Former T&T captain Daren Ganga said while Caricom should have a say in the governance of the WICB, the matter raises broader issues on the adequacy of the current corporate governance framework and structure adopted by the board, as well as the role of key stakeholders in the governance process.
"The impact should be not just a mere say but very vocal and meaningful participation by Caricom and other key stakeholders in the governance process of the WICB," Ganga pointed out. Ganga drew reference to The Lord Woolf report on the governance of the International Cricket Council which stated that: "Cricket is a great game. It deserves to have governance, including management and ethics, worthy of the sport."
This, Ganga said, demonstrates the underlying importance of governance in cricket administration. Failing that, Ganga said, the sport will inevitably suffer. He also spoke about the infamous Patterson report, which asserted that West Indies cricket belongs to the people of the West Indies and not the WICB.
"In both the Patterson report and the recent 17-point recommendations of the Governance Committee of the WICB, restructuring of the Board is given prominence, the former adopted a two tier approach of a stakeholder type General Council and an executive cricket board answerable to the General Council, whilst the latter a 15 member board of which six are elected members."
Ganga said his perspective does not vary from the underlying concepts featured in both those documents as each in some measure demonstrate the need for key stakeholder involvement in the board structure apart from territorial board appointed directors.
"However, in my opinion the other key stakeholders have to be of equal number as the territorial board appointed directors, as if not, their views may be reduced to mere comments in a Minute and not necessarily translate in affirmative action." The role of independent thinkers and wider participation of stakeholders, Ganga said, cannot be undermined if there has to be positive reform.
"The multi tier approach by the Patterson committee, though it was well founded, there may be issues relating to the mandate of each of the two boards which may lead to issues of process, reporting and accountability leading to stymied decision making and confusion on roles and responsibilities."
Ganga said that the existing model of the WICB governance is a relic of another time in West Indian society coming out of the colonial and pre-Independence movement. "The administration of cricket is no longer the exclusive domain of what is perceived as an old boy's club and nor are the challenges the WICB faces in governance unique to their structure."
The question of viability of the West Indies as a unified cricketing nation, Ganga said, would certainly be under scrutiny as individual nations with far lesser cricketing traditions seek to qualify for ICC tournaments and inevitably seek test status.
"Accordingly, it is yet to be determined whether the West Indies as a singular cricketing sovereignty seeks preservation in a changing cricketing landscape, its very survival may not be as dependent on the performances on the field of play, but equally by the governance structure of the WICB."