JAMES PAUL will be returning to work at the Barbados Agricultural Society (BAS) as its chief executive officer (CEO) tomorrow after a contentious annual general meeting yesterday at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.
The announcement of Paul’s return followed a vote by the new board of directors and came after the outgoing president Wendell Clarke described in his report the year as “bitter-sweet”, citing “the loss of our CEO” and saying “the board had made a decision to discontinue the services of the CEO”.
Clarke was, however, immediately cautioned by a director of the BAS “not to pursue the matter because it was likely to end up before the law courts. I would beg you to desist from going in that direction”.
The post of Paul, a Member of Parliament, was mired in controversy last month when reports surfaced that he had been fired. He at that time acknowledged that a decision had been taken to sever him, but he made it clear he had not received a letter outlining the reasons for his termination.
“I don’t know the reason and I am not going to speculate. I have nothing to be ashamed of. I suppose everything will be revealed in the fullness of time,” Paul said then.
But it was at the general meeting yesterday, according to a reliable source, that Paul was voted back as CEO and given clearance to return to his desk, though this did not have unanimous acceptance under Carlyle Brathwaite’s new board.
Earlier in the day, Minister of Commerce and Trade Senator Haynesley Benn, a former BAS general manager, had appealed to those charged with running the body to be united in representing the interest of the farmers.
“My presence here follows a meeting in the Ministry of Agriculture on Wednesday with the officials of the ministry and representatives of the Barbados Agricultural Society . . . called to find a solution to a situation which if not addressed [by] level heads, could result in adversely affecting the future of the farmers’ organization,” said Benn, who was the guest speaker.
He also challenged the BAS membership to put “the bad blood behind you and do things correctly, follow the constitution, read the by-laws, and get to know them . . . ”.