Caribbean Times 89th Issue - Friday 9th September 2016

20 c a r i b b e a n t i m e s . a g
Friday 9th September 2016
Former WICB officials call
for forensic audit of board
Former presidents and officials
of the West Indies Cricket
Board have urged CARICOM
to conduct a forensic audit of
so.”
Asked for a reaction, the
WICB told ESPNcricinfo that
it has hired global consultants
the board in order to save West PricewaterhouseCoopers and
Indies cricket from “absolute
and total downfall”.
Six former officials - Ken
Gordon, Pat Rousseau, Anthony
Deyal, Charles Wilkin,
Bruce Aanensen and Imran
Khan - have claimed that the
KPMG to conduct the audit
operations. “We maintain an internal
and external audit system
with PWC and KPMG respectively.
You may refer to them
for any additional inquiries you
may have,” a WICB spokesperson
said.
current WICB administration
Former WICB president Ken Gordon: ‘We must reinforce the message
that West Indies cricket belongs to the people of the West In-
under Dave Cameron has seemingly
become “untouchable”, for an audit in July and has
Gordon first made the call
dies, not to the WICB’.
and not doing anything would renewed his plea in light of
lead to the “inevitable demise”
of cricket in the Caribbean.
“We must reinforce the
message that West Indies cricket
belongs to the people of the
West Indies, not to the WICB,”
Gordon, WICB president from
the WICB’s refusal to accept
the latest CARICOM reform
proposal and the controversial
removal of Darren Sammy as
captain of the West Indies T20I
team.
Rousseau, who served as
and has proposed as the mechanism
a forensic audit of the individual
boards which own the
WICB and of the WICB itself.
There is a deep threat of the
absolute and total downfall of
West Indies cricket. It’s a process
tical about CARICOM’s unity
considering the emergence of
factions within the regional
body. In June, Antigua Prime
Minister Gaston Browne had
stated that he would categorically
reject the CARICOM’s
2006 to 2008, said. “It may be which is fully underway president of the board from
call for dissolving the WICB.
timely to call for a forensic audit
of the organisation. We need
to lift the clouded veil which
now surrounds that body. Answers
are required and this can
be a first step to return to the
transparency required of a body
1996 to 2001, said all sporting
bodies need to be carefully
monitored.
“There should be an assurance
that there is certification
by an independent group that
proper governance procedures
and at this stage seemingly inevitable.”
Wilkin, a former chairman
of the board’s governance committee,
suggested that unless
the board heeds the calls for
change, CARICOM governments
Imran Khan, a former
WICB communications officer,
also felt the CARICOM’s refusal
to give the WICB access
to certain grounds could have
an impact. “Two things need
to happen: mass fan boycott,
which is a major beneficiary of should “refuse permis-
are followed at all times. I
and CARICOM governments
regional resources and private
sponsorship.
“Many lovers of the game
have said to me, ‘What can
we do that would make a difference?’
The WICB seems to
be untouchable. I say to them
and to all cricket lovers who
would commend to all the governments
in CARICOM that
they create special legislation
that brings all the sporting associations
under an obligation to
observe good governance principles
and to protect the finances
of the association.”
sion for use of the stadia and
refuse them access to regional
cricket grounds”.
“The real leverage which
CARICOM has, if it seriously
wants to force the WICB to
change, is the control of most of
the stadia used for international
refusing the WICB access to
grounds which they own or
control or have influence over,”
Khan said. “CARICOM can
no longer delay taking decisive
action to rescue to the regional
game from the cauldron of
incompetence from which it
are concerned, let the call for a
forensic audit be loud and clear.
Deyal, WICB’s corporate matches,” Wilkins said. “The
secretary between 2006 and WICB will not be able to host
boils. To not act is to contribute
to the further deterioration
We need to save our cricket and
this has to begin with getting
the WICB right. It would be entirely
legitimate for CARICOM
to fund such an exercise and I
urge that they consider doing
2008, supported Gordon’s call
and also urged for an audit of
country boards.
“I strongly support the call.
Mr Gordon has made a strong
case for following the money
touring teams if the CARICOM
governments refuse permission
for use of the stadia and the
various other permits required
under local law.”
Wilkins said he was skep-
of the regional game and to be
complicit in its inevitable demise.”
(ESPNcricinfo)