Former president of the West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA) Dinanath Ramnarine has been described as hypocritical for his criticism of the T&T Cricket Board (TTCB) of which he is an ordinary board member.
In a strongly worded press release issued by the TTCB yesterday, officials of the board led by president Azim Bassarath and executive member Manohar Ramsaran took the former WIPA president to task.
In the release, Ramnarine has been advised by Manohar Ramsaran, an executive TTCB member to do the honourable thing and resign his position from the sport’s national body before going public with his baseless comments.
This after Ramnarine, who was replaced last year as WIPA president by Jamaican Wavell Hinds, told a local daily newspaper that he was confused by the TTCB’s stance on the recent removal of wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin as captain of the West Indies Test team ahead of their tour of Sri Lanka later this year.
Ramsaran said while Ramnarine is casting aspersions on the governance of the TTCB, he is displaying the same undesirable qualities he seeks to condemn.
“It is unethical and highly irresponsible to be a member of an organisation and run to the media and air your views when there are processes within the organisation to have your complaints and concerns properly addressed,” said Ramsaran.
However, the president of the Monroe Road Cricket Club said it is not surprising that the ex-leg spinner would choose to go the route of sensationalism since he depends mainly on “bluster and bluff more than substance to press his case and provoke reaction for imaginary and non-existent issues”.
Ramsaran, the caretaker chairman of the Central Zone of the TTCB, said that Ramnarine’s desire to get into the media spotlight is overshadowed by his poor performance as WIPA president when regional cricket was torn with industrial strife and was held up ridicule all over the world.
“It was under his watch that regional cricket was made a laughing stock and while he advocated a militant approach to resolving players’ issues, the fortunes of the team hit rock bottom and is yet to recover,” said Ramsaran.
Also coming out in defence of the TTCB was its president Azim Bassarath, who easily defeated Ramnarine in a leadership battle for the top position last year and was the target of ex-cricketer’s tirade in the local media.
He said that while Ramnarine admitted to being confused by the TTCB’s position on Ramdin’s removal as regional captain, most of T&T are similarly left collectively scratching their heads at the lack of transparency and accountability at WIPA during the period 2003 and 2013.
“Ramnarine must tell the national community if there has been audited financial reports during the decade when he was WIPA president as the answer will indicate the type of governance he presided over, and general view held that he shows blatant disregard for the established principles of good governance,” said Bassarath.
He said Ramnarine should be the last person to question the governance of the TTCB and referred him to the constitution of the Comets Cricket Club, which he now heads, saying that charity should begin at home in Pierre Road, Charlieville.
“The constitution of Comets states that to be eligible to stand for the office of president, you must be a member for ten years and serve two consecutive terms on the executive which must surely qualify as the most prohibitive and exclusive club structure in the history of T&T sport if not the entire world,” said Bassarath.