The majority of the Bermuda Cricket Board’s (BCB) affiliates could seek a vote of no confidence against the Board’s current administration at a special general meeting later this month.

It is understood that over two-thirds of the affiliates have become dissatisfied with the general state of the sport and apathy shown towards cricket on the Island and have lost confidence in the current administration’s competence to govern the sport.

Board executives walked out of heated discussions with certain affiliates during a meeting held at Devonshire Recreation Club last Tuesday night, prompting the affiliates present to uphold a motion from the floor calling for a vote of no confidence at a special general meeting. “They (BCB) felt that from a legal point of view that whatever took place in the meeting was unlawful and so we decided that if we can’t come together for discussion then the best recourse was to take a vote of no confidence,” stated Devonshire Recreation Club president Ellsworth Christopher, speaking on behalf of the group yesterday.

“The greater majority of the clubs are dissatisfied with the way the Board is presently running. We don’t want to damage the image of cricket but rather feel that the current administration have run their course and maybe it’s now time for a change.

“We are all deeply concerned with the general apathy that is being displayed in the sport of cricket while there is also a litany of concerns among the affiliates who feel that they have been put on the outside of cricket. Information from the BCB has been so lean and whenever we do find out anything it is through the media which goes out to the general public. Eighty percent of the policies implemented in recent years have been handed down to the affiliates.

“Now we don’t know if this present administration, which has depleted considerably, can or are able to do anything constructive in cricket.”

When contacted yesterday, BCB secretary Marc Wetherhill vehemently rejected Christopher’s comments and pledged to persuade all 16 clubs that the Board was on the right track. (see story on this page).

Certain affiliates claim the Board have failed to adhere to their own constitution and are now contemplating taking the matter directly to the Ministry of Sport or possibly even to court.

“They (BCB) have been running outside of the constitution and so perhaps a judicial review may be needed. They have not been adhering to their own constitution and so if that is the case we just may have to look to the courts for a recourse,” Christopher said.

And they also claim that reforms made to the Board’s constitution last year were never ratified by the general membership.

“That constitution has never been put for ratification. A complete document has never been put up for ratification. They sent us a new constitution but it’s never been approved of in the proper manner,” Christopher said.

“We don’t know what constitution they have been working on because you can’t enforce policies that have not been ratified. So the constitution that must be binding must be the one that has been standing from 1995 (Bermuda Cricket Board of Control Act of 1995).”

Christopher, added: “We called a meeting for last week (July 3) to discuss some issues with the BCB but the BCB in turn said that they would have the meeting on July 10 which pre-empted us.

So when they came to the meeting last Tuesday they said the meeting was an unofficial one because we didn’t provide an agenda for the meeting — but this was the meeting that they had called.

“So we have now asked to have a meeting on July 24 where we will take a vote of no confidence in the current administration.”

Christopher revealed that an interim committee have already been established that will investigate the current administration’s past and current dealings and also solicit viable candidates who will be nominated to run for various executive posts at a properly constituted AGM.