Victorian Farmers Federation rejects EGM bid, offers no explanation

A bid by Victorian Farmers Federation members to vote on ousting the lobby group’s board has been rejected, without explanation.

Grain grower Brett Hosking will ask the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to review the VFF Company Secretary’s advice to the VFF board.

The Victorian Farmers Federation has rejected a resolution from 156 of its Grain Group members, who have called for an extraordinary general meeting to oust the board.

VFF Company Secretary Gary Bottomer advised the board to reject the members resoultion, but offered no explanation to the movers of the motion, former Grains Group presidents Brett Hosking and Andrew Weidemann.

In letters to both Mr Hosking and Mr Weidemann, Mr Bottomer stated: “I have advised the Board that an Extraordinary General Meeting cannot be validly called on the basis of the Request Documents”.

Mr Weidemann said he and Mr Hosking were seeking advice from their lawyer and had already spoken to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission with regard to lodging all relevant documents with the regulator on Monday.

In a communique to members VFF president Emma Germano stated the EGM request was “defective in regard to the Corporations Act and an EGM cannot be validly held associated with this request”.

What that defect is remains unclear, given the VFF constitution states the “board, whenever requested to do so by 100 members… must call and EGM by notice to members within 21 days after the request is given”.

The Corporations Act states an EGM must be called by members with at least 5 per cent of votes, but the VFF is allowed to set a lower threshold in its constitution.

In the meantime Ms Germano announced her board had decided to hold its own EGM on November 20 to amend the VFF Constitution.

The Weekly Times understands Ms Germano has been working behind the scenes with lawyers to draft constitutional changes that will deliver a radical restructure of the federation.