by BARRY ALLEYNE

THE BARBADOS CRICKET ASSOCIATION (BCA) wants the new Democratic Labour Party (DLP) Government to make the future of Kensington Oval an urgent matter for discussion and resolution.

President of the BCA, Joel Garner, said yesterday his association had instructed its chief executive officer Roland Toppin to seek
an immediate audience with Prime Minister David Thompson, and the Ministry of Finance regarding the Oval's future.

When that is done, the BCA will present a proposal for continued use of the multi million-dollar facility.

According to Garner, it's all up to Government now, since the BCA had been meeting constantly in an effort to come up with what it considered a "proper" proposal.

Garner, himself a legend of West Indies cricket, doesn't believe the issue would be one that causes problems for the new Government.

"We have always been in consultation with Government [the previous Barbados Labour Party administration] and there is nothing controversial about this. In due time, we will come to the people of Barbados, and let them know. But at the moment, we feel we should do things quietly. People will just have to wait," he said.

"We don't foresee a problem with this matter. It's just a matter of if the Government is accepting our proposal," he added.

Kensington Oval, considered the mecca of Caribbean cricket for almost a century, was remodelled with a BDS$300 million price tag last year, as Barbados hosted six Super-Eight matches and the final of the International Cricket Council's Cricket World Cup in April.

Since then, the facility has been used sparingly for sporting events, even cricket, but was the venue for the swearing-in ceremony
of the Cabinetlast Sunday.

Since his January 15 general election victory, the Prime Minister has restated his Government's commitmentto ensuring Kensington Oval does not become a white elephant.