AGRICULTURE Minister Floyd Green, two senior members of staff at the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), and a board member are set to face the court over allegations that they defied a Supreme Court injunction that had barred the JAS from holding its annual general meeting (AGM) until audited financials are presented along with funds held by parish associations.

The development escalates a legal battle that threatens to expose significant financial irregularities within the organisation.

Attorney-at-law Hugh Wildman, who represents Lawrence Robertson, the board member of the JAS who sought the injunction, confirmed with the Jamaica Observer that summonses were served on the four men last week by postal servants.

“All the people who were in contempt were served. I’m not sure of the date, but it would have been sometime last week,” Wildman said.

They now await a court date.

The legal confrontation, which has been brewing since June, revolves around a financial dispute involving the JAS’s inability to account for significant funds. The most recent audit revealed approximately $10.52 million in unaccounted funds over the four-year period from 2019 to 2023. JAS President Lenworth Fulton has since indicated that the sum may now exceed $50 million.

“This is not necessarily a case of theft, but rather a lack of sufficient documentation to prove accountability. However, it has placed the society in a very troubling position… for a membership organisation that cannot account for its members’ money. This money belongs to the farmers,” he said.

Speaking with the Business Observer on Tuesday, Fulton explained that the standard annual audit conducted by the JAS typically does not cover all economic activities, leading to discrepancies uncovered in Associate Branch Societies — referred to internally as parish branches.

The JAS generates revenue through various means, including the Denbigh Agricultural Show, from which profits are intended to be reinvested in tools, equipment, and irrigation systems for farmers. Additionally, the organisation earns rental income from properties it owns across the island. However, rent earned from some of the parish branches remains unaccounted for.

In response to the matter, Robertson obtained a court order last July that barred the JAS from convening its AGM to select a president. In the claim filed last year, Robertson sought a declaration that the AGM be null and void without the presentation of audited financial statements for the association, along with the funds held on behalf of the parish branches, which have not been paid over to the JAS.

On May 14, the Supreme Court extended an interim injunction until the final determination of Robertson’s claim, with the first hearing scheduled for September 19, 2024. The parties are to return to court on that date with a special audit.

However, the legal battle intensified with allegations against Agriculture Minister Floyd Green, who is accused of facilitating the breach by instructing JAS staff to disregard the court’s injunction. Wildman sent a letter dated June 26 to Minister Green, reminding him of the court order.

Despite this, the AGM was held last month.

“The individuals in management and the board member who received the summons were notified and given the signed order by the judge not to proceed with the AGM. They violated the order,” Fulton said.

Fulton, who did not attend the meeting, explained that the staff members who were present did so under the directive of the minister. On July 8, the minister reportedly issued a letter with instructions contrary to those from the president, Fulton, and CEO Christopher Emanuel.

“They followed the minister’s letter, but in my opinion, he does not have the authority to interfere with the operation of the JAS in that way,” Fulton emphasised, noting that the JAS is not a statutory body and that the ministry has no authority over the selection of its board members. The JAS board is chosen by its members, who are primarily growers of crops and livestock.

“This is the first time in Jamaica’s history where a minister has gone over the heads, forcing the staff to act accordingly. While the junior staff were present, it would be unfair to penalise them. It was the senior staff who actually committed the breach, which is why Robertson and his lawyer have decided to pursue legal action against them,” Fulton added.

Efforts to get a comment from the minister were unsuccessful up to press time, but in a statement released last month, the Agriculture Ministry has indicated that any court matter brought against it or Minister Green will be strenuously defended and vigorously opposed.

Meanwhile, Fulton has said that he has retained attorney-at-law John Jacobs to defend members of the JAS.

Fulton, whose presidency ends in September, has stated that he has no intention of continuing in his role, even if the court were to rule in his favor.

“Unless something happens through the court, I have no authority to continue serving, and even if the court ruled in my favour and put me back in charge, I have no desire to continue,” he said.

Fulton cited his long service to various agricultural organisations, including the 4H Club, the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), and the JAS, for which he has received two national honours. However, he expressed his reluctance to remain involved in what he described as a toxic environment.

“I am not the type of person who will stay in a toxic environment where people might be collecting money for our farmers and cannot account for it, and are so audacious as to break the law to cover up their actions. I’m not a part of it!” he asserted.