THE MOST eagerly anticipated West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) annual general meeting in several years comes off today amidst tremendous interest over the election of a president.
Against the background of intense lobbying over the past five weeks, incumbent Julian Hunte is facing a challenge from his vice-president of the past six years, Dave Cameron in a contest that many observers are predicting is too close to call.
Both Hunte, the 73-year-old St Lucian who has been the WICB’s boss since 2007, and Cameron, a 42-year-old Jamaican, are confident of securing the majority of the 12 shareholder votes during the ballot at the Accra Beach Hotel.
The two candidates are contesting the poll with running mates in what is also expected to be a keen battle for vice-president.
Joel Garner, the outstanding former Barbados and West Indies fast bowler, who is now president of the Barbados Cricket Association (BCA), is on Hunte’s ticket and will come up against Dominican Emmanuel Nanthan, president of the Windward Islands Cricket Board of Control.
It is the first time in ten years that an election for the WICB’s presicency has attracted two candidates. The last four WICB elections have been mere formalities with the nomination of a sole candidate for the job paving the way for a straightforward installation process.
One would have to go back to 2003 for the last poll when Barbadian Teddy Griffith defeated former WICB vice-president, Antiguan Clarvis Joseph, by a 9-4 margin.
In the event that both Hunte and Cameron gain the same number of votes, the WICB constitution stipulates that there will be a 30-minute recess before another poll is held.
If the second ballot also fails to break the deadlock, the annual general meeting will be adjourned and reconvened within 30 days to hold a third round of voting.
Hunte, who was nominated by the Leeward Islands Cricket Association and seconded by the BCA, offers the experience of more than four decades in cricket administration, having previously held the positions of WICB vice-president, and head of the Windwards Cricket Board as well the St Lucia Cricket Association.
Additionally, he boasts of a distinguished career in other spheres, having served as St Lucia’s Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) and president of the UN General Assembly, St Lucia’s Foreign Minister and a former Opposition Leader.
Cameron, who was nominted by the Jamaica Cricket Association and seconded by the Windwards Cricket Board, has been a WICB director since 2002. He is a former chairman of the WICB’s marketing committee and development and strategic planning committee, a former treasurer of the Jamaica Cricket Association and a former vice-president of the St Ann’s Parish Association.
A licensed financial securities dealer representative, he is also vice-president of fixed income and securities trading at Sterling Asset Management and Services Limited in Jamaica.
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