(Letter to the Sports Editor)

Please allow me space in your newspaper to respond to an article in the Guyana Chronicle Edition of 12th October, 2017, under the headline  “BCB President says Election was free, fair and transparent” written by Rajiv Bisnauth. It was simply unbelievable that someone who has spent over 30 years as an educator would allow his character to be stained with the most rigged election ever held in Guyana’s sporting arena  and then described it as free, fair and transparent. The Berbice Cricket Board Election on Sunday 8th October, 2017, would go down in history as the most rigged, untransparent and abuse of power to ever take place in the history of sports in Guyana.

The “Selected” President pleaded for a chance for cricket to move forward and for Court cases to be shelved. One is left to wonder why he didn’t ask the same of his current Vice President and Treasurer who tied up the Anil Beharry Administration for two full years with a Court Injunction. Beharry won by a clear majority and yet was denied the opportunity to lead. The four votes by Rose Hall Town and Young Warriors would not have affected Beharry’s victory, but Somwaru didn’t have the courage to beg his now close friends to give Berbice Cricket a chance.

The entire Berbice Cricketing public is very upset over the recent election which was clearly rigged and corrupted. The objective was not for the development of Berbice Cricket, but rather to protect at all costs the current leadership of the Guyana Cricket Board.
For the sake of Berbice Cricket fans, can the Berbice Cricket Board President explain the following:a) Why was a Five Star Hotel chosen for the meeting? Was it because it was private property and access to the Election Hall could be prevented. b) Godwyn Allicock (is) one of the persons responsible for the Injunction against the Berbice Cricket Board for two years. Is it true that you authorised him to serve as a “bouncer” at the entrance of the elevator to the Hall and to turn away people who were not your supporters.

The same Allicock later turned up as a delegate of Port Mourant, a candidate on your slate and later as your “selected” treasurer.c) Why was your rival for the Presidency denied access to the Election Hall? Is it true that was because he was not from a voting club? Can you explain to the public which club you were representing? d) Why was the two West Indies Cricket Directors, a former Guyana Cricket Board President, a University of Guyana Professor who has no linkage to cricket, allowed in the Hall.e) Why was Leslie Solomon and Raymond Mohamed allowed to pretend to be Mt. Sinai delegates when they have no connections to the Club. This resulted in the elected officials of the club being stopped from voting as mandated by the Club’s membership.f) Why was the Rose Hall Estate Community Centre mandated delegates refused permission to vote, based on a faked letterhead submitted by one of your closest advisors.

The members of the Club had met and voted for their delegates and even decided who to support for the Presidency. Why then was the Club denied their voting rights? Is it because you knew that they were not supporting you.g) Why were Guymine, Mental Hospital and Kildonan stopped from voting when they had proper documents with their memberships? They could not have paid any membership fees to the Berbice Cricket Board because the High Court had ruled that your executives were illegal. The elections of the three clubs were widely published in the national media.h) Eighteen delegates allegedly signed a document supporting Dru Bahadur for the post of Returning Officer.

Since only twelve delegates were supporting you, who were the other six.One Police delegate has already stated that he did not sign any letter to support Dru Bahadur but rather to indicate his presence at the meeting. Did the five other signatures included the fake delegates from Rose Hall Estate, Canje and Mt. Sinai.i) Do twelve out of 34 delegates form a quorum for an election?j) Why was nomination for the Presidency closed in less than five seconds? Why (was) the President of the Upper Corentyne Cricket Association prevented from nominating Hilbert Foster? Did you not trust your own 12 delegates?k) Who paid membership fees for Blairmont, Upper Corentyne, Chesney, Mt. Sinai and Police? Delegates at the meeting openly stated that no fees were paid. Even if it was paid by fake members, who received it on behalf of an illegal Cricket Board?

Finally, Mr. Somwaru owes the cricketing public of Berbice an explanation on who paid for the rental of the Five Star Hotel, meals and the bar. The Berbice Cricket Board transported a whole Under-13 cricket team in a car, provide Kool Aid as refreshments for our youths, but somehow found funds for an International Hotel. You complained in the media that sponsorship was hard to obtain, but funds suddenly appeared to host the most rigged election.  The business sector should not support this illegal body who stole the voting rights of 20 delegates (8 clubs and the Upper Corentyne Cricket Association).

Yours in Sports,Berbice Cricket Fan