THE shocking decision by the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) and the Barbados Cricket Association (BCA) to boycott the December 6 important Cricket West Indies meeting on governance reform has been criticised for being “undemocratic.” The no-show by two of the six territorial boards caused the meeting to be adjourned after a quorum was not met. As a result, the expected vote could not be taken on implementing crucial reforms proposed by the much-heralded Wehby Report, which aims to modernise CWI’s governance framework.
On December 8, one of TT’s CWI directors, Arjoon Ramlal, questioned the bona fides of the representatives of the two absentee territorial boards. Ramlal is also chairman of CWI’s governance committee, which has been laying the ground work for the landmark vote.
“We are greatly disappointed at the turn of events, which was unexpected after much work had been done to reach the point of gaining the endorsement of the CWI shareholders for the much-needed reform of the governance principles that everyone has been clamouring for,” said Ramlal.
The governance committee chair elaborated, “It has been a lengthy and comprehensive process, including broad consultation with stakeholders, meetings of the governance committee, and deliberations at the CWI board level.”
He said that in the lead-up to the vote, there was never an inkling from any member of the GCB or the BCA about concerns they now trumpet in a “joint statement” seeking to justify their rebellious behaviour.
“In any event, the CWI is a democratic body with a principled code of conduct where it is unheard for actions taken by two dissenting associations to stymie the progressive push for reform overwhelmingly sought by the other members and CWI board,” said Ramlal.
The session was expected to address significant proposals, including adjustments to introduce term limits, the term durations for the president and vice-president, and other measures designed to strengthen CWI’s governance structure.
In a media release, CWI said GCB formally indicated their non-attendance, while BCA did not provide a response.
“This marks the second time that both the GCB and BCA have refused to attend a meeting of the members, the first instance occurring in 2021,” the release stated. GCB also chose not to attend the special meeting on September 20, 2024, for the election of the vice-president after a relentless pursuit from their board for re-election to be held.
Ramlal said that he fully supports the stance taken by the president of CWI, Dr Kishore Shallow, who stated that despite the setback, the regional organisation remains committed to the governance reform process and will explore all options to ensure the necessary steps are taken to implement the Wehby Report recommendations.
“We all agree that following the historic meeting convened by Dr Keith Rowley, the TT Prime Minister and chairman of the Caricom Sub-Committee on Cricket at the Hyatt earlier this year, governance reform was imperative. With Dr Shallow’s incremental approach, which is sensib
