SAINT FRANCIS XAVIER CREDIT UNION IN CRISIS

September 19, 2007

The Saint Francis Xavier Credit Union in Corozal Town is going through crisis. This past Sunday the supervisory committee of the credit union held a special meeting in which the board of directors was suspended based on accusations of irregularities. At that meeting members voted for the appointment of a pro temp board however a letter signed by the Governor of central Bank and Registrar of Credit Unions Sydney Campbell indicated that the Board was to be reinstituted yesterday. Earlier today members of that board went to the credit union with the intention of signing cheques but were denied entry. Today the credit union is on the verge of shutting down since its accounts at the banks has been frozen and its branches are strapped for liquid cash. We spoke with Saint Francis Xavier General Manager Vicente Canul. 

Vicente Canul,Saint Francis Xavier General Manager:

“Just before they came I had spoken to the Prime Minister of Belize Hon. Said Musa and he instructed me clearly on the telephone that I should not accept the signature of those ex board members and he told me that he had instructed Mr. Campbell to accept my signature and the assistant manager’s signature so that we can draw cash from the banks. Because I told the Prime Minister if we cannot draw cash from the banks I will have to shut down Saint Francis Xavier Credit Union because we are running out of cash and the Prime Minister understood and he then told me that he would call the Belize Bank and see what could be done, what could be arranged but he does not agree or want that Saint Francis Xavier Credit Union shuts down and I told him I need at least a hundred thousand dollars to keep going between now and tomorrow and all our accounts at the banks, Belize Bank, Atlantic Bank, Scotia Bank has been freezed and it’s not that we don’t have money. We have six million dollars in reserve.” 

I asked Canul why the management of the credit union has decided not to reinstitute the board of directors as has been directed by Registrar of Credit Union Sydney Campbell. 

Vicente Canul,Saint Francis Xavier General Manager:

“That is putting us in a very difficult situation because what they are telling us is that overrule the decision of over one thousand two hundred members who decided to do away with the board, with the past board and they installed a pro temp board it‘s not us who did that, it’s the members at a special meeting held Sunday September 16 at the City Center in Corozal. The special meeting was called by the supervisory committee after various attempts to get to work together with board but the board ignored this attempt to work as a team so the supervisory committee had no other choice but to go ahead and call the special membership meeting. We don’t have the power to reinstitute the board, the supervisory committee doesn’t have the power to do that, it is only by calling another special membership meeting that the members would decide to reinstate the board and then Mr. Campbell would have to come and tell the membership please reinstitute this board but we do not have the power to reinstitute the board which over a thousand two hundred members have given their decision that the board must go.” 

Manuela Ayuso,Love FM:

“Mr. Canul, the Credit Union has over 20 thousand members I understand would that one thousand plus members that who were at that meeting on Sunday form a quorum for an election to have taken place.” 

Vicente Canul,Saint Francis Xavier General Manager:

“Yes.  Our quorum, by law states that our quorum is one thousand members and we had over one thousand two hundred and thirteen members attending that meeting. At this time I would just want to say that we are doing our best in managing this crisis that has come about and certainly I believe that we can go ahead if the Banks release our monies. As I have said we have over six million dollars in reserves at the banks so it’s not that we are in a position where we don’t have money to draw from the banks but they have freezed our accounts. Liquid cash is our problem now.”  

While Canul says that the meeting and elections were legal, President of the Board of Directors Luciola West said the Supervisory Committee of the Saint Francis Xavier Credit Union manipulated the situation and made false accusations.  

Luciola West,President of the Board of Directors:

“There has to changes in an institution that is manipulated, that is coerced, that has a lot of anarchy in it. We cannot stand with our members to see that these people continue violating the laws of the land and that’s why we are standing for our people who put us here, 20 thousand 300 plus members, they need to say what we are to do not only one eight hundred or nine hundred people with a lot of children involved.Once the law is there,my board will be honored to go but because things aren’t being done the right way,we have decided to stand for our people.” 

Manuela Ayuso,Love FM:

“The Saint Francis Xavier Credit Union has four branches with over 20,000 members.Reporting for Love FM News from Orange Walk Town,I am Manuela Ayuso.”

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