Dear Editor,
The current executives of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) are treading on uncertain ground that will inevitably further destabilize cricket administration in Guyana. This is due to the Chief Justice’s historic ruling with regard to the non-legality of the GCB and in fact all cricketing entities, including those in the three counties. There are still pending cricket matters before the court and therefore the recent GCB elections cannot escape public scrutiny. Even the WICB observers who were present will not give credence to the process. The Berbice Cricket Board did not participate given the dubious climate, as well as the other faction of the Demerara Cricket Board. I am particularly surprised that the WICB has publicly acknowledged that regional and international cricket will return to the National Stadium in 2013 even as they continue to refuse the government’s position in regularizing the governance of the game through legislation that will hold the executives of the GCB accountable by law and practice.
When the country’s most progressive cricketing county (Berbice) is not represented on the GCB then how can cricket (administration) succeed in this country? There is even the allegation that the county’s players are being bypassed for selection, especially the example of Sewnarine Chattergoon who was the leading batsman in the just concluded senior inter-county tournament. It is an injustice to someone who would have been a model of dedication en route to his elevation to the highest level, and who still displays enormous will and passion to sustain such consistently impressive performances.
Such suspicion of the current GCB even if remotely audible, will continue to negatively impact on its image and by extension the practical output of the players if they cannot be properly prepared for regional tournaments. The WICB should be polite to the government since the laws of the country must be respected. A similar scenario existed within the football spectrum and it took the parent bodies’ (FIFA/CONCACAF) intervention to facilitate a solution. Why can’t the WICB follow the same route? Instead they have resolutely objected to every single proposal of the IMC instituted by the government and are now satisfied with the elections as acknowledged by WICB Director and observer, Barbadian Conde Riley. His knowledge of the general situation is revealed in his statement that the process was transparent based on the current GCB constitution. This is the very constitution(s) that has continually plagued the administration of cricket after the exit of Chetram Singh from the helm.
The Essequibo Cricket Board’s AGM was also interesting though transparent. However there was an interest on the part of some of the eventual executives of the current GCB to ensure that the ECB was unanimously supportive of the GCB. In fact there was an immediate reversal of the ECB’s position in promoting the IMC’s objectives, including adopting a new constitution for the GCB. There were major changes within the executive of the ECB, including the presidency. Former Presidents Asif Ahmad and Prince Holder with support from the area committees had conscientiously worked with the IMC, but this development will now have a swift end. The intentions are clear. Ironically it is the combined opposition and the government that will have to provide the key and collectively embrace the Cricket Administration Bill that is to be tabled in Parliament. The GCB cannot exist without the government’s support and therefore this volatile situation should have an early determination towards a more civil and inclusive governance of the nation’s premier sport and its human resources.
Yours faithfully,
Elroy Stephney
