and neither is the interest on savings taxed. These are tremendous benefits to the credit union not received by true “private” banks.
 
What is happening at the SFXCU can indeed become tragic if the situation is not stabilized quickly. Banks thrive in an atmosphere of stability. Maybe the government should have the right to appoint an administrator when things go wrong. But what to do with a man who is providing great stewardship of “poor people money?”
 
(P.S. We called Mr. Vicente Canul late this evening to find out in particular if the “ousted” board was present at the Special General Meeting called on September 16, 2007. Mr. Canul told us that the board was at that meeting, but not at the head table. He told us that they were “quite vociferous.”)

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