All Trinidad Sugar and General Workers Trade Union v the Minister of Planning and Mobilisation et Al
| Jurisdiction | Trinidad & Tobago |
| Judge | Permanand, J. |
| Judgment Date | 30 November 1990 |
| Neutral Citation | TT 1990 HC 186 |
| Docket Number | 437 of 1990 |
| Court | High Court (Trinidad and Tobago) |
| Date | 30 November 1990 |
High Court
Permanand, J.
437 of 1990
Mr. Ramesh L. Maharaj for the Union
Mr. Basdeo Panday for applicants Nos 2 to 5 Mr. Gregory Armorer for sixth named applicant.
Mr. Martin Daly S.C., Mr. Noland Bereaux and Miss Lynette Ramoutar for respondents.
Judicial review - Application for declaration that action of Minister in instructing to Board of Directors to create a subsidiary company was illegal, null and void, of no effect for order of certiorari to quash it and prohibition to stop Minister from taking further steps to implement the decision — Minister gave directions in a public law capacity under which he was accountable to Parliament and the court could not question the decision if it was arrived at after due and fair regard to all — Motion dismissed.
On April 5, 1990, Ibrahim, J. granted leave to the applicants, namely, All Trinidad Sugar and General Workers Trade Union, a Trade Union duly registered under the laws of Trinidad and Tobago, and the five named persons, to seek judicial review against the respondents — Minister of Planning and Mobilisation Mr. Winston Dookeran and Minister of Finance Mr. Selby Wilson. The reliefs sought, as contained in the Statement filed pursuant to Ord. 53, RSC, are as follows–
“(a) A Declaration that the action and/or conduct and/ or decision of the Minister of Planning and Mobilisation the Honourable Fir. Winston Dookeran on the 27th day of March, 1990 whereby he instructed and/or directed the Board of Directors of Caroni (1975) Limited to create and/or form and/or establish and/or register a Subsidiary Company of Caroni (1975) Limited to be called Caroni Diversified Products Company Limited is illegal and null and void and of no effect.
(b) An order of Certiorari quashing the said decision of the said Minister of Planning and Mobilisation.
(c) An order of Prohibition prohibiting the said Minister from taking any further steps to implement the said decision.
(d) A Declaration that the action and/or conduct and/ or decision of the Minister of Finance Fir. Selby Wilson on the 27th day of March, 1990 whereby he instructed and/or directed the Board of Directors of Caroni (1975) Limited to create and/or form and/or establish and/or register a Subsidiary Company of Caroni (1975) Limited to be called Caroni Diversified Products Company Limited is illegal, null and void and of no effect.
(e) An order of Certiorari quashing the decision of the said minister of Finance.
(f) An order of Prohibition prohibiting the said Minister from taking any further steps to implement the said decision.
(g) An order staying the said decision and/or action of the Minister of Finance and/or the “Minister of Planning and Mobilisation and the directions given pursuant to the said action and/or decision pending the hearing and determination of this Action or until further order.
(h) Damages.
(i) Costs.
(j) Such further and other relief as the nature of the case may require.”
The grounds recited in the Statement are numerous and are as follows:–
“(1) The All Trinidad Sugar and General Workers Trade Union is a Trade Union registered under the provisions of the Trade Union Act Chapter 38:u2 with its registered office at Rienzi Complex, Southern Main Road, Exchange Village, Couva and is the recognised majority Union and the authorised bargaining agent and representative for the daily, hourly, piece and task rated workers of Caroni (1975) Limited under the provisions of the Industrial Relations Act Chapter 88.01. The said Union represents 80 percent of the total work force at the said Caroni (1975) Limited (hereinafter referred to as ‘the said Company’).
(2) The applicants who are workers are employed in the said Company and are members of the said Trade Union.
(3) The said Company is a Limited Liability Company incorporated under the Laws of Trinidad and Tobago Ch: 31 No. 1 all the shares of which are wholly owned by the State of Trinidad and Tobago, and it is an agro-industrial enterprise engaged inter alia, in the cultivation of sugar cane, rice, citrus, and other food crops, livestock farming and the manufacture of sugar and rum. The Company is the sole producer of sugar in Trinidad and Tobago.
(4) By virtue of the Minister of Finance Incorporation Act Chapter 69:03 and in particular Section 3, the Minister of Finance is incorporated as the Corporation Sole and holds State property in trust for the State of Trinidad and Tobago and as such holds the shares of the said Company. The said Minister by section 7 exercises its corporate powers in such manner as it thinks fit. The Minister of Finance is thereby given a statutory discretion in the exercise of its corporate powers.
