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Members of the Calliaqua​ Fisheries Co-operative CALFICO​ are complaining about an icemaker that has been broken for almost a year.

However, when iWitness News visited on 15 February 2021, we found a deeper freeze in the relationship between management and staff of the members’ organisation.

10 replies on “VIDEO: Ice machine puts chills on CALFICO”

  1. But what is there left to discuss in these aborted meetings anyhow ? The problems and issues seem well defined to me and it sounds like all involved know what they are. The thing smells of indiscipline, incompetence / lack of resolve / double-mindedness in management. And like everything else, there is more than likely a robust underlay of toxic politics, small bore corruption and an unwillingness to call a spade a spade for fear of attracting disfavour. The same cultivated ignorance upon which party politics depends heavily.

    Sounds like a nice, timely opportunity to inject some covid-relief funds (if it did not all disappear in electioneering) to re-jig and sort this out. At least, the funds expended would be ‘trackable’ and associated with something tangible.

    If there is nothing left to be done in the impasse; if the learned helplessness is a real thing and if that’s the extent of it, then make way for the commercial lease promised by the minister to drive the money into the pockets of the top-level negotiators and widen the gap between the haves and the have-nots. Oh well, it will get sorted out…the nation is just out of a decisive election in the midst of a global pandemic…

  2. ” If youre not part of the solution, then you’re part of the problem. ” That saying goes for both who are managing the facility and the fisherfolk themselves. If the fishermen are to pay for the service of accommodating their fish and equipment/gears, then it’s expected that they be provided with professional and quality service. However, there may be delinquent fishermen who are just reluctant in paying their dues. In such a case, those who are delinquent should be dealt with differently and accordingly, hence, the innocent should in no way be made to pay nor suffer the consequences for the guilty.

    A different approach in handling the storage of fish should be also be taken. The only viable solution to this problem is that management need to be pro-active in the way they’re handling the affairs of the facility. Had that been so at the onset, then the facility would not have been thousands of dollars in debt. They need to stop dragging their feet on whatever measures it takes to deal with delinquent fishermen and be serious with it too. If fishermen refuse to attend the scheduled meetings, then just go ahead and enforce whatever rules and restrictions it takes for the smooth and efficient running of the facility.

    On the other hand, it’s a moral wrong done to the those who fervently pay their dues and it is very unfair and frustrating to them that they’re not being provided with the quality of service that they expect. It should not be a ‘Peter pay for Paul’ operation nor ‘The innocent suffer for the guilty’ situation. This is where management must be beaten with many stripes here. Get serious with the delinquent and reluctant guys because it speaks volumes of the management’s competence when such a viable facility as CALFICO runs aground.

  3. Nathan 'Jolly' Green says:

    They promised the fishermen new boats, funding and modernisation. Yet they cannot fix the f in ice machine, I know there is no f in ice machine, and there is no f in ice. There is no f in ice because the machine is busted.

  4. It looks as if some are paying, but management lets others go without paying. Some that are not paying are in management themselves. Some are paid to work but do not work.
    Is there some corruption going on?
    Corruption:
    “illegal or unethical behavior conducted by a person or persons in an official position.”

    It is a good example to indicate how corruption causes things not to run.
    Thinking to bring the compressor to SVG by air is the reason it is so expensive. Have they ever considered sending it by sea, as I do with all my items from Asia? Just a bad management decision. How stupid can it get! No wonder the place does not function!

  5. Good video. Every time something goes wrong in SVG no matter which sector or branch the workers or dependants always get the blame, 100%. If competent people run a business that would be something other than this melee. Good questions KC. Now do these people think they can get away with this? Gov wants to regulate people’s lives but the thing that they are supposed to regulate they overlook. The result a big free for all. No matter how much mayonaise you put in do-do it wont turn into a tuna-sandwich. Every body should just calm down because they are all only families apart. They must realize that they are destroying their own livelihood.

  6. It appears that some fisher folks believe some people in management also owes money and this is causing some problem. If they have records of who owe and how much if can then have a fair approach to get others to corporate. A loan from the bank can take care of much of the problems as long as they enforce payments. Sola panel is something that can take care of electrical bills. The money that goes to VINLEC can be paid to the bank and then the electrical bill will disappear.
    Maybe fishermen should not be part of management, unless there is more transparency with how things are run and executed.
    I believe the system is great, but management is the problem. This system should be introduced in other areas in SVG. I can think of something like this in Layou, Baga and Chato.

  7. Quite a sad and unfortunate situation. In oder for there to be any change and growth, all the stake holders need to cooperate … is that not the whole point of having a cooperative?

  8. In the midst of all this the government’s solution is to renegotiate the lease to a make it more commercial than the cooperative could afford?

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