The Agricultural Society of Trinidad and Tobago (ASTT), which has been starved of monetary government subventions for more than seven years due to allegations of fraud, is now faced with a fresh round of internal problems, insiders revealed.
According to the insiders, the internal problems include infighting, as well as an allegedly illegal acting president appointment.
With the Government insisting that increased emphasis must be placed on the local agricultural sector in the years to come, this can pose a significant problem for the ASTT, which is the only recognised organisation currently representing farmers in the country.
According to inside sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity with Guardian Media, the society’s president Daryl Rampersad has left the ASTT in an internal mess, incapable of fulfilling its mandate to advocate on behalf of farmers.
This has prompted several ASTT directors to consider resigning from their posts.
In a string of WhatsApp messages with Guardian Media on Wednesday, Rampersad confirmed that some directors were considering resigning but refused to say how many had signalled this to the executive.
The ASTT board consists of a president, vice president and 24 directors.
“We may have to elect a few members of the committee so we ensure that we have a quorum for meetings in accordance with the act. There is always a long line of individuals willing to serve, like me, for the good of the farmers, the country and for the passion of agriculture,” Rampersad said about possible resignations.
Rampersad also denied suggestions that he had gone AWOL for several weeks.
According to ASTT sources, Rampersad is in Miami for family reasons, however, we were not able to confirm this with him.
We asked Rampersad why he believes members are raising issues with his absence, but he did not respond to our question.
Sources claimed that Rampersad left the country without notifying the ASTT management committee, as mandated under the society’s constitution, and alleged that in his absence, he appointed board member Suren Ramkissoon to act as president.
ASTT sources alleged that Ramkissoon is acting illegally as president because his temporary appointment contravenes section 11 of the society’s constitution, which states that “The Committee shall consist of a President and Vice-President not being Government officers.”
Ramkissoon, the sources said, is an employee of the Ministry of Agriculture.
While Guardian Media was able to confirm with the ASTT’s secretary that Ramkissoon is acting as president, we were not able to confirm that he is an Agriculture Ministry employee.
Attempts to contact Ramkissoon via telephone to verify his place of employment were unsuccessful.
We were informed by one of his colleagues that his phone was not functional.
Guardian Media also emailed Ramkissoon asking him if his appointment as the acting president was legal under the society’s constitution. We are yet to receive a response.
The ASTT, whose mission is to advance the growth and development of agriculture, has been involved in several controversies in recent years.
The body has not received government subventions since 2015 after an audit report raised several concerns about its operations.
The Government stopped providing stipends to ASTT in 2019 following the findings of an audit into its finances.
The society has a membership of more than 10,000 registered farmers.
Under its previous president Dhanoo Sookoo, the ASTT was also subject to a fraud probe by the Ministry of Finance.
The audit report, according to a daily newspaper, claimed, “Since Miss Dhanoo Sookoo became president of ASTT in 2008, the number of issues escalated. These include allegations of misappropriation of funds, breaches of the rules of society, judicial review applications, non-submission of financial statements and reports, pre-action protocol letters and court judgments against Ms Sookoo and the ASTT.”
Then, three months ago, a day before the society’s presidential elections was due, a court injunction, filed by a presidential candidate, was granted to stop the election due to alleged voting irregularities.
Lawyers representing Bindra Maharaj, of the Sills Farmers’ Support Group, filed the injunction, resulting in a postponement of the elections. The injunction was granted by Justice Avason Quinlan-Williams. As a result, Rampersad continued in the post awaiting the outcome of the next election.
Maharaj decided to petition the court for injunctive relief due to alleged irregularities in the election which he attributed to the incumbent ASTT board led by Rampersad.
In a release, Maharaj said, “Not only is this a step in the right direction to stamp out corruption but a victory for justice.”
Pressed on the election being temporarily postponed due to alleged irregularities, Rampersad said the “election process was clear and fair and the opposition was invited to a test run for fairness and transparency.”
He said all decisions for the election were taken by the board of directors, which also included a few members of the opposition team.
