| Farmers were again turned away from commercial banks, yesterday when they presented cheques issued to them by Mahaicony Rice Limited but were not able to cash them.Eighteen farmers presented themselves at a Rose Hall, Corentyne bank and were told that only one payment each would be made to them, although they had several cheques.The total value of the cheques that were not honoured was $26,328,Wholesale Jerseys USA,186.One farmer had 29 cheques in his possession,China Jerseys Free Shipping, which could not be cashed.These cheques represent payments for rice purchased by the company during the first crop that was harvested in April and June.Yesterday, the Ministry of Agriculture stated that attempts by the Guyana Rice Development Board to enforce the laws and regulations of the rice industry,Wholesale NFL Jerseys, to protect the farmers, are met with frivolous court challenges.One such case occurred last June, when a similar issue was ventilated.The Board, a release from the Agriculture Minister stated, was ordered by the court to cease its action against Mahaicony Rice Limited (MRL).As such, many farmers who sold paddy to the company did not receive full payment. In what can be seen as a pre-emptive move by Mahaicony Rice Limited and an effort to further frustrate any action by the relevant agency to ensure farmers are paid on time,Cheap Jerseys, the GRDB was, two days ago,Cheap Jerseys, served with a notice of legal action by MRL, claiming loss of income in the earlier case,Wholesale Authentic Jerseys, the release stated.The Guyana Rice Development Board has a clear mandate and duty to ensure that all players in the sector confirm with the legislation.The legislation states that the GRDB was established and cannot at anytime knowingly turn a blind eye to activities not confirming with the law.“Wrong cannot be right, and MRL will be treated as provided for under the law, regardless of its size,” the release stated.MRL is the largest single operator in the industry.But, according to the GRDB, that does not mean that they are ‘above the law.’The Minister of Agriculture has further directed the GRDB to support farmers desirous of taking legal action against MRL to recover all outstanding monies owed to them.In the meantime, various options are being considered to ensure that the company honours its obligations to the farmers.Yesterday,Cheap Jerseys Authentic, the Agriculture Ministry stated that other players in the rice milling industry must be commended for honouring their contractual obligations to the farmers. |
