Anand Sanasie and Calvin Hope are about the effective management of West Indies’ cricket and are not interested in personal attacks on any cricket administrator.
Hope, speaking at a media briefing in the Hall and Griffith Stand at Kensington Oval this morning hosted by the Barbados Cricket Association (BCA) to announce officially its support for his quest to become vice-president of Cricket West Indies (CWI), made it clear that the management of the sport and not being offensive to incumbent CWI president Ricky Skerritt and vice-president Dr Kishore Shallow, was the principal aim and objective of himself and running mate Sanasie.
“Myself and Sanasie stick to the facts and we did not invent the facts of what has happened. We question things about management and their stewardship because a team on the field winning a Test series, or an ODI series and a Twenty 20 series, good governance inside the organization is extremely important, because if that is not happening, that performance on the field will not be sustainable.
“And if you have the press and the cricket fans questioning the fitness regime, if they don’t understand it, that can’t be good. Our cricket is important and our people are hawk-eyed when it comes to cricket. They can see when a person may not be favoured when they look at statistics and say that is a bit questionable. When you make statements that give assurance to two players and you do not stick to those assurances, all of these things are management things that those in charge are accountable for,” Hope said.
When asked if any other territorial boards in addition to the BCA had indicated their support for Sanasie and himself, the former Barbados Under-19 captain said: “I don’t think that anyone running in an election goes on a platform and says that they have a constituency under their belt. What I can tell you about this election, I know that Mr Sanasie has been nominated by Guyana and seconded by the BCA. I have been nominated by the BCA and seconded by Guyana. Both nominations were sent to CWI I think on the 15th of February. We got acknowledgement of receipt two days later. I would imagine that the president and vice-president have sent in their nominations. I have seen in the press that the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) nominated Mr Skerritt and Dr Shallow and they were seconded by the Leeward Islands. On paper it means that Mr Sanasie and I on paper have four votes and the incumbents have four votes as well,” the attorney-at-law explained.
Hope disclosed that he and Sanasie would be trying to woo other territorial boards and described the elections as a political campaign.
“This is a political campaign. What we have done is to communicate to all of the territorial boards except for Guyana and Barbados, and sent them our manifesto ‘Operation Rescue’. We have also asked them to allow us to make a presentation to their boards. We have some responses. I would say generally the responses have been receptive, we have not received any rancour from the member territories and we are expecting to make a presentation to the TTCB soon,” Hope said.
Hope added that he and Sanasie shared a very important attribute which was seeing the world differently from others around them.
“Where others see weaknesses, we acknowledge them but are far more focused on strengths and the obvious talent that abounds. Where people see threats and challenges, we look at the value and see opportunities and potential for growth, given the way we look at and value human intellectual and the profile of West Indies’ cricket,” Hope said.
Among the projects being proposed in Sanasie and Hope’s manifesto are the opening of a commercial office in Mumbai, India, to promote CWI, and the appointment of a director of women’s cricket.
President of the BCA Conde Riley described Hope as one of brightest and best members on the BCA’s board, and stated the board was pleased to support the team of Sanasie and Hope.
The annual general meeting of CWI takes place on March 28.
