By Rawle Toney
President of the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) retired Col. Godwin McPherson is maintaining his silence on the country’s participation in the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Caribbean Championship, to be held in the British Virgin Islands  from June 28 to July 4.

Today is Guyana’s deadline to inform the CBC of its participation in the tournament and up to press time it was still not clear whether or not a national team would play. After attempts over a two-week period, Stabroek Sport finally managed to make contact with McPherson. “Look right now, I don’t have the time, but you all can continue writing and reporting,” he said, when contacted by telephone by Stabroek Sport and quizzed about the prospects of Guyana attending the Championship.

It was reported that the GABF and their two most active sub-associations – Linden Amateur Basketball Association (LABA) and Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GABA)-were supposed to meet with the intention of short-listing the best local players for a national team. But apparently this did not materialize.

GABA President Trevor Rose explained that more than a week ago he was told of the meeting and initially he was asked to have the meeting held at his office. Since then, Rose said, he has heard nothing about it. Meanwhile, efforts to contact President of the LABA Uburn Smith proved futile. However, LABA Secretary Joe Chapman said that he only learnt of the meeting last Sunday (April 12th) through Smith, though since then he has heard nothing.

When this newspaper questioned McPherson about the meeting and the reason why it was not held, he said: “I honestly fed up with all this. Like I said, I don’t have the time. Everyday you open the papers is something and I’m just fed up. So you guys (media) just continue, I done.”

Guyana was represented by an all overseas cast at the last CBC championship in Puerto Rico because the locals did not get their visas to travel. It seems like this would be the route taken again this year. But this could lead to some problems with some local players, since some of them have already sounded their intentions of representing Guyana on the big stage.

Now, they would have to keep their fingers crossed while waiting for some definite word over the next 24 hours.