APNU warns of ICC, CWI consequences following GCB Irfaan Ali endorsement

Last Updated on Wednesday, 2 July 2025, 18:04 by Writer

The opposition People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR)-led A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) on Wednesday slammed the President of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Bissoondyal Singh for stating that he and the membership have endorsed incumbent Irfaan Ali for a second term in office.

Demerara Waves Online News was informed that the GCB was discussing the issue Wednesday afternoon and planned to respond to APNU’s concerns.

APNU said in a statement that Mr Singh’s declaration of support possibly flouts International Cricket Council (ICC) and Cricket West Indies’ (CWI) rules because of the likelihood of governmental interference in the management of cricket.

Worried that the endorsement opens the door for the incumbent People’s Progressive Party Civic-led administration, APNU called for the backing to be rescinded. “On behalf of the cricket fans and decent-minded Guyanese, we demand that the GCB withdraw its endorsement,” APNU said.

“No doubt, this endorsement is a direct invitation to the government to interfere in the administration of this wonderful game of our country. An alliance between the Board and President Ali will almost ensure that the latter will attempt to control this organization,” APNU said in a strongly worded statement. The party argued that the GCB’s “unfortunate” endorsement of a politician would call into question the fairness and impartiality of the Board as regards the question of selection, financial administration, and its alignment with international cricket norms.

Noting that that endorsement was a logical follow-up to the occasion when the entire Executive of the GCB wore red shirts when they called on President Ali after Bissoondyal Singh’s re-election in March 2025, APNU said political involvement in the running of the game would have a negative impact on cricket and the way it is played and administered. “The APNU Coalition has no choice but to condemn the GCB’s move.”

APNU noted that the main bodies which have administered cricket in Guyana, first the British Guiana Cricket Board of Control (BGCBC), and subsequently the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB), through astute leadership, managed over the more than 80 years of cricket succeeded in avoiding the deadening hand of political interference to darken the administration of cricket in Guyana. In breaking with tradition, APNU said the GCB has ushered in a sad day for the administration of cricket. “Worse, none of its members had the decency and courage to take a principled stand against this ill-considered and unacceptable decision.”

In an address to the Berbice Cricket Board’s Awards Ceremony, the GCB President lauded President Ali, a “great human being”, for being the “greatest contributor” to cricket and Guyana’s “transformation and modernisation” over the past five years before explicitly endorsing him for a second term. “It is with absolute conviction and unwavering confidence that I, as President of the Guyana Cricket Board – and I speak on behalf of the entire membership of the GCB – do hereby publicly and wholeheartedly endorse the leadership and the Presidency of Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali and that of the People’s Progressive Party Civic,” he said.

The excerpt from the pro-government Newsroom was reposted on the GCB’s Facebook page.