After 19 years in office at the helm of Guyana’s cricket Chetram Singh is about to call it a day but his impending departure will take longer than anticipated due to critical oversight by the Friendly Societies.
The long-serving president of the GCB was hoping to demit office at the end of January last when elections were to be held and he had made it quite clear that he would not be seeking another term in office but the Friendly Societies, an arm of the Ministry of Labour intervened following allegations of financial improprieties within the GCB.
Singh had indicated that he was desirous of leaving since 2010 when he was challenged by former Secretary Bishwa Panday.
Singh was however urged to stay on to oversee the management of Guyana hosting matches in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Twenty 20 World Cup and he formed unholy alliances to cling to power. His confidantes Malcolm Peters and Alvin Johnson, presidents of the Berbice and Essequibo Cricket Boards were ousted prior to the GCB’s election in strategic manoeuvering to get at his position.
Last year’s elections left many visible scars not even the best plastic surgeon could rectify.
With Panday out on the sidelines it looked like Singh would have been in a better position to manage the affairs of the board, or so it seemed.
Cracks emerged almost immediately when Singh took ill and had to be hospitalized in the height of the World Cup preparations.
The tsunami-like state of affairs almost brought the administration of the GCB into disrepute and had caused great embarrassment to Guyana as factions led by vice president Bissoondyal Singh and secretary Anand Sanasie battle over leadership of the board.
Even in his sick-state Chetram Singh was forced to resume duties to avert a crisis but the war raged on to the extent that one board official, assistant treasurer Pretipaul Jaigobin was doused with acid and scarred for life in what was believed to be an attack directly related to the GCB predicament.
Jaigobin had accused his colleagues of wrong doing when an unidentified assailant struck shortly after he attended a meeting of the board.
Sports Minister Dr. Frank Anthony had attempted to mediate in the GCB impasse but with very little success even as the crisis loomed larger.
The upcoming elections of the GCB is destined to be another war as Bissoondyal Singh and Sanasie factions have shown clear signs that there will be no letting up as they have gone head-to-head over the leadership of the important Demerara Cricket Board (DCB) with both factions claiming the administration responsibility, a situation that is engaging the courts. While the battles rage in the boardrooms and in the courts Guyana’s cricket has hit its lowest ebb on the field with the national senior team failing to win a single match in the current West Indies four-day tournament and has slumped to the bottom of the points table three years in a row.
The sacking of two national coaches Albert Smith and Rabindranauth Seeram in just over two years speaks volume of the crisis.
The Minister of Labour Manzoor Nadir at the recent Press Conference did make it public that the board was not in conformity with proper administrative practices.
The minister posited that there were “some issues” that had arisen out of a recent audit of the board’s finances but declined to divulge details.
There have been accusations of financial impropriety in several projects undertaken by the board.
The big question remains, how many of these administrators are serious about the development of Guyana’s cricket?
What is ironic is that the majority of these administrators have not had the distinction of representing Guyana on the field of play. Another cause of concern has been the lack of interest shown by former national players to be in the mainstream of the administration of the game locally.
Even when all the matters related to the Friendly Societies are cleared up and elections are held can we expect the current cricket administrators to put aside their differences and work together to push for a turnaround of Guyana’s cricketing fortunes?
There seem to be not many options available to end the impasse as the GCB AGM may become a carbon copy of the Demerara Cricket Board debacle.
There have been many views from every quarter including cricket pundits about a way out but no one has provided a tangible solution.
The million dollar question remains will the AGM bring about the necessary change that is required for a turnaround, the answer is anyone’s guess and mediation seems to be the only way out, but “who will bell the cat”?
