Former presidents condemn Cameron’s refusal to meet with Caricom

PORT-OF-SPAIN, CMC:

Three former presidents of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) have condemned the decision by the Dave Cameron-led body to ignore a request for an urgent meeting with Caricom leaders.

Sir Wes Hall, Patrick Rousseau, and Ken Gordon have also blasted Cameron's response to the prime ministers' request as "pointedly discourteous".

Last month, Chairman of CARICOM's Cricket Governance Committee, Grenada's Prime Minister Dr Keith Mitchell, called for an urgent meeting with the WICB to discuss the latest independent report, which demanded a dissolution of the board.

However, the embattled WICB president has been insisting that the board of

directors first needs to go over the controversial report before a meeting with CARICOM could be held.

discourteous response

"The president of the WICB, Mr Cameron, has responded that such discussion can await the next scheduled meeting of the WICB on December 12, a pointedly discourteous response to CARICOM leaders, who have been supportive of the WICB in so many ways.

"You and your board have erred very badly, President Cameron, and we publicly call on you to reflect on the unfortunate implications of your response to CARICOM leaders," said the joint statement from the three former presidents.

Hall, Rousseau, and Gordon say Prime Minister Mitchell's request for an early meeting with the WICB is reasonable.

"You carry an important trust as President of the WICB. But no individual or transient board can be bigger than the game and the shaping of its future," they argued.

The former presidents also pointed out that the "widespread demand for transparency and accountability, coupled with the obvious deterioration in the performance and governance of West Indies cricket" have led to the appointment of three independently structured committees over the past eight years.