Luncheon debunks allegations of political takeover, hatchet job
THE Administration is continuing to pay keen interest in the developments of the Clive Lloyd-led Interim Management Committee (IMC) and has been tracking the progress through daily updates provided by Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr. Frank Anthony. This is according to Head of the Presidential Secretariat (HPS), Dr. Roger Luncheon, who spoke about it at his weekly media briefing in Office of the President, Shiv Chanderpaul Drive, Georgetown, yesterday.
He said the focus of the Administration on the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has been through direct and indirect engagements with officials of that body, as it continues to advance a basis for the IMC.
Luncheon, debunking the view of some sections in society that establishing the IMC is a “political takeover” or “hatchet job”, reiterated that it has been put in place to overlook the administering of the game and seek to rectify the state of cricket in the country.
He reminded that the basis for the IMC was the result of an August 22 Court ruling by Acting Chief Justice Ian Chang and, from the litigation, the running of cricket in the country has been chronicled by a list of Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) wrongdoings.
Justice Chang’s decision decreed that an IMC shall assume the administration of cricket nationally, in lieu of the GCB, while noting that “in the present state of affairs, while a legislative structure for the administration of cricket is desirable, there may be the immediate need for the minister responsible for sport to impose his executive will in the national interest until such time as Parliament can provide a more permanent welfare structure.
The minister can take immediate interim remedial action while the legislature seeks to provide a more permanent solution.
The IMC will be in place for a limited period of six months, during which time it would report, on a monthly basis, to the Sport Minister and, upon completion of its work, report on its major findings, make recommendations for the way forward and invite an authority with competence in electoral matters to hold elections for office bearers at both the regional and national levels.

IDENTIFIED LAPSES
Dr.  Luncheon told the media that the identified lapses have been shared with law enforcement officials and cricket external entities, including the WICB, the International Cricket Council (ICC) and colleagues in the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee on Cricket in CARICOM.
Just recently, President Donald Ramotar and a delegation successfully met with the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee at the CARICOM Secretariat, to iron out some issues which sought to stymie the hopes of the Guyana cricket team playing in the ongoing T20 tournament.
Luncheon said, too, that Minister Anthony informed Cabinet that the work of the IMC is ongoing and that the IMC will, very soon, host an engagement with the media, where it will detail its functions, output and expectations.
The HPS said he is optimistic of a successful conclusion to all the events that led to the creation of the IMC and its operationalising and lend to a new day dawning for cricket administration in Guyana.
The IMC also includes Senior Counsel Edward Luckhoo, Anthony Xavier, Norman Mc Clean, Harry Parmesar and Sport Ministry Permanent Secretary, Alfred King.
Anthony said they were appointed mainly to draft a new constitution, investigate allegations of financial improprieties, establish a comprehensive cricket development programme and craft legislation to have the GCB registered as a legal entity.
The long term proposal is to possibly have umbrella legislation for the other sporting bodies in the country.