SCGC boss quits out of frustration

February 13, 2009 11:04:57 AM

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Four months into the job as chief executive of the Sugar Cane Growers Council (SCGC), Surendra Sharma has resigned citing frustration because of zero powers by stakeholders to tackle serious ills facing the ailing industry.

Sharma confirmed to FijiLive this morning that he has resigned effective March 9.

“I have come to realise that it is difficult to bring about any productive results to ones efforts for the cane farmers and the sugar industry using the SCGC as a platform,” Sharma said.

He said the SCGC was a “creature of statute” that allowed farmers’ interests to be promoted and grievances aired.

However, he added with the meagre resources it had and virtually zero powers as a stakeholder in the industry, all it could do was make appropriate noises.

“The only power the farmers seem to have is when they seriously and collectively threaten a harvest boycott. The rest depends entirely on the goodwill of the government of the day and the prevailing mood of the FSC (Fiji Sugar Corporation) management,” Sharma said.

“For me, some of the early successes I scored as CEO of the SCGC are now quickly turning into a debilitating battle of wits and paper shuffling rather than tackling seriously the real issues confronting the farmers and the industry,” he said.

“I had stated earlier that I don’t have the time or inclination to play games.”

“As I leave, I empathise with the sugar industry, but more so, I feel sorry for the farmers as they are the only ones that don’t have guaranteed pay packets and have to bear the brunt of any calamity that hits the industry, be it natural disasters, falling sugar prices, new levies or increasing costs,” Sharma said.

“Against the backdrop of all of this, the farmers, and the industry, probably need a miracle man or a magician to turn their fortunes around,” he said.

“For the farmers, little wonder why they look to the patronage of powerful politicians who can profile their interest, give some dignity to their toil and a promise of better days to come, if nothing else,” he added.