(5) The Minister of Planning and Mobilisation, Mr. Winston Dookeran together with the Minister of Finance Mr. Selby Wilson on the 27th March, 1990 at a meeting summoned by both Ministers instructed and/or directed certain members of the board of Directors of the said Company who attended the meeting to proceed to implement a directive of Cabinet to register a Subsidiary Company of Caroni (1975) Limited to be called Caroni Diversified Products Company Limited.
(6) The said Minister of Planning and Mobilisation has no lawful authority to direct and/or instruct and/or direct the Board of Directors to form and/or register such a Subsidiary Company. The Minister of Finance is given the authority by law to exercise the corporate powers of the Corporation Sole. If such a power exists which is denied then it is essential that such power must be exercised by the Minister of Finance and it cannot be exercised by anyone else. Alternatively if which is not admitted: the said Minister had such authority to exercise that discretionary power it was exercised arbitrarily and/or in contravention of the rules of natural justice and/or without any consultation with the said Union and/or the Workers of Caroni (1975) Limited and the resulting decision and/or action is unreasonable and/or irrational.
(7) The purported exercise of the purported discretion by the Minister of Finance in his decision and/or action and/or conduct in directing and/or instructing the Board of the said Company to create and/or form and/or establish and/or register a Subsidiary Company of Caroni (1975) Limited to be known as Caroni Diversified Products Company Limited is illegal in that:–
(a) He has no lawful authority to direct and/or instruct the board of Directors as aforesaid to form and/or register such a Subsidiary Company. His action is ultra vires the Memorandum and Articles of Association of Caroni (1975) Limited and ultra vires the provisions of the Companies Ordinance Chapter 31 No. 1 of the Revised Laws of Trinidad and Tobago.
(b) If he has a discretion he failed to exercise his discretion properly or at all.
(c) If he did exercise his discretion he failed to exercise same fairly and in accordance with the rules of natural justice and his decision and/or action is arbitrary.
(d) If he has exercise his discretion he omitted to consult with the said workers of Caroni (1975) Limited and/or their representative Unions including the said Trade union before arriving at the said decision.
(e) He failed to consider that the exercise of his discretion and/or action was likely to have adverse effects on the livelihood of the said workers of Caroni (1975) Limited and therefore necessitated that he should act fairly before arriving at his decision or taking action.
(f) His decision and/or action is unreasonable and irrational.
(8) The direction and/or action by the said Ministers to Caroni (1975) Limited as aforesaid for it to term and/or register the Subsidiary Company known as Caroni Diversified Products Company Limited and the further direction by both Ministers at the meeting with the members of the Boards of Directors of the said Company on the 27th day of hard., 1990 that major projects and accompanying assets would be transferred from Caroni (1975) Limited to the said subsidiary Company would place in jeopardy the benefit of a judgment in the Industrial Court in Trade Dilute No. 26 of 1984 Between the said Union and Caroni (1975) Limited in favour of the workers of Caroni (1975) Limited in the sum of approximately 100 Million Dollars which sum represents back pay, unused sick leave, cost of living allowance due and owing to the said workers.
(9) The Minister of Finance and/or the Minister of Mobilisation ought to have consulted the said Union as a Union representing the workers of the said Company and/or the applicant Workers themselves before any decision or action was taken as aforesaid as such decision and/or action affects the rights and interests of the said Union and the workers including the applicant Workers.
(10) There exists an Industrial Agreement registered in the Industrial Court under the provisions of the Industrial Relations Act Chapter 88:01 between the said Company and the Union which binds the said Company; Workers and Union and which Agreement governs the terms and conditions of daily, hourly, task and piece rated workers. This Agreement also provides for the payment to the workers by the said Company of wages, unused sick leave, cost of living allowances and severance benefits in the event that workers are retrenched.
(11) The projects of Caroni (1975) Limited which the Ministers on the 27th day of March, 1990 said that the new Subsidiary Company would take over from the said Company are rice, tree crops, food crops, Aquaculture, Livestock and Distillery which with their accompanying assets value approximately 138 Million Dollars. The assets of Caroni (1975) Limited are valued at approximately 400 Million Dollars. A large proportion of these assets have no market value such as two large sugar factories...
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