250 NAMDEVCO workers fear job loss

Public Service Association (PSA) President Watson Duke told Newsday workers sought answers about the audit announced by Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries Clarence Rambharat, last week.

Duke said workers questioned their Chief Executive Officer, the Human Resource manager and other executive members about the audit but received no answer.

As such, they mounted a protest.

He joined workers in their protest around lunch time on Monday, at the same time the NAMDEVCO board was meeting.

Duke said the PSA was invited to the meeting, but when they entered the room, “they (board members) simply pretended as if they did not invite us and went further to cancel the meeting.” NAMDEVCO Chairman Dennis Ramdeen confirmed there was a monthly board meeting on Monday, but said there was a “disruption” at the meeting ,“coincidentally”, at the same time the board went on a break.

He said the meeting continued as planned after the break. Asked whether the PSA disrupted the board meeting, Duke said there was no disruption. They simply entered the meeting to which they were invited.

“But what is important to us,” said Duke, “is that NAMDEVCO must understand it is a state owned company, that 1.5 million people own NAMDEVCO, and the profitability of NAMDEVCO is something that concerns us and what concerns us most is we have the founder of an advertising company heading a place like NAMDEVCO.

What is Ramdeen’s experience in managing NAMDEVCO,” Duke asked.

Chairman Ramdeen is the founder and according to his biography on the company’s website, the “Chief Inspirer” of advertising agency Pepper Advertising Ltd. Duke said the company was wrong to initiate an audit without involving the PSA which is the recognised majority union.

He said the PSA will be writing a letter to NAMDEVCO asking that the provide information on who is conducting the audit and what it hopes to achieve. “They can’t act willy-nilly and just lick up people.

If the company is failing they must show us where the company is failing.”