Newly-elected president of the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GABA), David Carto has referred to efforts to revive basketball in Georgetown as “an uphill battle.”
He added that members of his administration, all of whom are also newly-elected GABA executives, are working towards bouncing off a basketball tournament next month.
“It’s an uphill battle, but we [GABA executives] will have the necessary help from the clubs,” said Carto speaking to Stabroek Sport yesterday. Carto disclosed that GABA is looking to jump off this year with a tournament next month at the Burnham Basketball Court.
He stated that the tournament is a part of GABA’s plans to ensure that basketball is played once again around Georgetown.
“Within a month of the elections we wanted to get something going, at least a little competition to get things going,” Carto explained. “We want to get basketball playing again,” he added.
Carto stated that he had also promised the clubs that within two weeks of the elections, which were held on February 13, GABA would’ve presented them with plans relating to the development of basketball.
He said that his association is in the process of finalizing these plans and will be meeting with representatives of the clubs on the weekend of March 5 or 6 to update them on GABA’s plans and to invite ideas from the clubs regarding the competition.
Carto noted that he has also requested that the clubs each identify some issues affecting basketball, bring it to GABA’s attention and recommend ways of resolving the issues at the upcoming meeting.
In plotting the way forward, the GABA president stated that he held a meeting with his executives last Sunday and also met with the treasurer of the past GABA administration, who informed them that he will officially hand over GABA’s accounts and a financial report before the week is out.
As part of the current association’s plans, which were disclosed in detail in a slate for the executives presented at GABA’s AGM and elections, their main areas of focus will be “strengthening the structure and organization of the clubs, increasing the participation of youths in the sport, garnering sponsorship for infrastructure development and training and development programmes.”
In highlighting some of the goals of the current administration Carto noted on the slate: “Our intention is to work at strengthening the organizational capacities of the association [GABA], so as to stimulate the development of the clubs as well as to contribute to the development of basketball in schools. To this end we propose to develop and implement a plan, with inputs from the clubs, as well as the federation, officials and other interested stakeholders.”
