Doug PollardALSO votes NO
The motion to drain ALSOCare of the remaining funds to prop up the ALSO Foundation was lost in a tense meeting last night 37 - 52.
The organisation must now decide where next. Already a rearguard action is being mounted by elements of the old guard. This must not be allowed to proceed.
It has been suggested that a special emergency payment should be made from ALSOCare to the Foundation should be made to allow the Foundation to meet its immediate obligations.
It has further been suggested that this would allow the Foundation to “develop and implement a plan to re-buid and re-focus itself, to support its CEO in this process, to provide good governance and the best systems & processes to enable this, to support its funded project staff and minus-18, and then to re-enage with a vision and the community. “
This sounds to me like same cash-grab with a different label. Surely this is what the meeting voted against.
The Foundation should be immediately be placed into administration as it has been trading while insolvent. All accounts of both organisations should be frozen. Staff would then become unsecured creditors.
The immediate problem is to find homes for the organisations sheltering under the ALSO umbrella, such as MQFF, Minus-18, Zoe Belle Gender Centre, the Anti-Violence Project etc.
Perhaps they could band together to take over the lease of the existing premises as a group. Some could be temporarily rehomed at Joy or at VAC.
Given what has occurred, a credible rebuild cannot involve the existing CEO, who would have no credibility and whose actions may well come under official investigation. The Board and management responsible for this failure must immediately resign.
Efforts should focus on saving and rebuilding ALSOCare, also with a new board and management.
Otherwise we are just perpetuating the people and structures that led to this fiasco in the first place and the fight will have been for nothing.
