The Ministry of Labour’s Co-operatives and Friendly Societies Department on Thursday oversaw the Special Annual General Meeting of the Amerindian People’s Association (APA) and Lemmel Thomas was re-elected.
A release from the Ministry of Labour said that elections had begun on November 28 of this year; however, the process was aborted by the Department of Co-operatives and Friendly Societies due to a number of irregularities.
These included the virtual membership contesting the list of nominees due to their non-involvement in the nomination process, the presentation of a list of nominees without supporting documents, and the absence of a physical quorum. These factors were enough to justify a cancellation of the elections.
Fortunately, the release said that Thursday’s elections went smoothly under the supervision of Regional Co-op Officer, Winneth Collymore.
As a result, Lemmel Thomas was re-elected for a second term as President of the APA with a 41 to 10 vote against Mario Hastings. Kemal Robinson was re-elected as Youth Representative with a vote of 42 to13 against Marcus Percy, and Alma Marshall was re-elected as the Women’s Representative with a 40 to 14 vote against Tekla Spencer.
The other members of the Committee of Management were reinstated with no contest.
Officers of the Co-operatives and Friendly Societies Department are usually in attendance at annual general meetings of the APA to ensure compliance and regulatory adherence as mandated by the Friendly Societies Act Chapter 36:04, the release said.
The Co-operatives and Friendly Societies Department continues to ensure that societies operate within legal and ethical boundaries, and comply with established regulations, guidelines and standards, the release added.
