FOLLOWING Cricket West Indies (CWI) elections on Sunday in Jamaica, executives of the North Essequibo Cricket Committee (NECC) have extended congratulations to the new leadership.

In a release, the Committee hailed the election of Ricky Skerritt and Dr Kishore Shallow as president and vice-president respectively as a resounding victory for the restoration of good governance, moving towards strengthening the battered relationship between the players and board, and professionally recognising our former players.

While it will take time to heal the wounds of a divided organisation and a team yet to reassert its greatness, the statement noted that Mr Skerritt has vast experience as a former West Indies team manager, who knows the culture and strengths of the team as well as being a Rhodes Scholar and former senior Government Minister with responsibility for Sports and Tourism.

Dr Shallow is the president of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Cricket Association and also brings on board a wealth of institutional knowledge and intellect.
Such qualities, the statement infers, are needed in quickly advancing the true potential of the Caribbean and the growing reservoir of players; therefore, they are in the correct order to bat for CWI at this juncture.

In addition, the statement also appealed for the new board to swiftly intervene and initiate the passage for free and fair elections by Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) which was not constitutionally held for the past six years.

According to the statement, the former regime reneged from its civic responsibility to address the issue despite several appeals to the former President and Board of Directors.
Instead, the statement intoned that it seemed business as usual for the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) even though the passage of the Cricket Administration Bill by the Guyana Government paved the way for the conduct of elections.

The NECC, according to the statement, is pleased with the new leadership and looks forward for the desired results both on and off the field.