The Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport yesterday stated that there was no ban on media operatives attending sports events at the Guyana National Stadium but that it had established conditions for reporting on the facility and its conditions.
The ministry was responding to a letter from the Guyana Press Association(GPA) which sought clarification after media operatives were prevented from entering the Stadium on January 27th.
According to president of the Guyana Press Association Nazima Raghubir, several media operatives had complained to the GPA that they had been either prevented from entering or told that they needed permission to enter the facility.
Raghubir duly wrote Minister of Sport Charles Ramson Jnr., seeking clarification on the matter but had not received a response up to Friday evening.
The Ministry said that it was not in receipt of the GPA’s president’s letter.
“While the Ministry’s Ministerial secretariat has been unable to confirm receipt of a letter by the Guyana Press Association, the Ministry would like to state that the Ministry holds the media in high regard and will continue to do so,” the ministry’s reponse to the GPA’s letter stated adding that it wanted to “dispel and disabuse any concerns the Guyana Press Association or the media may have on the issue and state that there is no “ban” of the media or any particular media personnel from the Guyana National Stadium.”
Permission needed
“For the sake of clarity on the issue, the ministry has sought to establish a simple procedure for media reporting on the condition of the ground at the Guyana National Stadium, that is, a letter is written to the Ministry to schedule a visit to the ground by any media personnel/representative for the purpose of reporting on its condition. This visit will be expeditiously facilitated and will be conducted in the presence of a representative of the Ministry.
False reporting
“This simple procedure was established in response to an unfortunate incident which occurred a few weeks ago where there was a false media report published on the condition of the ground at the Guyana National Stadium which the Ministry was compelled to refute publicly and in the presence of the media.
Upon further investigation by the Ministry, there were conflicting contentions that a visit was made to the ground by media representatives immediately before publication even though the staff at the Guyana National Stadium denied observing any such visit and the cameras, when reviewed, did not capture any such visit.
International tournaments
“It is also important to note that the condition of the ground at the Guyana National Stadium is the basis for Guyana being able to host international and regional tournaments. This means that the Ministry has a responsibility to protect the image and reputation of the facility. This also means that reporting on the condition of the ground must be responsible. It is for these forgoing reasons that the Ministry has established a simple procedure for the reporting on the condition of the ground of the Guyana National Stadium by the media.
Invitation extended
“The Ministry publicly extends an invitation to anyone in the media interested in reporting on the condition of the ground at the Guyana National Stadium to write to the Ministry to schedule a visit and one will be facilitated expeditiously.
The Ministry would also like to emphasize that while the simple procedure has been established for the reporting on the condition of ground, any media representative is welcome to visit the Guyana National Stadium at any time. The Ministry uses this opportunity to remind everyone that it was only a few months ago that the facility was opened to the public for the first time because of a decision made by the new President Irfaan Ali led Government of Guyana.”
Sports Editor’s Note: This newspaper was the newspaper that broke the story of the damage to the field at the National Stadium at Providence. The damage to the field was also corroborated by Anthony Xavier, manager of the Guyana National Stadium in an interview in another section of the media. Therefore, it is absolutely mind-boggling as to how the Minister can say that there was no damage and that the report was false. Is he questioning the credibility of his own staff? Additionally, anyone who has played football or understands how football is played, especially given certain conditions, will understand that there will be damage underfoot, given the type of pegs (six or 13 etc.) needed and the constant running and changing of direction and tackling with the cricket pitch right in the middle of the action. Not to mention the fact that rain fell at the venue for the second half. Regardless of what the Minister says, (which I strongly doubt anyone with a modicum of common sense believes) this newspaper stands by the veracity of its report and its photograph.
