My understanding is that the very essence of the mutual share is that they have a voting control. They have the right to vote on the goings-on of the company. They also have the right to share in company surpluses and to decide, in essence, what that company's surplus is at an annual vote. They don't decide, but they vote in the directors who decide what the surplus is.
On May 1st, 2012. See this statement in context.