Former president of the Guyana Cycling Federation (GCF) and current General Secretary of the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) Hector Edwards, says approval from the GCF General Assembly is required for the federation to remain in office.
The GCF has not held elections in over a year and the life of the current executive ended since last June.
According to Edwards, one of the country’s top cyclists in his prime, only the General Assembly can extend the life of the current executives.
“The only way they can remain in office is if the General Assembly decides to extend the life [of the executives] until a certain point in time,” said Edwards in an invited comment.
“If there is no such decision then they should not be in office to run the interest of the federation. You can’t decide on your own to push back elections,” he added.
Burrowes, elected president in 2015, has had a turbulent period at the helm with the clubs trying to move a no confidence motion against him while there were several calls for the intervention of the world cycling body.
An Interim Body was installed but the International Cycling Union (UCI) said it recognized Burrowes as the president until such time that fresh elections are held which the UCI noted, were due by June of last year.
Pascale Schyns, International Relations Manager of the UCI, in a letter to Ms Gemma Williams, had stated…” To have a change of president, elections should be democratically called and according to our Constitution and the Guyana Cycling Federation, the next one should take place in June 2018.
In the meanwhile we suggest you talk with each other to find a solution to your internal problems. “
Recently Burrowes, has been on record saying conversations on the elections are “irrelevant at this time.”
He also posited that the GCF is in “good standing with UCI [International Cycling Union].”
“The elections of the GCF is coming up, but I don’t think that is relevant at this time and I think we will speak on this a different time…the discussion could happen over the phone, when I return…I wouldn’t be hard to find,” Burrowes said at a press conference held recently.
Burrowes also declared that he acts as the International Cycling Union (UCI) sees fit or mandates
“I will say again the Guyana Cycling Federation is in very good standing with the UCI and the UCI is the world body and they control the federation or every international federation and I do as UCI say and I go as our Constitution says and if UCI says to do certain things then I am doing as UCI say so I am actually going to say I don’t think it is relevant for us to speak on that anymore in terms of the elections,” Burrowes said.
But Edwards slammed Burrowes for the comments.
“All I would say right now is that is sheer trash, because you cannot say you are not compliant with the local constitution but with UCI when the local constitution is in accordance with UCI…so you’re inconsistent with your own constitution but compliant with UCI that’s just nonsense,” Edwards said adding that he would like Burrowes and his executives to point to the UCI constitution that they are compliant with.
