Over a thousand march in Pomona Valley over citrus industry woes

In the south, the citrus belt has been fraught with controversy for months. The fight is between the Citrus Growers Association versus its subsidiary Citrus Products of Belize Limited. The CGA has majority interest and wants the heads of three of the five directors on its Board: Dr. Henry Canton, Michael Dunker and Frank Redmond.  The association wants to replace them with Denzil Jenkins, Rosella Zabaneh and Antonio Zabaneh.  But that is easier said than done because Canton has said he won’t go and that under his stewardship the industry has grown.  Well today, the CGA raised the ante in the valley to coincide with the visit of two directors from Banks Holdings of Barbados. Millions of dollars are involved and the future of the industry at stake. Marion Ali picks up this story from Pomona.

Marion Ali

“The Citrus Growers Association, their members and supporters, met this morning on the Stann Creek Valley Road.  But the message coming from the people, who numbered over a thousand, was far from sweet. “

Byron Bowman, Chairman, CGA

Byron Bowman

“We have the absolute right to replace our directors.  So we figured we would take this to another level. “

Marion Ali, Reporting

The growers and their leaders were protesting the refusal of three directors on the Citrus Products of Belize Limited’s Board to resign and what they term as attempts to stall even the legal process.

Marion Ali

“If it’s before the courts then why protest? What’s the message you want to send and what is the frustration about?”

Byron Bowman

“They have used the courts for the last seven months to frustrate us.  We are confident that the court will rule in our favour but they have made it abundantly clear that they will continue to use the courts, whether it be the Court of Appeal, the Privy Council; they will stop at nothing.  Growers are really fed up and we’re hoping that this message gets across to the country, government, the world that we have that right and we demand that right and we will get that right.”

The three directors were appointed by the previous C.P.B.L. Committee of Management in February of last year.  But just a few months later in June a new board was installed and they decided that the three officials were not representing the best interests of the growers.

Byron Bowman

“They’re put there on behalf of the growers and if the growers don’t want them there they should have done the polite thing and just walked away, resign, move on.”

Marion Ali

“Do you have a divide among the growers, some who support the CGA and some who support Mr. Canton and his perspective?”

Byron Bowman

“We have a lot of support.  I am not sure how much support Henry Canton has.  He says he has but I am not in that camp so I really don’t know, but I know we have a lot of support.  Yes there is a divide.”

One man who was on the other side of that divide two years ago is citrus grower, Anthony Chanona, who when given time to speak today publicly apologised to Denzil Jenkins, one of the replacement directors to the Board and Chairman of CPBL’s parent company, Growers Investment Company.

Anthony Chanona, Citrus Grower

“I believe that I owe Denzil Jenkins a public apology.  Perhaps back then when we brought the issue of this investment agreement to the fore perhaps he was right and I was wrong.  I believe that I was used to advise what I bought into, the vision and competence of the C.E.O. and those who said they would transform this industry into greater and better things for all of us.  Today I witness what I can only consider to be greed and selfish ambition. Those persons in that factory are not our enemies. Misunderstanding is our enemy, greed is our enemy, selfish ambition is our enemy.  We are to destroy that enemy by the might of truth and the grace of God.”

After his speech, Chanona explained his earlier remarks.

Anthony Chanona

“I used all the influence I had to argue that the growers accept this investment agreement based on some recommendations that were made. These recommendations were never adhered to and today we have a controversy full blown.”

Marion Ali

“Was it a change of heart that we witnessed there between yourself and Mr. Jenkins?”

Anthony Chanona

“Well, hindsight is always twenty-twenty and the information that we were working with was not materially consistent with fact and so the change of heart would only be to explain the procedure we use to amend the investment agreement.”

Marion Ali

“While the crowd was significant in numbers and their leaders were vocal, they weren’t as they marched past the C.P.B.L. offices and factory, expressing their views only when we asked them for it.”

Marion Ali

“You are for the removal of the three officers?”

Bonifacio Lopez, Citrus Grower

“Yeah I deh wid dat because mek we get betta timing fi fi we citrus.”

Jose Cervantes

“If the administration change, we get a different kinda salary.”

Citrus Grower

“Fi we livelihood is being threatened.  We move products from C.P.B.L., Ports Belize, C.P.B.L. and there’s been a drastic price change which noh feasible fi we di haul at dat rate. Dat’s why I’m here”

Marion Ali

“It’s been reduced?”

Citrus Grower

“Drastically reduced.”

The two other directors to the Board are Sir Allen Fields and Richard Cozier, who is the C.E.O. of Banks Holdings Limited.  The bank officials arrived in Belize today and will be guests on Open Your Eyes on Wednesday morning.  Marion Ali for News Five.

Even though there were a large number of growers who turned out to protest, the protest did not interrupt the flow of business at the factories.