Unanswered questions for the media
Peeping Tom
Kaieteur News
April 16, 2007
The question and answer segment of the recent Presidential Press Conference was not shown on television in Berbice. What was shown was the initial statement made by the President to the media in which he labeled Guyana's CWC 2007 a success.
Judging from the subsequent reports in the media, it can only be assumed that the members of the media present did not ask the sort of questions of the President that would have shaken his confidence in the general conclusion that Guyana's hosting of CWC 2007 was a success story.
Later, the Chief Executive Officer of the Local Organising Committee was also quoted in the press as lauding the success of this enterprise and showering praise on the many persons who contributed to the effort.
What I had hoped that the media corps would have done at both interviews would have been firstly to question whether the entire Local Organising Committee had met and whether the sentiments expressed by both the President and the Chief Executive Officer reflected the general consensus of the committee.
It would be interesting to know whether there is unanimity within the Local Organising Committee about the success of Guyana's hosting of CWC 2007. I am still hoping that the local media can elicit some comments from the general membership of the LOC to ascertain whether they all agree with the sentiments expressed both by the President of Guyana and the Chief Executive Officer of the LOC.
I listened to what the President said in relation to the concerns expressed by the ICC and CWC over local preparations. The President asked whether what they expected could have been done in two days.
In reality we were dealing with more than two days. Proper planning could have ensured that the things that were complained about should have been completed long before the letter was received, which was not two days before March 28 but a good one week before the first ball was bowled at Providence.
I am still wondering why our diligent media corps is not pursuing this issue as to just what was complained about, who was supposed to do what, whether it was done, who did it and whether in fact a group was contracted by CWC 2007 or by the ICC to take over the final preparations for the Guyana segment of the tournament.
The reports so far have been inconclusive on these issues which are critical to determining just how successful were the hosting of the event, and whether in fact we did meet our contractual obligations. To say I am disappointed in the local media is an understatement.
I did notice a news report in the media which stated that some US$800,000 was spent in the final preparations for the event. This is an astonishing sum and something that I believe needs to be followed up by the media. In fact the claim that some US$40M was spent on the stadium itself needs to be examined because if this is so it means that we were way above what the Indian government provided.
I therefore expect that in the days ahead as we continue to assess how Guyana fared for CWC 2007, we would get some clarification of these and other issues, and that the media would make a concerted effort to get behind these aspects of Guyana's preparations for CWC 2007.
Sometimes some of the journalists in this country struggle to get newsworthy stories. But here facing them are a number of questions that are important in determining how Guyana did and our diligent journalists need to get on top of these issues and probe some of the disclosures made.
One of those disclosures was that Guyana would make a healthy sum from the ticket sales. Readers will recall that the revenue from these sales was also deemed a success for Guyana. However, when you consider that Barbados will make in excess of US$24M from their ticket sales alone, this makes what we are getting seem like a pittance. It must also be pointed out that 95% of the tickets for the matches in Barbados were sold as at the end of December last year. Guyana cannot make any similar boast.
Guyana should however still receive a healthy contribution from the ICC after the tournament is over, which when added to the revenue earned from the ticket sales will be a good boost to the local coffers.
This, of course, is another area that the local media has not concentrated on. How will this huge windfall be used? Will it be used to help complete work on the stadium? Will it be used for lights for the stadium?
Will it used for that 20-20 cricket tournament that the President is interested in staging? Actually this proposal was first made by the Peeper in this column months ago when I discussed how we can make the stadium viable. I am glad to note that the President has adopted it.
Or will this money be used to reduce Guyana's debt to the Indian Government who provided both grant and soft loans to build the stadium? It is the job of the media to keep on top of issues like these since these are matters of national importance and equally as significant as that much-awaited announcement in just under two weeks' time.