Former Technical Director of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) and Trinidad & Tobago’s national football coach Jamaal Shabazz has called the upcoming April 12 GFF elections the most important in the history of Guyana’s football.
Nominations for the post of president closed yesterday and Aubrey ‘Shanghai’ Major, Alfred King and Christopher Matthias are among those contesting the post of GFF president.
“This election is more important than Government (General and regional) election and I think the people who have the power of the votes have got to be very responsible and show maturity and vision in the votes, said Shabazz.
Shabazz feels that the voters should chose a candidate with the best developmental plan for the sport.
“This is not a vote for favouritism and token, this is a vote to say who can solve the problems for Guyana football and my advice to the voters and football fraternity is that the time has come for business. We have to get businessmen involved in football because football is a business outside of Guyana and for Guyana to be able to compete; they need now the involvement of more businessmen,” he declared.
Shabazz disclosed that the GFF is some $30m in debt.
“The GFF has a $30M debt so if I’m going to vote for someone, I want to know how they’re going to deal with that $30M debt. So the time has come for people to be mature and think about the future; who of the candidates can take this from a business perspective and put it on a footing that will ensure that we get the best value for our dollar.”
Shabazz suggested that there needs to be a marriage between football and business. “If Guyana doesn’t go the professional way, they will be left behind, they have the talent, they have the coaches, but they need now business minded administration; an administration that can take the passion that the people have and get facilities…this is not just we want to see football and we go with normal people in football. No! We have to get the marriage between football and business.”
Shabazz was coach of the national senior men’s football team which reached the semi-finals of the CONCACAF Brazil World Cup Qualifiers, the furthest the team has ever reached but left last November to take up the post in Trinidad.
“People might ask why or who am I to make a pronouncement in the matters of Guyana football even though I left? He asked.
“Because from 2005 – 2008 and 2011 to the end of 2012 I’ve sacrificed everything for Guyana football and even when I’m not in Guyana I continue to give my resources and my time and advice to the Guyana football.
“Football in Guyana have no facilities; when you look like in Jamaica, all the clubs have grounds that they can pick up revenue, they don’t have to go and beg people to use the ground and as soon as rain fall they put up a white flag. In Trinidad they have five stadia, but where are the facilities in Guyana? Who has the ability to engage Government and engage private sector? What have been the results of those who went before? So these are the type of question one must ask…”
Shabazz said he was familiar with some of the persons seeking the top post of the GFF.
“I have heard and seen a few plans for the game and heard of some of the candidates going up but I’ll reiterate that amateur days are over in football administration in Guyana… If you want to bring big names to Guyana to play, and if you want to develop players from here to go overseas, we need to think business wise to make a living.”
