Dear Editor,
The Guyana Cricket Board wishes to record its extreme disappointment and shock at the level that a former cricket official has descended to in his most recent letter to the media titled ‘How could our legal system embrace such an obvious illegality for five years?’ In that correspondence, Mr Raphael proceeded to lampoon the judiciary and the GCB with baseless allegations and reckless statements. Quite obviously, he seems upset with the decisions emanating from the legal system but his reactions are totally misplaced and utterly disrespectful.
The GCB wishes to caution Mr Claude Raphael to desist from making such potentially libellous statements against senior members of the judiciary, both sitting and retired Chief Justices. Mr Raphael’s scathing remarks against the judicial system and our learned Chief Justices are most disparaging when they are very closely examined. He has now publicly denounced the numerous decisions of the Chief Justice, Mr Ian Chang. We should all respect the rule of law and the custodians of the judicial system which forms an important pillar within our democratic system of governance. The GCB issues a public call to Mr Raphael to immediately make an unqualified apology to these esteemed jurists and, in the future, to refrain from venting his frustrations in the public domain.
At the GCB, we have faced numerous decisions meted out to us by the judicial system, whether favourable to us or not, and have taken them all in stride whilst responding to them in the manner that our Executive Committee and members have determined to be the most expeditious course of action. Obviously, our collective decisions will not find favour with Mr Raphael and his colleagues, but they can be assured that they were all made in the best interest of preserving the integrity and development of firstly, our cricketers, the game of cricket, the institution of the GCB, its constitution, its members and its valued staff. As custodians of the game here in Guyana, the Guyana Cricket Board has an obligation to preserve its rich history and provide for the next generation. Everyone has disagreements and differences of opinion on issues from time to time which, coincidentally, is the reason why cricket administration has been mired in such controversy for the past 5 years. We all need to be mature and patient in our statements and actions and be ultra-careful not to offend, threaten or disparage persons with whom we do not agree.
The GCB is very proud of the investment that the Board and our valued sponsors have made in our cricketers, both seniors and juniors, over the past years and we are especially encouraged with the positive attitude, commitment and the successes with which they have been rewarded. We do acknowledge that we have not yet reached the pinnacle of our development programme, but we have already charted the course for achieving that with our business plan developed a few years ago.
For the record, the Guyana Cricket Board recognizes that the Cricket Administration Act is the law of the land and duly respects same. Even though we have our disagreements with the Act, we have embraced same and continue to operate within its framework. We wish to remind everyone that the GCB is the only legally recognized body enshrined within the said new Cricket Administration Act with the unenviable task of administering cricket in Guyana. This status existed just prior to the Act coming into force and subsequent to its implementation. The GCB has publicly expressed its dissatisfaction with this Act and has thus instituted a legal challenge to it which action is waiting to be heard and determined and, as such, is sub judice. We again strongly caution Mr Raphael to stop making false assertions against the GCB.
The Guyana Cricket Board will continue to encourage our players, officials and staff to be professional in executing their duties.
Yours faithfully,
Melinda Bishundyal Chaitram
For Guyana Cricket Board
