President of the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB), Hilbert Foster, said he is more concerned about having a fair and legal process at the long-awaited Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) elections rather than who emerges victorious at the end of it.
Foster, speaking on sidelines of the BCB’s Second Division 100-ball tournament final recently, was responding to questions from the media on the delay of the GCB elections.
The elections, which were slated to be held on February 26, were postponed after Essequibo Cricket Board did not submit its mandated list of delegates.
Through its Attorney, the Essequibo Board raised some issues with regards to verification of clubs in an email to Cricket Ombudsman, Kamal Ramkarran, on February 25.
The Demerara Cricket Board and Berbice Cricket Board had submitted their delegates, all of whom were present for the intended election at the Umana Yana, Kingston, Georgetown.
“As someone told me, the hardest part of a 100m [race] is the last 10 meters, so it (the elections) is going to come. I am not concerned about who wins the elections, what I am concerned about is that the Guyana Cricket Board can finally be considered legal [so] you can approach sponsorship,” the BCB head explained.
Ramkarran had pointed out that the issue outlined in the email was “not about the putting forward of delegates”, but rather “my function of verifying registers.”
The Cricket Ombudsman, having been appointed by the Sport Minister after consultation with Cricket West Indies, as mandated by the Cricket Administration Act, has two functions- to verify the Register of Clubs and perform the functions of Returning Officer for the first election of the membership of the Guyana Cricket Board.
GCB Secretary, Anand Sanasie had stated at a press conference, that he felt the Ombudsman did what he thought was correct in the circumstance.
“I would say that the Ombudsman did what he thought was right and he has not been in the job for a very long time. In fact, in a matter of days, he was thrown in there to make some decisions,” Sanasie expressed.
He added, “I think what led to that meeting, the whole issue before, Demerara Board, [and] the purported meeting with Cricket West Indies, all of those compounded to what resulted there. I am not surprised that happened but I would prefer not, because of these matters being in the domain of the court still, I really don’t know what eventually is going to happen, but I think there is some sort of an effort to resolve the issues.”
Meanwhile, should Foster sit on the new GCB Executive, he hopes to bring his marketing prowess to help the GCB attract more major sponsors.
“Just like how Berbice Cricket Board is getting sponsorship, I am confident the Guyana Cricket Board could be able to do the same and if I am a part of the [GCB] Executive, I am excited to share with my fellow executives the many ideas that I have in my brain that we can get Guyana cricket just like Berbice cricket.”
No new date has been set for the GCB elections.
