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Every long rope has an end
Kaieteur Sports – There is an adage that says, ‘every long rope has an end’ and this expression appears to fittingly describe the impending fate of the current executive of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) which is scheduled to hold its Electoral Congress on December 9, 2023, at its National Training Centre, Providence.
The current executive, led by President Wayne Forde, has been in office since 2015 following the dissolvement of the FIFA-appointed Normalisation Committee (IMC) which was spearheaded by Clinton Urling.
Forde, who assumed office following a closely contested election against Attorney-at-Law Nigel Hughes, has largely failed to transform the sport locally and this has negatively impacted the game both in terms of development and interest.
The sport in Guyana in recent years have experienced highs and lows, but under Forde’s tenure organized football has almost disappeared from the local landscape.
Save and except for a few encouraging performances from national teams, made up mostly from players who reside overseas, it is easy to describe Forde’s performance in office as an abysmal failure.
He has failed to integrate the various stakeholders to move the sport forward, instead, he has created an unforgivable divide between the governing body and other relevant stakeholders, making it extremely difficult to enjoy true development of the sport locally.
The little life the sport enjoys presently, has largely been provided by private promoters, while the support for member associations has been selective and sparse.
The level of nepotism and marginalization of associations and individuals has once again resurfaced with ‘loyals’ being treated like ‘royals’ for their blind support, a feature that everyone au fait with the sport blamed for its dysfunction and bad image for so long.
It has not stopped, and one could rightly argue that it has become worse under the current leadership, prompting calls for a change in personnel in the highest office in the sport here.
It does not take a fair degree of administrative acumen to understand the importance of building partnerships with important stakeholders.
The current administration has clearly done the opposite, struggling to garner meaningful support from the corporate community for its projects and programs, thus making it extremely difficult to advance the sport’s fortune.
Football is the biggest spectacle in sport worldwide, and even in Guyana, it once enjoyed similar levels of viewership and corporate assistance like cricket, but poor governance and the perceived unwillingness to be transparent have ultimately succeeded in destroying the image of the sport.
Forde, who promised stakeholders to rectify the sport’s image following his ascension to office seemed to have also succumbed to the habits of some of his predecessors, choosing to rule by an iron-fist instead of sticking to his previous promise of democratic and transparent governance.
Well, as we have all seen in the past, there is a price to be paid for such deviations and come December 9, he will mostly likely suffer a similar fate as those before him.
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- Attorney-at-Law, Electoral Congress, Guyana Football Federation (GFF), Nigel Hughes, Normalisation Committee (IMC)
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