Dear Editor,
In 1996 I entered cricket administration, on a voluntary basis, with the single intention of giving the best of my skills to the game I love. I functioned as Treasurer of the East Coast Cricket Board under the presidency/chairmanship of Messrs S K Singh, Jerry Permaul, Charles Gibbons and Bissoondyal Singh. Also, during this period, I served as Treasurer of the Demerara Cricket Board under the leadership of Mr Claude Raphael, Mr Harold Dhanraj and Mr Bissoondyal Singh. From January 2009, I served as Assistant Treasurer of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) under the presidency of Mr Chetram Singh.
I worked diligently and honestly throughout my tenure on all those Boards, giving my best in the interest of the development of cricket. During my tenure at the GCB I began to uncover a series of irregularities and suspicious transactions pointing to illegal practices. These were brought to the attention of the GCB executive from time to time but were often brushed aside. My persistent enquires were supported by a majority of the executive members but because the minority held certain positions, my requests/ observations were generally dismissed.
It became obvious to me that there existed within the GCB a deliberate plan to take complete control of the Board at all costs, especially in relation to the finances. After a very stormy Executive Board meeting on May 21, 2010, during which I was threatened, I was subsequently burnt with acid by someone whose remarks to me established that it was clearly cricket-related. I spent forty-two days in hospital.
Most persons would have been finished with cricket but, after recovering from my injuries, I returned to the GCB executive to complete my term with the expectation that the other executive members would rally with me to remove from the Board those members who were engaged in the illegal practices. Sad to say that while some genuine, decent members supported my efforts, a few whom I was extremely surprised at, continued to countenance the illegal practices.
The situation reached the limit when a group orchestrated, manipulated and went to great lengths to ostracise the Demerara Board from participating in the 2011 GCB elections, thereby paving the way for a hostile takeover. An illegal body was installed at the GCB, despite the Berbice Cricket Board’s abstention and the Demerara Cricket Board’s injunction. Chief Jus-tice Ian Chang ruled among other things that neither the plaintiffs nor the defendants could be recognized by the courts as they are all legal non-entities. He then recommended that the Minister of Sport could exercise his authority in taking remedial action by firstly establishing an Interim Management Com-mittee (IMC) as temporary relief and thereafter by legislation as a permanent solution.
It is patently distressing that to date no action has been taken and the illegal regime still pretends to be the GCB. Decent and diligent stakeholders (Berbice Cricket Board, East Coast Cricket Board and Georgetown Cricket Association) who in fact make up the majority of Guyana cricket have been sidelined and the GCB is now controlled by a minority clique.
Since the court has no jurisdiction and the relevant authorities have failed to act, what must the concerned stakeholders do for justice? My burn scars present permanent evidence of the wages received for doing good in a climate that seeks to embrace and support wrongdoers.
Yours faithfully,
Pretipaul Jaigobin
