In a General Workers Union (GWU) National Council meeting, Public Sector Division Secretary Josephine Attard Sultana and Public Sector Division President Francis Buttigieg were removed from their posts in the union.
The Secretary and President were voted out of the GWU with 29 votes against 13 on Tuesday.
The proposal to remove Josephine Attard Sultana and Francis Buttigieg from their posts came about after the National Council approved a proposal calling for their termination of their roles within the GWU. The proposal was put forward by the GWU central administration and noted that in the aftermath of the cancellation of a General Conference, which had already called for a no-confidence vote against Josephine Attard Sultana, the Secretary and President should no longer serve in their respective posts.
The issue on Tuesday 3rd August when Josephine Attard Sultana filed an injunction against the union’s secretary General Tony Zarb to stop an extraordinary general conference from being held on Monday 7th August. The general conference was expected to discuss a proposal for no confidence against Josephine Attard Sultana. The court accepted the request for injunction after ruling that the conference could not take place because a petition calling for the general conference did not gather enough signatures.
One day after Josephine Attard Sultana filed her injunction, Tony Zarb filed a writ explaining that 37 out 77 delegates of the section signed a petition calling for an extraordinary general conference for the Public Sectors Section of the GWU. According to Tony Zarb this amounts to 48% of the section’s delegates, a rate above the 40% required to call for a general conference.
After the court ruled that the General conference could not take place on Thursday, the GWU stated that it would discuss the issue on Tuesday 8th August.
As the GWU National Council drew to an end, Josephine Attard Sultana and Francis Buttigieg were advised to abandon the GWU, however, as they collected their personal items from their office, they refused to leave the building.
According to an official release by the GWU, Josephine Attard Sultana and Francis Buttigieg told the union’s officials that they would not leave the premises and challenged the officials to call the police.
The situation was brought under control briefly afterwards when police intervened and convinced the former Public Section Diviion Secretary and President to leave the Valletta building.
In the meantime, the Public Sector Division is being headed by the GWU’s central administration. New officials for head the division will be selected in a General Conference.
See also:
Court halts GWU general meeting
By MaltaMedia News
Aug 3, 2006, 12:11 CET
© Copyright 2006 - MaltaMedia Online Network
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