BY LAWS OF THE MUYUKA SONS AND DAUGHTERS IN THE USA ***************** I – PREAMBLE i) Name: The name of the Association shall be Muyuka Sons and Daughters of America abbreviated MUSADA. ii) Motto: The motto of MUSADA shall be UNITY, SOLIDARITY AND PROGRESS iii) SYMBOL: The symbol shall be a cassava leaf over a garri frying pot with the words MUSADA and UNITY, SOLIDARITY AND PROGRESS inscribed also. II – MEMBERSHIP 1. Membership of MUSADA shall be open to any person, born or bred in Muyuka. 2. Any person who has material and as well as moral interest in the Muyuka Sub Division 3. MUSADA shall cover the whole of Muyuka Sub-Division. 4. Members in Good Standing should be up to date with their dues and must have attended at least 40% of the time. III – THE BUREAU 1 MUSADA shall be managed by a bureau elected for a term of two years renewable once. The bureau shall comprise 12 members: 1 President 1 Vice President 1 Secretary General 1 Assistant Secretary General 1 Treasurer 1 Financial Secretary 2 Auditors 1 1 Chief Whip 1 Public Relations Officer 2 Advisers 2 The Bureau shall be elected by universal suffrage. Voting shall be uninominal and by simple majority of members present and in good standing. 3. The Bureau shall also function as the Disciplinary Council of MUSADA . IV – ORGANISATION OF MEETINGS a) MUSADA shall organise monthly meetings and an end-of-year Party b) Monthly meetings shall be held on the 1st Sunday of the month from 6.00 PM to 10.00 PM in the residence of a member or where the Bureau/General Meeting decides. Late coming fine of one dollar ($1.00) shall be charged from 6:30p.m. c) The end-of-year Party shall be organised in the residence of a member of the Association or at any other venue chosen by the Bureau. Other Branches from other States may be involved. V – FINANCIAL PROVISIONS 1. Sources of income for MUSADA shall be from members contribution, legacies, donations and other fund raising activities 2. Yearly Registration dues: they stand at $10.00 payable in one instalment. 3. The Financial year for MUSADA shall start on January 1st and end on December 31st. 4. a) Solidarity fund: each member shall pay $10.00 (ten dollars) into the solidarity fund during each monthly meeting. Members who chose may pay their yearly contribution in one instalment of $120.00. b) The solidarity fund shall serve as follows: i) Death of a member: $500.00 (five hundred) from the solidarity fund in addition to a contribution of at least one hundred (100) dollars per member. 2 ii) Death of a child of less than 18.00 years, five hundred dollars ($500.00) from the Solidarity fund and in addition to a contribution of fifty (50) dollars per member iii) Death of Father or Mother, The Bureau shall deliberate and decide on each case. In General members having the same mother or family shall jointly contribute as one in the case of the death of another 5. Conditions for the withdrawal of funds: 3 (three) signatures (President, Secretary and Treasurer) shall be deposited in the bank where the account of MUSADA is domiciled. 2 (two) signatures shall be needed for any withdrawals of funds. 6. Only members who regularly attend meetings and are up-to-date in their financial dues shall receive the token sums. 7. For Social Activities, if invited members will contribute $5.00. Social activities shall be limited to Childbirth, marriage and Christening VI – FUNCTIONS OF MEMBERS OF THE BUREAU The functions of members of the Bureau shall be as follows: The President a) The President shall represent MUSADA where necessary. b) He/She shall be the chairman of both the Bureau and General Meetings c) He/She shall be responsible for implementing the decisions of the Bureau and the General Assembly. d) He/She shall report to the Bureau and General Assembly whenever there is a meeting of activities planned and or carried from the last presented report. e) He/She shall be a signatory of the accounts of the Association. f) He/She shall convene meetings of the Association g) He/She may delegate duties to other members as He/She sees fit from time to time. Vice President a) The Vice President shall act in the place of the President when the President is absent or delegates him to do so. b) Where the post of a President is vacant, He/She shall automatically assume the office until the next election of the President. 3 Secretary General a) The Secretary General shall be responsible for keeping the records of the meetings and activities of MUSADA. b) He/She shall read out these reports to the General Assembly or Association whenever they meet. c) With the Approval or instructions from the President He/She shall convene meetings. d) In agreement with the President He/She shall be responsible for all official correspondence. e) He/She shall be a signatory to the Bank Account of MUSADA. 1 Assistant Secretary General a) The Assistant Secretary shall assist the Secretary as need arises or when delegated by the Secretary or President. b) In case of the Secretary being absent, through Absence, or vacancy of the post of Secretary, He/She shall assume the office of the Secretary. Treasurer a) The Treasurer shall be responsible for the physical and fiscal assets of the Association. b) He/She shall make available these assets when asked to do so by the Bureau or General Assembly through the President or any other officer designated by these bodies. c) He/She shall also make a monthly report (with supporting documents if need be) of what came and went under his responsibilities. d) He/She shall be a signatory to the Bank Account. Financial Secretary a) The financial secretary shall be responsible for keeping an accurate record of the movement of the assets of the Association. b) He/She shall be responsible to report to the association whenever the Association meets. 4 c) He/She shall be responsible for the list of Paid up Members and shall make this available to the Bureau and Association whenever the need arises. d) He/She shall be charged with the responsibility of reminding members of their monthly dues. Auditor a) The auditor shall audit the accounts from time to time. b) He/She shall be expected to audit the account at least two times a year. c) He/She may be delegated by the President, the Bureau or the General Assembly to audit the account at any time. d) He/She shall make his findings available to the President, Bureau and General Assembly. e) He/She shall draw the attention of the Bureau or the General Assembly to any misuse of funds Chief Whip a) He/She shall be responsible for the discipline of the conduct of meetings. b) He/She is empowered to fine any member who misbehaves. c) He/She shall submit such list with their fines paid or unpaid to the Treasurer and the Financial Secretary. d) In his absence the President or Secretary may designate any member to act in his place. Public Relations Officer a) A public relations officer shall assist the Bureau in presenting a positive image of MUSADA to the Public. b) He/She shall contact members for meetings. c) He/She shall assist the President in organising meetings and disseminating information about MUSADA. d) He/She shall report to the President 5 Advisers a) The Advisers shall advise the President, the Bureau or the General Assembly on matters regarding the proper functioning of the Association. b) They may be designated from time to time to fulfil the functions of any member of the Bureau who may be absent. c) They shall attend all meetings. VII – DISCIPLINE In the event of unruly behaviour of a member, the following sanctions shall be applicable: a) Call to order by the President; b) Written warning; c) Suspension of membership or levying a fine; Such suspension shall not exceed six months from the date of the last General meeting. The fine shall be from $50.00 to $200.00 and payment modality shall be determined at time of levying. d) Permanent expulsion by the General Assembly without prejudice to legal action; e) Any defaulting member of the Bureau shall be voted out by the General Assembly. VIII - FINAL PROVISIONS Any amendment of these by-laws shall be approved by at least 2/3 of the members of the General Assembly. These bye-laws were adopted during a General Assembly meeting held in Laurel, Maryland USA on the 9th of September 2007. 6