Says Calvin Roberts

TO HEAD a banking institution for a umber of years is not an easy task, but Anil Beharry has been working within the banking institution since 1991 with such confidence and gusto, that his employers saw it fit to make him the head man in charge of the New Building Society Berbice operations since 2003.Last Sunday, the stakeholders of the gentleman’s game in the Ancient County of Berbice met and voted in a new executive under the supervision of Returning Officer and former president of the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU), Colin Bynoe, to look over the affairs of the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB).
There were two presidential candidates in the 44-year-old Beharry, who in his own right served as assistant treasurer to the Guyana Cricket Board and also first vice-president to the Keith Foster-steward BCB for the past term, and his competitor Vicram Seubarran.
Seubarran is the current president of the Port Mourant Cricket Club, Chief Executive Officer of Universal DVD Club and Universal Solutions and sole sponsor of the Berbice Universal DVD Club Titans T20 team.
Apart from his position at NBS, Beharry also holds several public portfolios including chairman of the Albion Lights Committee, serving council of the Regional Democratic Council for Region 6, heading the Health, Youth and Sports sub-committees and vice-chairman of the recently resuscitated Region 6 Road Safety Association.
Certainly, several stakeholders who casted their votes – 22 in total – in favour of Beharry, may not be aware of his accolades outside of the cricket fraternity, but certainly trusted his ability to lead the BCB for the next two years.
It was Beharry who was coordinating teams from the Ancient County to compete in Guyana Cricket Board Inter-county tournaments, even though the BCB was never playing a part in the day-to-day affairs of the GCB for reasons they alone know.
Now being the new man in charge, Beharry, who spoke of bridging the gap between the BCB and the GCB as it relates to the BCB’s stipend, which is due to them, among other developmental plans for cricket in Berbice, will need all the help necessary to move the game forward.
Persons will have to let bygones be bygones, put their differences aside, put their hands to the wheel and work together to plough the field, especially with the present showing by the Guyana Jaguars in the West Indies Cricket Board/Professional Cricket League tournament.
“We are not there yet, but certainly when you look at the success story on the field of play for cricket in 2014, certainly from July to present, many would see a change in fortunes, with players turning up for practice sessions, full of energy and bubbling with confidence.
It is believed that once Berbice cricket is strong, Guyana’s cricket is strong and when Guyana’s cricket gets strong, West Indies cricket gets stronger as Guyana plays an important part in the Regional side.
In another section of the press, Beharry claims that the biggest challenge for his Administration “is to ensure the game is played at all levels and that, I must say, is a huge task indeed, since finance would be needed to get the job done. Hence sponsorship and even the provision of the stipends from the GCB will be important.”
The time to put aside the differences, tread over burnt bridges and rebuild new ones is now, starting within the BCB and moving onward, so to all the stakeholders involved “put your hand to the wheel and get it moving towards the development of cricket in our country.
“A man may have the idea or ideas to do things, but unless he gets the push and or support to do it, he will not accomplish anything, as we all know, some persons loved to be pushed in order for them to get moving with their ideas and plans.
“They say the longest journey commences with the first step and I believe that Beharry’s journey has begun with that ceremonial handshake between himself and the secretary of the GCB, Anand Sanasie, following his ascendancy to the presidency of the BCB – a step in the right direction to healing.
“Let’s continue the healing process, as Beharry goes about selecting the remainder of his team to assist in the managing of the game in the Ancient County, since he will need all the help he can get to accomplish his goals and achievements.”