The government is making a mistake
Peeping Tom
Kaieteur News
April 10, 2007
A preacher looked over his large congregation on Easter morning and startled them with this announcement: "My friends, realising that I will not see many of you until next Easter, may I take this opportunity to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!"
The two daily columnists of this newspaper and in fact the only two daily columnists in the entire Caribbean, Uncle Freddie and the Peeper, are far more fortunate than that preacher. We have the good fortune of knowing that no matter how much of our faithful fans may criticise us, they read us every day.
It is however one thing to read the Peeper and Uncle Freddie's columns; it is another to accurately represent the arguments that are presented in the opinion pages of this newspaper.
The Peeper has noticed one glaring misrepresentation, one that I suspect is aimed at damage control after the fiascos involved in Guyana's staging of CWC 2007. The misrepresentation being peddled is that the two columnists from this newspaper had predicted that World Cup Cricket would not have been staged in Guyana.
Speaking for the Peeping Tom column, I wish to emphatically deny that the Peeper ever made such a contention. The Peeper stands by his general criticism that was made about the construction of the stadium. My central proposition was never that the stadium would have been built. That was never in doubt even though the media and spectator parking lots, along with the overall exterior of the stadium, were a disgrace and embarrassment for a country which had sufficient time to prepare for this event.
Now that the final ball has been bowled in the Guyana leg of the Super Eight Round, we return to the central concern about how we are going to make this stadium financially viable. If we hope to improve upon the standards at the stadium itself, it will require perhaps about fifty per cent of the personnel directly working during the tournament. And this will cost a fortune.
At the same time it must be borne is mind that the ticket prices for future cricket hosted at the tournament will not be at a premium price charged during CWC 2007. Even with the favourable seating capacity of the stadium, it is not likely that the stadium can break-even if it is to be maintained and operated in a way befitting an international venue.
The President has indicated that the government has amortised the loan and grant facility used to build the stadium and is confident that the facility will be sustainable. The Peeper is not so certain.
I am yet to be convinced that having borrowed in excess of US$25M to construct the stadium that it can repay itself without a heavy subsidy from the government. Even if we have one touring team come each year to play to a packed arena, I do not believe that we can cover the amortisation, maintenance and operational costs.
Of course we do not need to. The national stadium should be looked upon as a national sporting facility very much in the same way as the many other facilities that taxpayers are forced to maintain because of the lack of financial sustainability.
The principal contention of the Peeper was always that we will build a stadium which will become a white elephant because it will be costly to maintain.
The President has said that the stadium will be turned into a multi-purpose facility. The Peeper is predicting that if this happens it will mark the rapid decline of that facility. The facility at Providence is built for cricket. To use it for other disciplines and for other purposes will risk damage to the playing field which is one of the main features of the stadium.
It will be a serious mistake if the President's plan for the stadium is put into effect.
If taxpayers' funds have to be used to keep this facility going in the same way as other national facilities are subsidised by the government, the Peeper would support this. In fact I would even go so far as to recommend that we cut the number of Ministers and use the savings to upkeep the stadium which can be developed into something that the entire nation can be proud about.
I predict that if the government opted to subsidise the stadium, it is likely to encounter stiff resistance from the IMF and World Bank who I am sure, now that CWC 2007 is over, will be pressing for a feasibility plan for the facility.
The President, I believe, is too optimistic about the future of the stadium. And I believe that the plan to turn the stadium into a multi-purpose facility will damage the outfield and reduce its appeal as a venue for international cricket. I question the government's decision on both counts.
However, the Peeper concedes to the President on another point. I admit that I was wrong when I took issue with a statement by the President that had it not been for the stadium, we would not have international cricket.
I still believe that Bourda is capable of hosting international cricket. However, one of the things that we must now contend with is the fact that there are a number of countries within the region that now have impressive stadiums and who will now be pushing to host international cricket in the region.
I still insist that even without the stadium, Guyana could have hosted international cricket. However, given the competition now for hosting matches, without the stadium our push to host matches, while possible, would have been extremely difficult.
The Peeper thus concedes to the President on the point that building the stadium has helped to secure Guyana as a host nation for international cricket.