Last Thursday, on Christmas Eve, Santa Claus made a pit stop in Georgetown and dropped off his gift for local, starved football fans; the revival of the Annual Kashif and Shanghai (K&S) Holiday Knockout Football Tournament.
The disclosure of Santa’s presence in the capital city came in the form of a press release from the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) announcing that the tournament, which has the support of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport (MCYS) would be played between December 29 and January 1. It said clearance had been granted by the National COVID 19 Task Force for a non-spectator event, among all-star teams from Georgetown, Linden, East Coast Demerara and West Demerara, that will be aired on NCN, E-Networks and the MCYS Facebook page.
This announcement comes as a complete surprise, and bearing in mind the current coronavirus pandemic, several questions must be asked about what can only be perceived as a completely reckless decision.
The Annual Kashif and Shanghai Football Tournament which had become a staple of the Christmas/New Year entertainment schedule experienced a hiatus since it was last held in 2015. The competition, organized by Mr Kashif Muhammad and Mr Aubrey Shanghai, started back in 1990 as a four-team tournament in Linden. The next year, seven teams from the mining town participated in the contest. With the growing popularity, the K&S knockout tournament was then expanded to include teams from Georgetown and other districts, and later, even teams from the Caribbean. The final of the competition was shifted to Georgetown, as the event became an attraction for overseas-based Guyanese visiting for the holidays. The annual fixture also evolved into a magnet for very large sponsorship fees from some of the biggest local business entities, making it a highly profitable venture for the organisers.
There have been no pronouncements on what COVID protocols will be put in place for the event, such as the testing and isolation of the participants, or whether there are plans for a bubble, other than the fact that no spectators will be allowed to attend. The fixtures will place a rather large number of people in one area – the National Stadium. Bearing in mind that the four teams will each carry squads of at least eighteen players and probably four alternatives, there will also be match officials, at least four per match, GFF officials, medical staff, workers of the K&S coordinating team, members of the media, and possibly representatives of the sponsors and the MCYS in attendance. This gathering could easily see a total of 150 to 175 persons in attendance, albeit spread out over a wide area.
In the press release, GFF President Wayne Forde was quoted as saying, “Almost two months ago I met the Hon. Minister and shared an overview of the critical phases of the Golden Jaguars preparation for the 2021 international season. I also updated him on the GFF/UEFA Bounce Back initiative and the importance of putting into practice the game day COVID 19 protocols we had developed under the guidance of our European partners. Today I am very pleased to acknowledge the receptiveness and tremendous support of Minister Ramson, which has manifested in the GFF – Kashif & Shanghai Bounce Back Classic. The purpose of this event is to provide our local National team players an opportunity to play a few competitive games and to give the GFF Technical and operational staff a chance to test the implementation of the newly developed game day protocols. This is yet another example of important role the Government of Guyana can play in aiding the development of football, facilitating partnerships and engaging young people across Guyana.”
The GFF president’s statement contradicts an exclusive interview he gave to a local media outlet earlier this month. When questioned on the subject of the elections of the local football sub-associations, he stated that no local sub-association will be able to stage elections in 2020 because of the pandemic, and once the health situation improves these elections “will take place under the strict control and supervision of the GFF.” This interview followed the declaration by a candidate (and his slate) for the Upper Demerara Football Association presidency, known for his outspokenness, and who will be challenging a current member of the Forde slate. If, as Mr Forde said, the current protocols are not safe enough to hold elections, how can they be good enough to play football, which is considered a contact sport?
Local print media have a carried a photograph of Sport Minister Charles Ramson posing with Messieurs Forde, Kashif and Shanghai at the announcement of the tournament. Minister Ramson also appeared in the media a few weeks ago, posing with the winners of the ‘Resilience’ Bodybuilding Show which was staged at the National Cultural Centre on Saturday, 12th December.
While the forthcoming K&S Bounce Back Classic and the ‘Resilience’ show both received the blessings of the relevant authorities, the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) has experienced no such luck. Though Guyana won the FIBA 2018 AmeriCup Pre-Qualifier Tournament which was held in Suriname in 2018, players were denied permission by the National COVID-19 Task Force to commence training for the upcoming FIBA World Cup 2023 Pre-Qualifiers scheduled for El Salvador in February 2021.
In a letter, dated December 8th, and signed by Director of the National COVID-19 Task Force Colonel Nazrul Hussain, the GABF was informed, “I hereby acknowledge receipt of your request dated November 25th, 2020 for the commencement of basketball training. I am to inform that the Minister of Health has not approved the recommencement of basketball activities under the current COVID-19 Emergency Measures (No.12). These events will have to be rescheduled to a time when the measures permit.” It should be noted that the players listed for the preparatory training were just thirteen in number.
The Government’s COVID-19 measures and guidelines allow for sport events to be staged once approval is sought and granted by the Ministry of Health.
The ugly head of divisive local politics has once again been reared on the local sporting scene. It appears abundantly clear to one and all at this time that Mr Muhammad, who has been rumoured to be the frontrunner for the vacant post of National Sports Director, and who obviously has access to the powers that be, has secured the necessary permission to stage his event, regardless of the potential exposure that possibly eighty-eight footballers might suffer.
Meanwhile, our national basketball players have to sit and fold their arms, unable to practice for the most important tournament in Guyana’s basketball history. As the Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr epigram goes, “Plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose.”
