The upheaval the Mauritius Sugar Syndicate (MSS) is facing does not seem to be over yet. After the resignations of two Board members following the suspension of chief finance officer, Sachitanand Maudhoo (see inset), the small planters? wrath does not appear to have abated. The bone of contention is the alleged difference between the volume of sugar when the ship leaves Mauritius and when it arrives in the United Kingdom. Some even refer to a ?theft? of 9,644 tons of sugar. The syndicate asserts, however, that this difference is perfectly normal. So the question remains: has there been any fraud or is it a storm in a ? teacup?

The chief editor of Sunday Vani, Harish Boodhoo, has flown to the small planters? rescue. He recently organised a press conference to give more details about a ?massive fraud taking place in Great Britain and accounting for losses of some Rs 100 to 150 million every year?. These allegations concern unrefined sugar exports to British company, Tate & Lyle. The case has even been referred to the Independent Commission Against Corruption and Harish Boodhoo asserts that a ?slush fund is being used by politicians?.

<B>Defamatory campaign</B>

The syndicate is adamant that there has been no fraud and explains that these ?weight losses are normal?. A top executive from the syndicate explains that sugar is lost when it is loaded on the ship and that when it is unloaded, it is very hard to recover all the sugar from the hold. Likewise, when the sugar is placed in factory boxes, unforeseen elements such as the wind can also account for the losses. The executive also asserts that a table has been set up to take these factors into account and minimise the losses of small planters.

Moreover, the syndicate has rebutted the accusations made against it. ?The MSS is having consultations with its legal advisers to obtain compensation for all the prejudice caused by this defamatory campaign against sugar producers and the syndicate,? declared the managing committee in a press release last Monday.

The small planters have also met the minister of Agriculture, Nando Bodha, to express their dissatisfaction with the way the syndicate is managed. The minister said the problem might not necessarily be a specific case of mismanagement but rather the fact that the syndicate was created in 1951 and has not been subject to any changes since then. ?The amendments in the attributions of the commission aim at satisfying all partners ? including small planters.? This seems a good means of getting round the difficulties and gives the impression that he is not siding with any of the parties involved in the conflict?

<B>Suspended employee castigates management</B>

The problems at the MSS date from the beginning of the year when the chief finance officer (CFO) was suspended from his job. In a letter to the chairman, Hansraj Ruhee, he criticised the way the syndicate was managed by the Chief Executive, Mrinal Roy, and his assistant, Rubina Ruhee. He stated that the compensation paid to the refiners for 2002 was too high and that it should be reduced according to his calculations and the recommendations made by the syndicate?s technical adviser. The following year, the job of calculating the compensation was jointly entrusted to De Chazal du Mée and Kemp Chatteris Deloitte but the former CFO asserts that these consulting firms were not given all the information they needed. ?I felt that it was my duty as a responsible CFO to draw the attention of the president and the vice-president to the situation prevailing at the Syndicate.? He was later called before a disciplinary committee since his allegations were said to be aimed at placing blame on the management and tarnishing the syndicate?s reputation.