However, senior ASTT sources alleged that the wrong voting list was submitted for the election. The sources claimed that the correct list of eligible voters originally had 1,132 names but somehow the list submitted on election day had 1,389 names.
According to sources, the additional names added to the list were not eligible to vote.
Guardian Media was shown a copy of both lists but sources were unwilling to agree to allow the lists to be published.
The sources accused Rampersad of leading a cabal of directors who were seeking to use the ASTT to their own benefit and at the expense of the farmers of Trinidad and Tobago. They called on Agriculture Minister Kazim Hosein to call an immediate meeting with the board and all ASTT members to rectify the situation.
When asked about these allegations via Whatsapp, Rampersad evaded answering if there were some directors operating as a cabal and if there was pulling and tugging within the ASTT board. Asked if he was using the ASTT as a springboard to enter politics and had been promised by a political party candidacy in the upcoming Local Government Elections, Rampersad said, “The ASTT is not a stepping stone for me to enter any political party, as we stand politically neutral.”
He also dismissed claims on social media that he was involved in alleged land fraud and corruption, saying, “I have never been involved in any land issues or land sales. That is news to me.”
Pressed on if the ASTT has been utilising several acres of Caroni 1975 Ltd land given to it by the state, Rampersad said the board took a decision to place a learning and demonstration station there, together with cold storage facilities for farmers.
“We are yet to receive the information on the status (of the land) as the ASTT does not have the lease or deed at our office,” he said.
Rampersad said although the outcome of the election is still pending, he continues to perform his duties to assist the country’s farming sector.
Among his list of accomplishments was holding discussions with a Chicago-based company to grow hemp, engaging agencies to introduce mushroom farming in T&T, meeting the Chinese Embassy to talk about feed substitution projects, reintroduction of new rice varieties and setting up a rice mill.
“As you may or may not be aware, the ASTT over the past few years has not received any project subvention from the Government of T&T. There are directors considering resigning and some of them are financially strained and unable to carry out the duties in full capacity,” Rampersad claimed.
Guardian Media asked Rampersad if that was the only reason for some of the directors considering their resignation, or if it was also because of perceived corrupt activities within the ASTT.
We did not receive a response in time.
Dhanoo: Rampersad has failed ASTT
Former ASTT president Dhanoo Sookoo says Rampersad’s decision to appoint an acting ASTT president was illegal and wrong according to the society’s act, which is governed by Parliamentary regulations.
Rampersad’s move to appoint an acting president, who is also a public servant, followed the granting of January’s court injunction against the ASTT.
“It is clear that Rampersad does not know what he is doing. This acting president needs to be removed. All of them need to be removed. They have no legal authority to represent or speak on behalf of the ASTT,” said Sookoo, who won the ASTT election 13 times.
She said what Rampersad should have done subsequent to the injunction was to call a general meeting with his financial members (farmers) before January 30, informing them of two things.
“One, either give his team a mandate to continue until the matter is resolved in court and a new election can be held or the membership, by a motion and a vote, remove, which they legally can do, appoint a caretaker committee of how many people the membership chooses to carry out the activities of the society.”
She said item nine in the Agricultural Society Act states that the members have the power to appoint deputies to carry out the society’s functions and duties.
“Mr Rampersad continues to hold office without any legal authority and without a mandate. It would be morally and ethically right for him to step down and allow the membership to move forward.”
Sookoo said she advised Rampersad on how to address the matter but instead he did his own thing.
“Rampersad has brought the society into disrepute... and taken the society down a slippery road.”
On Tuesday, Sookoo called out to Rampersad on her Facebook page to represent ASTT’s farmers.
“They need the representation you promised them. You are not answering your phone,” the post stated.
She said farmers have been coming to her for help with agricultural-related matters.
Sookoo said with the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, the ASTT should have already positioned itself to form linkages and partnerships to deal with the impending food shortages T&T will face.
The Agricultural Society is governed by an act of parliament - The Agricultural Society Act.
When contacted for comment, the Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries Kazim Hosein said he was going to look into the alleged issues at the ASTT.