Dear Editor,
The editorial of the Stabroek News of June 7 is on the whole without foundation and an unjustified attack on Dr Frank Anthony, Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport. I would at the outset like to state that the acid attack on Mr Pretipaul Jaigobin was a dastardly act and I hope that the culprit and any accomplices would be arrested and brought to justice.
I would like to commend Minister Anthony for summoning the meeting with the executive members of the Guyana Cricket Board as the continued in-fighting amongst these members and their supporters had without a doubt brought the Guyana Cricket Board into disrepute. If left unabated, then the real persons who would ultimately suffer would be cricket and our cricketers. Cricket is our national sport and it was incumbent on the Minister to act. The acid attack on Mr Jaigobin with the subsequent suspicions that his queries on matters relating to the business of the Board were the cause for the said attack made an intervention more urgent and immediate.
I do not agree with the editorial that “it would have been ideal if the Board had been able to heal itself without the intervention of the Minister or eventually the West Indies Cricket Board as that would not bode well for its future ability to operate in a less fractious manner.”
The Guyana Cricket Board had for months been in a fractious and self-destructing mode and it was time for there to be a call for reason, for the good of the game to be paramount and not the ambitions of any one person. Reason was not emanating from the Board. I am informed that the meeting with the Minister was one where all present were able to ventilate their views without bitterness and this is to the credit to all those persons who attended that meeting. I have spoken to several parties in this matter and was informed that the Minister did not force down any decision on the parties but acted as a stimulant for healing and good reason.
One of the issues was that the Board and/or some officials were using one of the two constitutions conveniently, and that the purported new constitution had not been properly approved. The parties unanimously agreed that the constitution of the Board would be looked at and recommendations made. It was agreed (a) there would be a three-man committee, (b) that Mr Ramsey Alli, the Marketing Manager of the Board would be a member representing all the members of Board, (c) that Mr Alfred King, the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, would be a member and that (d) the Attorney-General would nominate one of his legal officers to this committee.
It was also unanimously agreed that Mr Alfred King would attend future meetings of the executive of the Board as an observer. This was requested by the members attending and the Minister acquiesced.
There was the issue of financial irregularities and it was again unanimously agreed that the Minister would ask the Office of the Auditor General to nominate a private firm of auditors from an approved list to do this review. It is not for the Office of the Auditor General to do the review but for a firm to be identified and the Guyana Cricket Board would have to bear the cost for this exercise.
It was further agreed unanimously that the firm Design and Construction Services would be enlisted to do a review of the construction of the hostels at Anna Regina, Essequibo Coast and LBI, East Coast Demerara in order to ascertain whether there was value for money.
I am informed and reliably believe that Minister Anthony did not set out to throw oil on troubled waters; that is not the style of this Minister. The action of Minister Anthony was responsible and there was no reason for there to have been any criticism and for conjecture that there may be a cover-up.
Yours faithfully,
K A Juman-Yassin
President of the Guyana Olympic Association
