Fur flies as animal lovers clash at SPCA AGM

Aggressive allegations of animal cruelty were made, amid claims that the society’s animals are being euthanased brutally, by being directly injected in the kidney, which was denied by the Benoni SPCA.

Among the uproar of about 50 attendees came allegations of mismanagement and fraud.

Renee Rossolimos, an inspector with the society, said claims of animals being put down brutally because of needles getting stuck in their kidneys, due to the practice of this method, were not true.

She added that there was only one incident where this method had to be used.

Outgoing chairwoman Diane Wooldridge explained that this involved a particularly vicious animal.

“It was an aggressive dog and you could not go into the front area or the paw, because it was going to bite,” said Wooldridge.

She added that the SPCA’s needles are too short to inject into the kidneys.

“We euthanase very, very humanely,” she said.

“We are checked up on constantly by vets and by our national council; they come and check on how we are euthanasing.”

The meeting commenced at the Oakfields Veterinary Clinic and was later completed at the Benoni SPCA premises, with the invitation being extended only to paid-up members of the society.

The general public was excluded, despite a Facebook invitation to members of the public to attend the AGM.

The City Times was present.

Attendees at the meeting were given agendas on arrival.

A concerned member of the public, James Lotter, said: “Members of the SPCA and the public were not given ample opportunity to analyse these documents or add points to the agenda, as is the normal procedure for meetings (agendas and documents should be circulated at least a week before a meeting and an opportunity to add points to the agenda should be given).”

He added that those present at the meeting had queried this and asked to amend the agenda by having the “election of the management committee” item put last on the agenda, so that concerns and issues of importance to the public could be discussed first.

“We were told that this was not possible, due to the constitution,” he said.

“When we asked where we could access the constitution (a document that has to be made public) we were told that we need to ask for it.”

Members of the public also refused to accept the financial statement presented to them at the meeting, due to it not having been signed off by the auditors responsible for compiling it.

Clr Mary Goby, in whose ward the Benoni SPCA’s premises fall, stressed that a constitution should be available to those attending the event; she added that she thought it was illegal to change the venue of an AGM.

Jaco Pieterse, inspector and manager of the special projects unit at the National SPCA, who was present at the meeting, said the procedures were followed correctly according to the constitution and advised the public to appeal for a special general meeting to raise general concerns.

The members who were appointed (at the section of the meeting held on the SPCA premises) to serve on this year’s committee and who were elected at the meeting are Adele Makings (chairwoman), Zelda Spann (vice-chairwoman), Nicola Butler, Diane Wooldridge and Any Meyer.

In order to be eligible for election, each candidate, who had to be a registered member, had to be nominated by at least one member of the society and seconded by another.

If members are not satisfied with the results of the elections they have the option to call a special general meeting, during which they will be permitted to object to the elections.

According to Wooldridge, the fraud case refers to funds that were stolen from the charity shop by one of the employees, whose employment was terminated seven months ago.

She said more receipt books, proving further fraud committed by the guilty party, were discovered after the first incident and were given to their auditors, B J Priest, without her consent.

“B J Priest have to now peruse all these things, which is good and well and fine to get a more accurate audit,” she said.

“The auditor came to our previous meeting to explain his findings and said he did find irregularity, but it was very difficult to say if she did or did not take those funds, because the figures could not be matched up with our Pastel figures.

“It was a bookkeeping thing, but he said it was inconclusive.”

“The beginning and the end: yes there was a further amount that they could not tally up.”

Wooldridge concluded that they had not yet been able to recover the funds.

Also raised and affirmed at the meeting was that the society had not maintained a euthanasia register for four years, until three months ago.

Wooldridge said at the meeting that she was not aware of this until it was brought to her attention, recently.

She added that the society had done the best they could in the closing year.

“We have been in total distress as we are understaffed,” she explained.

“I have given my all and I know that my committee has given theirs.”

Pieterse said each SPCA is autonomous and owned by its members and that it is up to the members to propose people to serve on the committee.

“Ultimately, if the committee is failing, the members are failing, because the members did not take the stance that ‘we want to propose this member to the committee’,” he said.

Wooldridge said the society hopes to restore the public’s faith in them as, without the public’s support, the society is not capable of proceeding with its work.

n The public was particularly aggressive about the recent suspension of senior inspector Annalise Jungmann, who is facing charges of animal cruelty.

The finding of her hearing was due to be decided by Tuesday afternoon (July 7) and will be published shortly thereafter.