CTUSAB: ‘Stay with the constitution

As the National Union of PublicWorkers (NUPW), roiled by a series of controversies on Tuesday urged to let the NUPW constitution lead it out of the standoff between its president and decision-makers.

Declaring that he is not seized of the details of the ongoing dispute, Dennis de Peiza, General Secretary of the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados (CTUSAB) issued the advice in a Barbados TODAY interview.

He said: “It’s unfortunate what has happened in the public domain; and I believe that what the organization needs to do is to follow its constitution, follow its rules, its regulations, procedures, whatever the guidelines are… and once they follow those things, I believe that they would be able to reconcile or to address in a proper manner whatever problems they may have.

“Outside of that, I think it would not be in the best interest of the relations of our member units and even the organization itself, to speak to something to which it is not fully apprised.”

De Peiza declared that CTUSAB’s policy is not to get involved in the domestic affairs of its member unions.

He stressed the congress’ own constitution provides that each member unit is an autonomous body.

“The matter has never been drawn to our attention the way that it had been put in the public domain, said the general secretary of the umbrella trade union congress. “I can’t even tell you what the resolution or whatever proposal they had… we have never had sight of it; so it would be unfair for us to jump into something that we don’t have the information to speak to.”

The NUPW last week suspended Akanni McDowall as president and from its membership. Natalie Murray who tabled a resolution to elevate McDowall to secretary-general was also suspended as a member by the National Council – the highest decision-making organ in the NUPW.

While no official reason has been made public by Acting General Secretary Wayne Walrond, the suspensions – which came on the eve of nomination day – followed closely on the heels of a failed controversial resolution that died on the floor of a chaotic special general conference held over a week ago at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.

That resolution, which was authored by Murray to create the new post of Secretary-General for McDowall, brought to light the significance of the fracture within the public sector union.

It also came just before a rumour circulated on social media attacked Walrond’s leadership and linked his spending on his personal attempts to sue the signatories to the resolution with the expenditure by the union on its decision to seek legal advice on a “constitutional crisis” emerging from the proposed creation of the new position.

Sources inside the NUPW had told Barbados TODAY that someone in a privileged position may have disseminated bona fide documents in the public domain but also attached “fabricated” information to them.

(emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb)