Gordon wants WICB probe
‘Answers required’ from cricketing body
Published on Jul 31, 2016, 10:22 pm AST
By Ria Taitt
While acknowledging the many faults of the West Indies Cricket Board, former chairman Ken Gordon has cautioned Caricom leaders against taking any legal action against the WICB.
Speaking at the 60th Anniversary of Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board North Zone Cricket Umpires and Scorers Association at the VIP Lounge, Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo, Gordon conceded that the WICB did not want to yield to corrective measures but he also did not agree with a recent statement from one of the Caricom prime ministers which appeared to suggest that some form of legal action was being considered against the board.
“I hope this does not happen. For as much as the WICB’s unprincipled behaviour is to be condemned, the time and money likely to be spent on litigation of this kind will make court action counter-productive. First because the WICB is a limited liability company and this does not lend itself to legal intervention from the Government(s). But more significantly because urgent action is now required to arrest the deteriorating pattern of behaviour which threatens to become the culture of the organisation, conduct which is already manifesting itself at wider levels,†Gordon stated.
No accountability
by board and players
The former Integrity Commission chairman contrasted the Board’s successful management of the 2007 World Cup “probably the largest and most ambitious project ever undertaken in the Caribbeanâ€, with the subsequent sharp deterioration in the governance of West Indies cricket, currently reflected in “distrust from players, despair from Caribbean supporters and estrangement from Caribbean Prime Ministersâ€.
“In recent times we have seen a West Indies team walk off the field and abort a tournament in far-off India because of a domestic issue with the WICB,†he said, in reference to the 2014 tour in India.
“Then the most senior member of the West Indies team responds publicly and internationally to his critics with vile and vulgar language. Both matters requiring the firm voice and action of authority; for the team should have been sent back to the Caribbean by the next plane and the vulgar player publicly disciplined. Neither occurred. Failure to understand what responsible management requires is now our most urgent threat. For how do you impose standards of conduct in younger players when standards do not exist?†Gordon said.
A “new and disturbing ballgame is unfolding before our eyes which must be taken seriouslyâ€, Gordon said. “
“The transparency about which the WICB once boasted has been replaced by arrogance and disrespect. Serious allegations of misuse of resources made by a former senior executive have been quietly settled out of court with the caveat that there be no disclosure of anything that occurred during his employment at the WICB. There are serious reports that highly paid officers engaged in the training of the team do not even speak to each other and internecine warfare is ongoing. These reports may or may not be exaggerated but they are disturbing. When coupled with autocratic conduct, it now appears that the WICB sees its accountability as being only to itself,†Gordon stated.
Forensic audit of WICB needed
Pointing out that the Board’s behaviour could not be supported, Gordon called for a forensic audit.
“We must therefore reinforce the message that West Indies cricket belongs to the people of the West Indies not to the WICB, limited liability company or no and it may be timely to call for a forensic audit of the organisation. We need to lift the clouded veil which now surrounds that body. Answers are required and this can be a first step to return to the transparency required of a body which is a major beneficiary of regional resources and private sponsorship,†the former chairman stated.
“Many lovers of the game have said to me what can we do that would make a difference? The WICB seems to be untouchable. I say to them and to all cricket lovers who are concerned, let the call for a forensic audit, be loud and clear. We need to save our cricket and this has to begin with getting the WICB right.
It would be entirely legitimate for Caricom to fund such an exercise and I urge that they consider doing so,†Gordon recommended.
Gordon stressed that it gave him no pleasure to speak in such terms about an organisation that he was once proud to lead. “But I am deeply concerned about the unprincipled manner in which the WICB is conducting itself. Standards have fallen sharply and personal ambition and egos dominate everything else. Those of us who care about this must stop being spectators of the warfare which is currently taking place and do whatever it takes to restore decency and principled conduct to the WICB,†he declared.
Board blocked previous attempts at reform
Gordon gave an overview of previous attempts at reform and the Board’s dismissal of the reports arising out of these efforts. Gordon recalled that in 2006 he invited former prime minister PJ Patterson of Jamaica to chair a committee aimed at formulating enlightened recommendations for developing a more widely representative path for West Indies cricket and one that would promote discipline and deepen the mental strength and application of the players.
“Some months later, by which time I had withdrawn from the WICB, and after their report had been submitted, Mr Patterson found it necessary to publicly express disappointment over the treatment of his committee’s recommendations. They had not even been afforded the opportunity to discuss their report with the WICB. Such out of hand rejection of a report prepared at great personal inconvenience by three eminent Caribbean men was not only discourteous, it was dishonest,†Gordon stated.
The former chairman also recalled that respected attorney Charles Wilkens of St Kitts had been appointed to chair a committee to make similar recommendations. “When they, too, recommended that meaningful reform had to begin with dissolving the West Indies Cricket Board, they suffered a similar fate (as the Patterson Committee),†he said.
Following discussions between Caricom and the WICB, another high-powered committee was appointed, chaired by Dr Eudine Barriteau, principal of UWI’s Cave Hill Campus, which included the president of the Caribbean Court of Justice, Sir Dennis Byron, he noted. “Caricom’s attempt to urge an early discussion of the committee’s recommendations received a response which bordered on impertinence,†he said, adding that it was therefore unsurprisingly that a recent statement from one of the Caricom prime ministers appeared to suggest that some form of legal action was being considered.
Congrats to North Zone
Cricket Umpires
Gordon congratulated the North Zone Cricket Umpires and Scorers Association on the important strides it has made during the years and for its 60 years of service to the extraordinary game of cricket. “There is much on this 60th Anniversary of the North Zone Cricket Umpires and Scorers Association in which your Association can take great pride as we celebrate this important milestone,†he said.
“Umpiring has come a long way from the days of Rolly Blackman and while your role has not been one to make the headlines, your professionalism, consistency and commitment continue to make an invaluable contribution to the game,†he said.
Noting that the environment was challenging when people like Gerry Gomez, Lance Murray and Sonny Murray put their heads together and formed the North Zone Cricket Umpires and Scorers Association in 1956, Gordon praised the association’s wide and varied scope of activities and its on-going efforts to lift the standards of umpiring.
“Standards which have been dramatically impacted by the technology now playing an increasingly dominant role in the conduct of the game, and which today demonstrate the high level of competence which exists at the international level of umpiring. Invariably, Hawk Eye, when called upon, confirms the accuracy of the human decisions of our umpires and this is a great credit to the profession.â€
Success of World Cup Cricket
Gordon said the success of World Cup 2007 was an important part of Caribbean history, especially in light of all the pain and controversy being generated over the Olympic Games shortly to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
He said World Cup 2007 produced an overall tournament surplus of US$53,900,000, a surplus that was significantly higher than any previous World Cup held in any other part of the world. There was on-time delivery of 12 world-class, fully functional stadiums and 22 impressive grounds, making it possible to accommodate international cricket at all of the nine cricketing Caribbean territories, a work force of 9,000 persons and training of 4,000 volunteers across nine countries; on-time and incident-free movement of sixteen teams throughout the region without losing even one item of baggage; the successful execution of the largest ticketing operation in Caribbean history with 672,000 tickets distributed almost flawlessly across the world to 436,000 persons; and co-ordination between nine notoriously divisive Caribbean governments to achieve tight and effective security throughout the tournament.
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