BCA President Under Fire

Barbados Cricket Association (BCA) president Stephen Alleyne, one of the more powerful directors of the WICB, is under pressure at home to resign.

According to a report in the Barbados Nation, more than 100 BCA members have signed a petition requesting an extraordinary general meeting to deal with Alleyne's handling of recent electoral irregularities.

The group, which includes prominent lawyers and business people, delivered the petition to BCA chief executive Ricky Craig outlining instances in the recent BCA elections where at least one candidate was not in good financial standing "at the time of his nomination, the closure of nominations and a few minutes prior to the start of special general meeting" held the same day.

According to the report, checks revealed that two candidates were not financial and another was seconded by an unfinancial member.

According to the petition, a special meeting of the officers of the board was held "just prior" to the general meeting. Noting this, the pressure group is asking that officers of the board present at that meeting and the special meeting "be censured."

The newspaper reported the group as asking that "on such a vote being carried by a simple majority they be called upon to resign such offices."

It is not the first time Alleyne's BCA has been under fire from within. Last July, board member Vernon Williams protested the nomination of president Stephen Alleyne and first vice-president David Holford as the two members to represent the BCA at the WICB AGM.

Alleyne and Holford had been elected as directors of the WICB but Williams expressed concern that "shareholders" should not be the same as the "directors."

"If the shareholders and the directors are one and the same, you are going to have problems where there are no checks and balances as evidenced in the last month or so,? Williams said at the time.

Alleyne, an influential member of the WICB's all-powerful executive committee, was part of the backroom deal that attempted to elect Chetty Singh as WICB president even though it was known that Singh's bookmaking business was in contravention of ICC rules.

Alleyne is CEO of the World Cup Barbados, the company set up to manage the Barbados leg of the tournament, which includes the finals.