Team putting 'finishing touches' to Providence Stadium - LOC says
By Miranda La Rose
Stabroek News
March 24, 2007
The Local Organising Committee (LOC) said yesterday that several players on the ground were putting the "finishing touches" to the Guyana National Stadium at Providence and all were being managed "by a team".
LOC Chairman Dr Frank Anthony, Chief Executive Officer of the Guyana LOC Karan Singh and Minister of Public Works and Transpor-tation Robeson Benn presided at an urgently called press conference to respond to a Stabroek News report yesterday, captioned 'CWC appoints UK firm to manage Providence Stadium; cites loss of confidence in LOC'.
The report in this newspaper had its origin in a letter dated March 17 from the ICC CWC West Indies 2007 Inc Senior Legal Counsel Derek Jones, which cited the CWC's displeasure with Guyana' inability to "deliver a fully functional operating Super Eight venue in accordance with your contractual obligations".
According to the letter, which was dispatched to the Singh last Saturday, CWC said that over the last several weeks a number of matters were brought to the LOC's attention regarding its failure to proceed satisfactory or effectively in relation to its obligations pursuant to the Host Venue Agreement (HVA). These failures amount to clear breach of contract, it said, adding that every opportunity had been afforded to Guyana to rectify the deficiencies and breaches, but it had failed to do so.
The areas involved include: completion of the accreditation centre, media centre, video board, turnstiles, power distribution, venue graphics and other critical services.
"Your failure to deal adequately with these and other areas has resulted in CWC 2007 being unable to have confidence in your ability…"
The letter served as formal notice, Jones said, that CWC had engaged GL Events, "to complete those actions which ought to have been taken by you."
Anthony said yesterday that the LOC had responded to the letter "disagreeing with the issues Jones raised" and has not had a reply, so he assumed that the matter was dealt with effectively. "Any correspondence comes to us from ICC CWC we have responded to everyone of the concerns in the letters. I think the CWC is quite satisfied with our response because since then we have not had a response to that letter." He said the correspondence was ongoing and he was sure that before the week was out there were going to receive many more letters and the Guyana LOC would have to clarify the issues as they move ahead.
Anthony said GL Events had been contracted by the Guyana LOC to carry out most of the work, which Jones said was incomplete.
According to Anthony, all of the outstanding issues have been completed including the accreditation centre which is up and running and the turnstiles. Asked whether these were completed after the letter was sent, he said the turnstiles were needed for March 28, the first match day, and their installation was being completed way ahead of the date.
Asked whether the ICC CWC was complaining about work that the LOC had contracted GL Events to do, Singh said GL Events was contracted to work on a number of structures but the Guyana LOC has also enlisted the company's services "to put specific things in place for us." Some of the other areas are being managed by other companies, such as Rushman's for accreditation, which means that some of the works cut across each other, he said.
When asked on Thursday night to comment on GL Events having taken over the management of the site, Singh said he was dissatisfied with this move by CWC, but he pledged the LOC's commitment to work along with the firm to help stage the matches.
Yesterday, neither Anthony nor Singh would say who was at the helm of the management of the stadium. Anthony said that based on the organisational structure of the body organising the event, the ICC CWC West Indies Inc could appoint whoever it wanted as its venue manager. However, he said, the Guyana LOC could make a parallel appointment which it has done by appointing former sports minister Anthony Xavier. He said Xavier was on the job along with site engineer Walter Willis.
"Right now we have a very collaborative relationship with the team CWC has in the country. Mr Xavier continues to work at the stadium. He's there as we speak right now. Mr Willis is also there. So I would say this is a non issue," Anthony said, adding, "we have several players on the ground and all are being managed by a team that is on the ground."
According to Jones' correspondence, the ICC CWC had lost confidence in the ability of the LOC to provide proper site management "for the project up to and through the tournament period."
Jones said the appointments of Xavier and Willis as ICC CWC officials as recommended by the Guyana LOC had not been approved mainly because they had not "participated in the CWC site management programme, whatsoever, have failed to attend our workshop in Barbados on February 17 and have missed all seven conference calls, conducted by the CWC for the site management team during the tournament period."
Asked to respond to the non-attendance by the local Guyana LOC appointees, Singh abruptly terminated the press conference. Anthony said afterwards that only one meeting was missed and that Willis recently took part in another meeting. The issue of the missed conference calls was not addressed.
Anthony said the upbeat mood for cricket was quite tremendous. He claimed the negativity resulting from the publicity of Jones's letter was undermining the confidence of not only the paid employees but the thousands of volunteers, bed and breakfast providers and the public in general, in the competence of the LOC. "I want the public to know that we are very confident (of hosting the Super Eight Matches) that Guyana would get top-class matches and that we have put all measures in place. We want the public to know that."
Benn expressed the view that the ICC CWC would have written similar letters to other LOCs in other host venues.
Singh had addressed the issue of the sum of US$50,000 due to GL Events and an insurance policy for the overlay company as being paid, which Jones had stated was a breach of the contract by the Guyana LOC. he did not say whether the Guyana LOC would pay for additional services being rendered by GL events.
Singh said he had previously explained why the insurance was not paid and added that the LOC had to account to the government on how the funds are spent. "So we have to ask questions. We just don't pay because someone says to pay. We have to get clarifications. If we believe the costs are too high we have to challenge the costs and I personally submit that is what I have been doing," he said.
The Public Works Minister in brief remarks also said that most of the work being carried out by his ministry would be completed by today. This includes cementing some external areas of the stadium and sealing the bottom of fences. He said the workers were "exerting every sinew to get these works finished… We are basically finished."
Jones's letter, directed to Anthony and Singh, had also said: "Cricket is due to be played in Guyana on March 28. The consequences of Guyana not being ready are enormous." It added that given the state of things and the LOC's continuing breaches, CWC had no option but to formally invoke Clause 12.5.1 of the HVA. Clause 12.5 states: notwithstanding the provisions of Clause 12.1.1 and without prejudice to CWC 2007 Inc's rights as set out herein, in the event of any breach (whether material or not) of the terms of this agreement by the LOC, CWC 2007 Inc shall have the right to (subject to providing appropriate notice and opportunity to the LOC to remedy the situation) intervene immediately itself, to take any action itself to allow another third party to take action which should, in the reasonable opinion of CWC 2007 Inc, have been taken by the LOC in terms of the agreement and to do so at the LOC's cost without prejudice to the CWC 2007 Inc's rights and claims to any other form of remedy, including that of damages or otherwise.
The clause states that the LOC shall be provided with a reasonable opportunity to mitigate any loss suffered or cost incurred by CWC 2007 Inc in this regard. The LOC shall take all steps, which the CWC 2007 Inc considers necessary to assist CWC 2007 Inc or another third party to take such action or to facilitate such action being taken.
It reminded them of Guyana's continuing obligations under the HVA, including the obligation to assist and to facilitate the actions, which are required in order for the stadium to be functional and to function as required. The body said that it regretted the necessity for the actions it took, but it was left with no choice.