PHILIPSBURG:--- The supervisory board of directors of GEBE N.V. held its first meeting on Saturday, June 11, since its appointment on June 1, 2016. Also present at the meeting were the Interim Manager of GEBE Mr. Andrew Zagers and the company’s attorney.
Supervisory Board Chairman Roy Marlin said that a number of household matters were discussed, including frequency of meetings etc. The supervisory board will meet generally on Saturday morning when needed which will enables the members to give their full participation during its deliberations, rather than having to juggle their day-to-day workday routines.
Regarding the proposed appointment of the new CEO of GEBE, Marlin explained that the supervisory board has delegated three persons from the board to further discuss the conditions with the proposed incoming CEO.
He added that the supervisory board also dealt with a number of pending court actions or possible court actions against GEBE. “GEBE's lawyer was authorized on behalf of the supervisory board to contact the lawyers representing these firms, institutions and individuals that have started these proceedings to see if in how far GEBE can settle these matters out of courts,” Marlin said.
“It is the firm belief of the supervisory board that the faster these matters are dealt with the faster that GEBE's management and supervisory board can go over to other matters at hand,” he added. These include, but are not limited to, the introduction of Solar energy, introduction of prepaid meters, alternative payments methods and locations for GEBE's customers thus alleviating the stream of customers having to visit the main branch in Philipsburg.
The supervisory board also discussed the appointment of two persons within GEBE to temporarily fill the function of Interim Manager in the event of the absence of the person who now fills this function Mr. Andrew Zagers.
In his capacity of Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Marlin also met with Minister of Finance Richard Gibson regarding the proposal by the shareholder to have payment of dividend and funds transferred from the water reserves to Government etc.
“The supervisory board is of the opinion that government as the sole shareholder of GEBE has a right to claim dividend from its company or payment from the water reserves as long as this is structured correctly and that the supervisory board is given ample opportunity to do its due diligence to facilitate the needs of the shareholder,” Marlin said.
In this light, he continued, the supervisory board will meet with Price Waterhouse Coopers and GEBE management to look at all outstanding issues such as the approval of the annual accounts of GEBE by the board, approval of the annual accounts by the shareholder, the shareholder granting de charge to the board, the shareholder approving GEBE's investment plans for the current and future years which will also enable the payment of dividend most naturally also taking into consideration GEBE's commitment to its lenders.
Marlin further assures the general public that the supervisory board has taken note of all the issues that were highlighted publicly regarding GEBE and primarily where it pertains to the supervisory board.
He said the supervisory board is of the opinion that these issues have brought much tension and stress within GEBE and, by extension, its customers while important matters such as the continuous and reliable supply of electricity and water should be GEBE's main concern. “This is the direction that the supervisory board plans to take. The reliable supply of electricity and water first and foremost.”
