I recently compared the exclusion of Shivnarine Chanderpaul from the West Indies team by loosely comparing his inability to retire to that of certain politicians in our region. To my mind one must retire with grace, something sorely lacking in our region's politics and most recently, was evident in the Chanderpaul debacle.
Since then I have been observing the latest Jack Warner investigation and extradition request by the United States. I could not have wished for a better example to compound my point than this particular situation. I mean, theoretically, Jack Warner can become the prime minister of this country!
At this point it is imperative for me to state categorically that Jack Warner is innocent until proven guilty. However, this Fifa scandal is of international proportions. The world is looking on. Whether one believes that the United States Justice Department and the United Kingdom's media are in cahoots because of sour grapes of some sort, one must still clinically analyse this situation.
The fact remains that T&T will be looked at as a Banana Republic should Jack Warner contest our general elections. Nowhere else in the developed world would you see a man under this sort of investigation contesting general elections and/or aspiring to be the prime minister of a country.
Perhaps Warner did good things for this country and football in general over the years. I think he is innocent until proven guilty. However, the real question is simple: what is the dignified and honourable thing to do?
Douglas C Bayley
Valsayn South