BAGA Response to Issues Related to Current BODs vs. Term Limit
Dear Mr. Chowdhury and Community Members:
Thank you very much for expressing your concerns on term length of the first BOD of BAGA. We really appreciate this kind of careful scrutiny that strengthens an organization and its bylaws.
We have received a number of suggestions and concerns to improve the BAGA bylaws in the last few months. Suggestions related to absentee and proxy voting, membership criteria, term length of the BOD, officers’ responsibilities etc. and our desire to make our bylaws better require that we institute a process to revisit the bylaws on a regular basis. We have been planning to initiate a review and possible amendment process for BAGA bylaws by forming a 'Bylaws Task Force' comprising of community members through an open invitation announcement, soon to follow. As expressed by Mr. Chowdhury, bylaws is the document we all should refer to since it is supposed to capture the community’s collective decisions.
In regards to the term length of the first BOD, indeed the community members decided in open forums that the term length of the first BOD will be more than one calendar year. In the bylaws, as observed by some of you, it might appear unclear, whether the 'one year' term length is 'one calendar year' or 'one fiscal year' or 'one administrative year defined by the year between two consecutive AGM and elections', leaving room for interpretations.
There may be circumstances when the term length will be more or less than one calendar year. These include, among other possibilities, a) if all directors of a Board resign simultaneously thus forcing an early AGM and election, the new BOD could have longer term length, b) if the AGM and election is postponed to July due to special situations like natural disasters or unavailability of venue, the new BOD could have shorter term length, etc. We will leave these to be discussed and deliberated by the Bylaws Task Force. This task force will provide recommendation to the BOD in terms of proposed text and if we need a mid-term amendment.
In order to improve the bylaws through modifications, clarifications and corrections, we support amending the bylaws, when necessary. Our bylaws is a living document and through its prescribed process for amendments, it will evolve with our evolving community. Amendments, if deemed necessary, make a bylaws stronger and relevant.
Once again, we thank you very much for raising your concerns. We will send your question and proposed amendment text along with other bylaws related suggestions and concerns to the soon to be formed bylaws task force comprising of community members.
We encourage you and all other interested to join the Bylaws Task Force, when announced.
Sincerely,
BAGA BOD