CHAIRMAN of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and President of Guyana Bharrat Jagdeo has expressed his disappointment at the failure of the mediation talks between the West indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) which was held under the guidance of former Commonwealth Secretary General Sir Shridath Ramphal.

Prior to the mediation exercise, President Jagdeo had met and held lengthy discussions with both Julian Hunte and Dinanauth Ramnarine who are the respective heads of the WICB and WIPA separately and collectively, at which point the mediation exercise was agreed upon.

The statement issued by the Office of the President reads:

I am disappointed to learn of the failure of the WICB and WIPA to reach an agreement in the cricket mediation talks, but I am not wholly surprised.

When the mediation under Sir Shridath Ramphal was agreed upon with me on 21 July 2009, it was in the context in which WIPA made all their players available and I understand this is to be the basis of a return to normalcy in team selection.

The members of the WICB did not disclose to me or to WIPA that they had already selected a ‘B” team for the Champions Trophy in South Africa.

The President later apologised for the omission, but the damage had been done hence the mediation was weakened from the start.

Now, it seems that the mediation has been the victim of the same spirit of the WICB insistence on getting its own way whatever the consequences for our cricket.

CARICOM Governments will have to consider what next to do to save West Indies cricket, and West Indians, everywhere, from still further humiliation.

I thank Sir Shridath for his effort, and await his further report.