C.G.A. still unable to remove rogue C.P.B.L. board members

Another irritant in the citrus industry is the appointment of Henry Canton, Frank Redmond and Mike Duncker to the CPBL board. According to the CGA, Banks Holdings has prevented their removal since the decision would require the support of at least two of its members. That stipulation in the company’s articles of association, according to Jenkins, also affects the payment of dividends.

Denzil Jenkins, Director for Committee of Managers
“There is at least one article that can be interpreted to say that there has to be a ninety percent approval to remove those directors. Now to get ninety percent, you have got to have the involvement of Banks and this is where we are seeing that Banks, who is supposed to be a partner, is colluding with parties to prevent us. Any decision of C.P.B.L., of the board, must have the support of at least two of the directors of Banks, the investor. Now you could put your directors and be free to put them on the board as much as you like. That is a very, very important step we needed to achieve. But having done so, we are still left strapped and lassoed by a clause that frustrates the majority shareholder in effect and that has been transferred to the articles of association of the company so it’s entrenched there. No decision of the board of C.P.B.L. can be made without the approval of at least two of the directors of Banks. One of the importance of that is this; the company cannot declare any dividends, the shareholders cannot declare any dividends without the recommendation of the Board of Directors and if the board of directors wishes not to declare any dividends, there will be no dividends. Like we have been told that there will be no dividends from C.P.B.L. for at least the next three years. This year the company lost eleven million dollars.”

We’ll have more on the dispute in the citrus industry on Wednesday when members of Citrus Products of Belize Limited will take their seats on Open Your Eyes.