Following the Lady Jaguars’ attempts to solicit government intervention into the unequal allocation of resources by the Guyana Football Federation (GFF), former Golden Jaguars international Kayode McKinnon feels that the local governing body should operate in a more transparent manner.
Mc Kinnon made the statement during an exclusive interview with Stabroek Sport. Asked what were his thoughts on recent revelations with respect to the Lady Jaguars programme, the Linden native responded, “I think being more transparent with regards to all aspects within the game can help to build a healthy and safe environment for everyone involved.”
McKinnon is the second former national player after former senior men’s captain Christopher Nurse, to speak publicly on the current episode.
The Lady Jaguars, Guyana’s national senior women’s team, on Wednesday dispatched a letter to the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport Charles Ramson Jr., highlighting the unequal allocation of resources by the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) to their programme.
“We are writing to express our frustrations around the unfair and inequitable distribution of resources and support provided to the female participants in comparison to our male counterparts. We feel the impact of years of systemic bias. We have been relegated to second-class citizens because of our gender even though our records and accomplishments are amongst the best across the Caribbean region,” the Lady Jaguars wrote in the letter which was copied to First Lady, Arya Alli.
The GFF subsequently acknowledged the issues in a press release and stated that it is committed to resolving all matters plaguing the programme.
“It is regrettable that this highly-valued group of players did not avail themselves of the opportunity to raise their concerns directly with the federation’s executive or administration,” said GFF president Wayne Forde.
“However, the federation recognizes the seriousness of the issues raised and is deeply concerned that some of Guyana’s most valued players feel disenfranchised in this way. The executive committee will be reaching out to the players to meet and discuss the matter in the coming days,” he added.
Questioned as to whether the GFF was wrong for not providing adequate resources, as well not paying match fees to their female players while they represented the nation, the former midfielder said, “The GFF recently announced the match fees for their players. I believe every national team goes through some kind of agreement with management or players for said national teams and if that is not the case then we must do a better job of taking care of our ambassadors.”
He added, “If they did and it was not accepted, the entire country must know because it’s the country’s team. I believe transparency can truly contribute to forging better relationships across the board.”
Asked if the GFF should make public the financial packages for all their male senior staff inclusive of Head Coach and Technical Director, as its alleged that the female staff is not paid for their services, McKinnon said, “I think the GFF should, if stakeholders are invested in the process of development. I would think the GFF would want to make that very transparent to not invite any faults, accusations, on how the resources are being used for the development of their own people. I wish that the players, the coaches and the administrators all benefit from the sport that requires a holistic commitment.”
Albeit comprising of mostly Canadian and USA born players, the women’s programme is the most successful team under the jurisdiction of the federation.
The Lady Jaguars senior side became the first team, male or female, to qualify for the Concacaf Gold Cup, a feat which occurred in 2010, nine years before the Golden Jaguars. They also secured Guyana’s only appearance in the Concacaf Olympic Qualifier Championship which occurred in 2016.
In addition, the Lady Jaguars have recorded the highest ever ranking of 75th, by a senior side, male or female, in 2018. They also became the first ever junior programme to secure a quarterfinal berth in 2020 following their participation in the Concacaf U20 Champion ship.
“Despite these accomplishments, our Women’ Senior National Team has sat dormant for three years while the men’s team continues to play multiple games each year. Unlike the men’s programme, our coaches and staff are volunteers and our players receive no funding to offset the costs of national team participation. Families and players must make financial contributions so that we can have an opportunity to play,” the Lady Jaguars wrote in their letter.
“Imagine how disheartening it is to hear the men get paid for matches in addition to not having to buy their own practice kits or pay for their own practice fields. The financial support to the men’s programme at the exclusion of the women’s programme is wrong and must stop. Every member of our team has sacrificed to help drive the goal of elevating the role of women in the sport of football across Guyana. We are happy to serve as role models, but the burden should not be ours alone to bear,” the players bemoaned in the letter.
