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C.S.A. SQUABBLE CONTINUES – Save Our Union Plans To Meet Thursday

Image: CSA members locked out of their building on Wednesday
FLASHBACK: C.S.A. members who came to the January meeting.

ANOTHER confrontation may be looming between the executive of the Civil Service Association and members who have grouped themselves into an organization called “Save Our Union”.

The group has summoned a meeting at the CSA headquarters on Thursday to discuss the latest court case in which it is involved with the CSA executive headed by Wilfred Pierre.

The two sides have been at loggerheads for several months. This started after a controversy involving former CSA president Mary Isaac who accepted a Senatorship from the opposition United Workers Party much to the dismay of those certain CSA members including those now involved in the Save our Union group.

This will be the second time the group will be attempting to hold a meeting at the Union’s headquarters. In January it attempted to meet there but could not because Pierre locked the building and dismissed staff an hour earlier than the usual time.

Pierre said he took this decision so as to avoid what he said was a potentially uncomfortable atmosphere that could have resulted in unnecessary confrontation with members of the Save Our Union group.

What has prompted Thursday’s proposed meeting is a court case that was heard by Justice Francis Belle seven days ago in which the Save Our Union group asked the court to grant them an interim injunction compelling the Association to issue notice of an extraordinary general meeting .

THE VOICE has been reliably informed that the case did not go in favour of the group. In fact, one of its leading spokespersons, Oliver Lawrence declined comment on the outcome when contacted. However Pierre said that the case was withdrawn by the group’s own attorney much to the group’s surprise.

Although Lawrence declined to comment on what transpired in court despite being present at the hearing, he said the ruling by the judge did not signal the end of agitation by his group to get the CSA to function within its constitution.

The two parties will meet in court on another matter next Tuesday. Lawrence also declined comment on that particular case.

The VOICE learned that there is still another matter between the two parties that could be settled in court.

“We are having a meeting on Thursday at the CSA headquarters, come and you will find answers to all your questions,” Lawrence told this reporter.

The members of the Save Our Union group who took the CSA to court were Lilia Auguste Wenn Gabriel, Fitzgerald John, Barthelmy Fedee, Samantha Willians, Cleopatra Anthony, Marcia Clark, Veronica Forde and Oliver Lawrence.

According to Pierre the lawyer representing the Save the Union group informed the judge that he was withdrawing the case for the same reason which the CSA Executive had all along contended, which is that Section 6.9 (i) of the CSA CONSTITUTION strictly forbids having extraordinary general meetings four months prior to the holding of a Biennial Convention.

“Even the members representing Save the Union who were at Court seem surprised as to the course of action taken by their lawyer,” Pierre said.

But Lawrence is confident that the group will succeed against the current CSA executive which he says is breaking all the rules and regulations governing the CSA.

“Last week’s court case was not a setback to the group, absolutely not,” he said when asked if it was.

Micah George is an established name in the journalism landscape in St. Lucia. He started his journalism tutelage under the critical eye of the Star Newspaper Publisher and well known journalist, Rick Wayne, as a freelancer. A few months later he moved to the Voice Newspaper under the guidance of the paper’s recognized editor, Guy Ellis in 1988.

Since then he has remained with the Voice Newspaper, progressing from a cub reporter covering court cases and the police to a senior journalist with a focus on parliamentary issues, government and politics. Read full bio...

1 Comment

  1. Looks like a very unhappy bunch. They need some answer, and it better be a good one.
    At a time such as this, I wouldn’t want to play games with these or anyone for that matter.
    Election is around the corner and these parents are angry.

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