Cricket, Robert Corbin and our own dishonesty

Sep 04, 2011 Sports

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Dear Editor,
The population of this country has been severe on Robert Corbin for not standing up to the PPP Government since he became Opposition Leader. Corbin is our whipping boy. Corbin is the mask we use to hide our own dishonesty. Tell me what the ineffectiveness of Robert Corbin has to do with the almost total silence that has been the response to the political take-over of cricket administration that occurred last week.
Fascism has gone in the direction of cricket too. And we remain silent I have seen documents where powerful politicians had written to cricket officials on issues that were totally outside the jurisdiction of those politicians. And this happened long before the body that governed Guyanese cricket imploded. From what I have read, it would seem that the stage was being set for the eventual take over of cricket. The people who provided me with the proof ought to go public with their evidence. The key players in the regime should be exposed. They wanted to take control of cricket and now they have.
I have advised the persons who got in touch with me to relentlessly pursue their complaints with the West Indies Cricket Board. My opinion is that they should travel to Antigua and hand over the very evidence of political conspiracy that they showed me. It is important for these aggrieved cricket officials to note that the ingrained mediocrity of the ruling elites prevent them from successfully convincing any human being that has common sense.
It is for this reason, the LCDS funds will not come. The Norwegians met with powerful intellects like Rupert Roopnarine, Janet Bulkan and others. There is no question about it; from the top right down, they were not as convincing as the people in the opposition that spoke to the Norwegians. Similarly, the West Indies Board will not be persuaded by Government Ministers.
The take over of cricket administration was long in the making but the fascists showed their hands during the Rovin Stanley incident. Let me remind readers of the Stanley episode as described by this very newspaper in its February 6, 2011 edition. Stanley alleged that he as PRO for the Demerara Cricket Board (DCB) was asked to facilitate Minister Irfan Ally as Honourable Patron of the DCB but he and Vice-President Anand Sanasie disagreed because it would have been more appropriate to do so for the Minister of Sports because he is the Minister of Sports.
The rest is now history. Stanley and his wife were denied permission at the airport to leave for Canada. The Government claims he is still to pay back UG for his education. I work at UG and know that you are given seven years to do so and there is no prevention in traveling. Stanley’s rights were violated and the Guyanese society remained unmoved. It has now led us down a more dangerous and destructive path.
Three days later in this paper, someone who signed his name as Samaroo Jailall rejected what Stanley told this newspaper. But Samaroo carefully avoided the travel imbroglio that visited Stanley. In the meantime hundreds and hundreds of graduates (many of whom I taught and know well) continue to leave Guyana with the promise to repay in seven year’s time.
Since the regime seized control of cricket administration last week citing a ruling by the Chief Justice which does not give the Government any legal right to intervene in cricket administration, the Guyanese society has not demanded the removal of any Minister, whether the President, the Prime Minister or the Sport Minister from forming an Interim Management Committee (the IMC). In fact, the IMC will be called into being by a Minister of Government next week. The West Indian Cricket Board must reject this. The Minister and/or his Government cannot and should not call into being an IMC. This is unadulterated political involvement in cricket administration and the ICC will not accept it
Amazingly, the sports departments of the two independent dailies have not editorialize on the coup. No other sporting body has denounced the coup. Where are the football, hockey, cycling and tennis associations? I know two persons in sports that will not accept political take over of their sports – Christopher Ram from tennis and Hector Edwards (a UG colleague) from cycling. Those with resources must be relentless in lobbying the West Indian Cricket Board. I am contending that this hijacking action cannot be divorced from the impending national elections and for this reason we must reject any role of any Minister of Government in the running of cricket here in Guyana.
I repeat what I wrote last Sunday in the letter pages of this newspaper. All stakeholders should be involved in the formation of the IMC and let those stakeholders vote in the temporary board. The stakeholders must include sports journalists, business community, NGOs, sports personalities and civil society figures. We must demand the complete absence of politicians in the formation the temporary board. Or are we waiting on Robert Corbin to take the lead.
Freddie Kissoon

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