Dear Editor,
It was my intention to wait for GuySuCo’s First Crop declaration before drafting this letter, however, trusted contacts inside the company have enlightened me that there might be an early closure to the crop due to various issues in both factory and fields.
As I write, the total stands at a paltry 18,689 MT. Rose Hall has ground out about 2,785 MT against a 6,000 MT target (TC/TS: 16); Uitvlugt is winding down with 4,816 MT vs 4,700 MT (TC/TS: 13); Albion sits at 8,042 MT against 11,000 MT (TC/TS: 15); Blairmont is at 3,046 MT against 7,500 MT (TC/TS: 16). Even if a decision is made to extend the crop, the corporation’s target of 30,000 MT is unlikely to be met, and the public will be told it is due to adverse weather conditions. More so, look out for the glorious press release, which will state that it has been years since the corporation has made even this meagre amount at a first crop…but the fact of “cost” will be left out.
Mr. Editor, what more proof do we need? The current CEO is not merely incompetent; he has failed spectacularly both on and off the field and should be removed immediately.
I am a proponent of facts, writing from a position of knowledge. Mr. Cheong was always the wrong choice for GuySuCo, a “reward for the boys” that has now poisoned management. The optics are obvious: align with the party line, wear the red shirt, and you’re rewarded at the country and corporation’s expense. One just needs to only examine the performance of his cane lands prior to his appointment to understand that he was never a good fit.
Recall before the elections when Dr. Mohammed Irfaan Ali visited Albion, then managed by Mr. Hutton Griffith, who was doing an exceptional job. Workers wanted him gone and demanded the return of an ostensibly incompetent estate manager. The President reassigned Griffith and installed Mana, sending Griffith to Head Office to work alongside the CEO, a position he excelled in due to his extensive agricultural/sugar background.
Albion has since collapsed and can now be called the largest and worst performing estate, and yet Mana remains in that seat (another political boy). What is now even more alarming is the fact that I am told that the CEO is now pushing to formally place someone who is entirely unfit to perform the tasks Mr. Griffith was doing while at Head Office. Where is the Head of Human Resources on this? Where is the Board of Directors in all this? Is the CEO allowed to do this? Let us be clear, there was never no such position and given the fact that the Board was under a rigorous mission to scale down Head Office how is this being deemed acceptable? Maybe I would give and take if the person was suitably qualified for the post, but I guess other things rule in this scenario. It is time the Head of Human Resources step up to the plate and actually do his job instead of utilizing his time sending frivolous reports every single day. What a waste!
Heads of Departments and Estate Managers no longer attend board meetings because the CEO answers for everything.
Two board members, who I am close with, are utterly fed up…confirmed this, and I’ll illustrate with a concrete example: the corporation recently sold nearly 13,000 MT of sugar to bulk at US$290, and top officials claim they were unaware.
Mr. Editor, if we must pretend the administration truly believed in this CEO, then the public deserves the hard numbers for 2020–2026:
This isn’t about personal attack; this is about accountability and truth. The CEO’s arrogance has driven away colleagues, most recently the last Chief Industrial Relations Manager. The corporation cannot afford another season of mismanagement. Who is holding the CEO accountable? It’s a sad state of affairs, and one can only hope for better sense to prevail.