Recognising that COVID-19 guidelines were not being observed at a T20 softball competition at the Everest Cricket Club yesterday, President Irfaan Ali chided organisers and representatives of the club.
Ali, who had agreed to be the patron of the T20 softball competition, was given the assurance that all systems would be in place to adhere to strict COVID-19 protocols on and off-field, a release from the Office of the President said.
Upon arriving at the game, which was in its final innings, he observed that spectators, representatives of the club and organisers were not wearing masks. Furthermore there was no social distancing in the crowd. Since the COVID pandemic surfaced here last March, 201 persons have died from the virus.
Expressing his disappointment, Ali said “We all know how difficult it is during this pandemic. When I look around here, I must say that I am disappointed with the organisers for allowing the situation where you are exposing each other to this dangerous pandemic. As your President, I love you and I care about you. I cannot be in an environment like this and see you expose yourself in this manner and allow you to do it.”
He further told organisers that they should have been more thoughtful and responsible to ensure that the guidelines were in place and enforced.
“I am going to say to the organisers you have a responsibility, and if you can’t take the responsibility seriously, then we have serious problems. We can’t build a country on irresponsibility. We have to build a country on respect, love and responsibility for each other… It is only when we care about each other then we can protect each other,” the Head of State underscored.
In his address, the President passionately pleaded with attendees to correct the situation by wearing their masks, sanitizing and maintaining social distance.
“I ask you to think about your families think about your communities and think about yourselves and please correct the situation by wearing a mask and following the COVID-19 protocols and guidelines,” the president said.
Stabroek News understands that there were just over 200 persons in attendance viewing the game and Ali spent less than 20 minutes at the venue. After observing protocols were not being adhered to, Ali told organisers he was not in a position to stay through the game.
President of the Everest Cricket Club, Manzoor Nadir and President of the Georgetown Soft Ball League Ian John both told Stabroek News that after consulting they agreed to bring the game to an end after the president voiced his concerns.
“Respecting … the concerns of the President, myself and Mr Nadir decided to end the game. It was at its climax but we had to do something to show respect,” John stated.
“We had protocols in place for masks and sanitization but the patrons were not fully adhering. We gave masks to persons, who did not come in with masks. They accepted but they were still not wearing the masks,” John explained, before noting that they will have to review how they will enforce COVID-19 rules for future games.
The gate
John explained further that that while they rented the ground and are normally in charge of the gate to monitor the amount of persons entering, this was not the case for this game. He said that the club took control of the gate and they did not effectively manage the crowd going in.
“We had no control of the crowd coming in… In November when we hosted the Prime Minister’s Cup, we didn’t have this situation and that allowed us to get permission for this tournament. Now we have to look at how we can host future games and not breach the guidelines,” he said.
Nadir, who is also Speaker of the National Assembly told this newspaper that despite it not being an event hosted by the club, they still have to take responsibility since it was their venue.
Noting that he agreed with the President’s position, he said the club will now have to revisit how organisers handle future events.
He stated that the club had installed sanitization booths and had been handing out masks to persons, but like John he pointed out that the patrons were not wearing these.
Contradicting what John said, Nadir asserted that the organisers were in control of the gate and not the club.
Nonetheless, he noted that “It is not the host of the event but the ones who control the venue gets the blame. But I have already begun speaking with the executive and we have to reevaluate how we ensure these guidelines are followed by organisers and spectators” for future events.
A few patrons who remained at the venue after the game ended confirmed that many persons failed to wear their masks and to stay distanced. They believe that the organisers and the venue executives should have been in a position to enforce the wearing of mask and other regulations.
Just last week, the Guyana Motor Racing and Sports Club (GMR&SC) was informed that future activities were suspended until further notice following a breach of agreement. They were informed of the breach by the National COVID-19 Task Force.
During round one of the Drag Race Championship on Sunday last at the South Dakota Circuit, in excess of 3,000 fans thronged the venue, a direct violation of the agreement between the Task Force and the club.
The club was granted conditional approval by the Task Force to host the event and it was agreed between the bodies that no more than 1,500 persons, inclusive of participants and spectators, would be permitted entry. However, that was not the case as hundreds more than the agreed attendance, showed up and were permitted to enter the venue. According to Director of the Task Force, Colonel Nazrul Hussain, the GMR&SC was in breach of the agreement.
He noted that the event can be classified as a “super spreader” as “thousands of persons” were at the venue. Colonel Hussain said what transpired was a “flagrant violation” of the COVID-19 measures, and the authorities have decided to immediately suspend all future activities of the GMR&SC. Prior to getting the final approval for last Sunday’s activity, the Task Force had denied the club’s request on February 4. However, the club requested a review of the decision on February 18, asking for permission “for a scaled down activity.”
