APNU HAS BEEN OUTFOXED BY THE GOVERNMENT

Jan 09, 2012 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

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There is no crisis within the administration of local cricket. There is an ongoing dispute within the Demerara Cricket Board, one of the affiliates of the Guyana Cricket Board. The government of Guyana has sinisterly used this dispute as a means of taking control of the GCB.
There is also no crisis of cricket in Guyana. The present executive of the Guyana Cricket Board is not yet one year old and therefore any assessment of cricket administration has to be on the outgoing executive headed by Chetram Singh, the longest serving President of the Guyana Cricket Board.
If cricket had been in the doldrums, Chetty would have long been replaced but he left on his own free will because of health reasons.
It was under Chetty that the greatest strides were made in cricket. He did more for cricket and cricket did better under him than under any other administration in this country. And that is a fact which can be borne out by the facts.
Guyana had the longest successful run of victories by any youth side under Chetty’s leadership. Guyana won the regional T20 competition (if you count the first Sanford tournament) two times, defeating the all powerful Trinidadians and Jamaicans in the process. Guyana should have won every competition had it not been for some bad luck in some of their matches. Guyana went to the Champions League because of the old administration headed by Chetty. Guyana also did outstanding in regional four day and one day tournaments under the GCB. There is no problem with the administration of cricket in Guyana.
The claims about lack of accountability cannot be leveled at the Guyana Cricket Board. If this were the case, the government would have made hay over the audited reports it has in its possession.
The problem with cricket in Guyana is political meddling by a government that wants to control cricket for political purposes and because certain individuals are pursuing their private agendas with the government. If there is any crisis it is within the government.
The Guyana Cricket Board is not opposed to the government forming a body to assist local cricket. They are opposed to the takeover of cricket and the usurping of the functions of a voluntary association by the state.
This is unacceptable in any democracy and is tantamount to abuse of power by the State, especially when it is accompanied by the padlocking of the offices of this voluntary association.
There is a simple and lawful solution to the problem of the Demerara Cricket Board. But the Guyana government is not interested in this solution. It wants to take over cricket and therefore has not tried to resolve the problem concerning the Demerara Cricket Board.
That problem can easily resolve itself. The Demerara Cricket Board is comprised of the Georgetown, West Demerara, East Bank and East Coast cricket boards.
The next election of the Guyana Cricket Board is due next year and by that time the problems in Demerara Cricket will resolve itself through a natural process since all of the above associations have clubs that are affiliated to them and who will decide on the composition of these associations and eventually the Demerara Cricket Board.
If however, the government wants to help resolve the problem quicker, it can do so in time for next year’s elections. It can act as a mediator in the process by bringing the sides together to sit down and agree firstly that the recognized Demerara Cricket Board will be allowed to continue until elections are held, say within six months; secondly by helping the sides to develop an acceptable constitution.
This is how simple it is and this is the facilitating role that the government should be playing, not by establishing an IMC to take over cricket; not by almost locking Guyana out of participation in the regional T20 tournament and endangering the future of our talented young cricketers.
It is greed that is driving the government’s actions. The government wants to control cricket because it has seen the fund-raising potential of cricket, having hosted some superstar matches in Guyana that raised millions for the ruling party. There are also persons within the government who have ambitions.
Unfortunately, APNU has adopted a misguided approach towards the tyranny that now faces local cricket and has quite carelessly played right into the hands of the government by virtually supporting the IMC that has been put in place.
APNU has totally misread the line and length of the government’s action. It will pay a heavy price for its misguided statement on the establishment of the IMC.
APNU has just given the government of Guyana, a blank cheque to establish an IMC for the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown. APNU has played right into the government’s hands.
The Georgetown City Council has more problems than cricket in Guyana and in fact can be said to be in a crisis. Since APNU, in general, supports measures to bring order to cricket in Guyana, by the same argument it has just given the government an excuse to impose an IMC.
And APNU had better stop deceiving itself because the government is in the process of taking over City Hall. The audit that is presently taking place is just the prelude to the imminent establishment of an IMC for the City Council.

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