Numbers game at AFA on constitutional change
The authority of the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) board will be put to the test following its decision to reject a call from within the so-called Life Insurance Customer Group (LICG) for an extraordinary general meeting to pursue a key constitutional change.
The AFA board yesterday rejected the EGM call and urged AFA members to support its position but Money Management understands that pressure would be maintained by a number of members upset over the manner in which the organisation was drawn into the Trowbridge and Life Insurance Framework (LIF) development and keen to ensure there was no repeat.
The board's position was made clear by AFA president, Deborah Kent, yesterday when she warned that the resolution risked stifling the voice of the AFA in policy issues in circumstances where there was little scope for reversing a LIF that was supported by both the Government and the Opposition.
"The proposed change would mean the AFA Board would not be able to form any policy position, or negotiate any policy position with Government, other associations or consumer interest groups, without calling a general meeting and conducting a member vote," Kent said.
"This is a critical time in the profession's development. AFA members need representation at the decision maker's tables. This change to the constitution would reduce and possibly remove the AFA's relevance as a voice."
She said the call for the proposed constitutional change appeared to have been motivated by the adviser's perception that the AFA did not adequately consult members on the LIF — something which was wrong and misguided.
Kent outlined the consultative processes which had been followed by the AFA in terms of the LIF, adding that the proposed constitutional change would not reverse the LIF, which has the support of both the Government and the Opposition.
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